With the beginning of the course many parents decide that their children eat at school (or have no alternative). Our colleagues in Peques and more offer us in these cases some advice for families about school canteens.
The Spanish Confederation of Associations of Mothers and Fathers (CEAPA) has prepared a comprehensive report on school canteens, given the importance of this space in which children make one of the daily meals and spend a lot of time, usually five days to the week.
These are the ten recommendations that from CEAPA offer families whose children go to the dining room in the different schools of our country:
Many school canteens do not offer balanced menus. Therefore it is recommended carefully read the information about the menus they receive from the school, and observe the variety, the combination and the nutritional contribution of the foods of the school menu. In this sense, demand that they consume some vegetables daily as an ingredient of the first course and / or accompaniment of the latter, legumes two to four times a week, and at least one piece of fruit.
Organize the rest of the meals at home so that they complete a balanced diet.
Notify the dining room service when necessary to administer a special diet to the child.
Control other foods and treats that your son or daughter takes to school and the time they eat them. CEAPA recalls that the Law on Food Safety is already in force and that therefore the vending machines for sugary soft drinks should be removed from the educational centers, as well as eliminating the sale of industrial pastries
Be attentive to the hygiene of the dining room, kitchen and toilets.
Claim that the dining room space serves to promote values such as respect, companionship and urbanity (use of cutlery, chewing, proportion in food pieces, hygiene and hand cleaning, use of toothbrush, polite attitude towards monitors, etc.).
Ask that the dining room also be a space of knowledge of food, its composition, nutritional properties, effects on the body itself, healthier elaboration processes, discovery of the pleasure of eating and drinking, etc.
Be realistic when discussing the menu price, so that the quality is not diminished. CEAPA relies more on the quality of the school menu and the training of the dining room monitors managed directly by the Educational Administration. However, it recognizes that there are companies that provide good quality service.
Meet with other fathers and mothers to cooperate in the proper functioning of this service, being also sensitive to the effort made by those responsible for the dining room. As always, the union and communication between the parents and the center is fundamental.
Demand from the center educational, recreational and rest activities for the free time that remains before and after eating.
As we see, the decalogue of tips on school canteens It is oriented to the need for families to obtain the necessary information, participate and monitor the feeding of their children as much as possible. In addition, it is requested that the dining room service be consistent with the health and the environment, integrating itself into the educational purpose of the center.
