THOSE SCHOOL LUNCHES

Te Ao Hou, September 1959, Page 63

THOSE SCHOOL LUNCHES The Problem of school lunches is always with us. In the old days, child-ren often did without a midday meal. Today, particularly in schools with a mixed Maori-European roll, it is essen-tial for every child to have a school lunch, and a good one at that. What is really a good school lunch? Here is the answer, given by the Home Science Extension Branch of the University of Otago: A packed lunch must be an adequate substitute for the meal which would have been eaten at home. Each day the lunch tin should carry one third of the day's food needs. Build the lunch round cheese, eggs, fish, meat, whole cereals, fruit, vegetables and milk. Sandwiches are the obvious choice. Make them hearty, with plenty of filling and wholemeal bread for preference. Occasionally a cold chop or saus-age, a fish cake or hard cooked egg can make a pleasant change, and cut down the number of sandwiches that need to be made. Some sweet food is desirable in a lunch, and this may be in the form of a sweet sandwich, or a crisp chewy biscuit or cookie. A little custard, spanish cream or fruit jelly can provide the sweet touch sometimes. Make a little extra when you prepare the evening meal. Encourage children to drink school milk, or provide a milky beverage yourself. Fresh raw fruit or vegetables are nature's toothbrush. Include them to be eaten last.