JEDDAH, 17 April 2005 — School lunch counter sanitary conditions and foods with more sugar than nutrition are giving some parents unease and consternation.
To grow, to be healthy and to stay alive, everyone needs to eat. However, we cannot eat any kind of food. We need a mixture of healthy foods to keep us in good physical shape and to give us energy. We should choose the right food for our children so they grow up healthy.
Are school lunch counters providing a healthy food for our kids or are they just supplying a variety of foods that contain chemical substances without paying attention to their nutritional value? Some parents notice that the lunch counters are serving unclean, cold or stale meals and that the workers are uneducated so they don’t focus on hygiene requirements while preparing meals.
“Cleanliness is very important in food outlets. Llunch counters should ensure cleanliness so that the students don’t catch any viruses or diseases as a result of food poisoning,” said Ahmad Al-Amri, a secondary school student. “Uneducated workers prepare sandwiches without wearing gloves. Their employers have to oblige those workers to apply all health requirements to maintain the wellbeing of students.”
Why don’t they reduce meal prices and provide more varieties?
“The school lunch counter has to be clean and provide convenient, healthy food,” said student Mohammed Al-Otaiby. “The reasons that make us reject school meals are that schools are raising the prices of meals more than the vendors outside. In addition to the limited quantities and varieties of food, some food is served cold and stale. This motivates most students to run away during break time to buy their lunch from vendors outside. We aren’t satisfied with the food that the school counter offers.”
Because of the absence of supervisory personnel, parents are demanding that schools deal with catering contractors that could fulfill their children’s dietary needs.
“Food counters need constant supervision and investigations by the health director in each school,” said Mehsen Al-Malky. “I suggest that a unified company should be responsible to provide every meal for all school lunch counters under daily supervision and examination of food inspectors. They have to punish any worker who neglects hygiene rules to ensure the delivery of healthy, clean meals.”
Why not increase the duration of lunch breaks? Some students complain about being late or not having enough time, which prevents them from buying and eating their lunch.
“Most school lunch counters are crowded because they are very small and narrow, which cannot accommodate all students,” said Ahmad Al-Ghamdi. “The number of workers who sell the meals is limited and the break time is not enough for all students to buy and eat their meals. Most of us think of going out to the vendors near schools to save time.”
Should schools have a cafeteria for the students to eat their meals?
“Our students have their lunches on the floor or next to the building walls,” said Suleiman Al-Thumali, a principal. “There are no appropriate places that can accommodate all the students to have their meals in.” He noted that school lunch counters have to be inside school fences far from polluted environment, toilets and sewage.”
“It’s preferable to be inside the school campus,” Al-Thumali said. “That prevents dust, waste water and insects from getting in. Besides that, there have to be enough windows to sell the meals. The vendors have to be provided with ventilation, lighting, enough bottled water and trash cans. They have to clean the area daily by using antiseptics. There should be a ban on selling expired and stale food, all kinds of sodas, canned food and beverages.”
The school vendors need to take care in choosing food that contains beneficial nutrition for the students.
“Parents should teach their kids how to choose the right food that benefits their bodies and make them aware and accustomed to the meals that have nutritional value,” said Mohammed Al-Amri, a nutritionist in King Fahd Hospital in Taif. “A balanced diet helps the child to grow healthy and increase his intelligence and maturity.”
He said there are plenty of nutritious foods out there. Eggs, beans and low-fat cheese are good while brown bread is preferable to white ones. “They should drink large amounts of milk and fresh juices,” he said.
Don’t make life too sweet for the students. “Our kids should be kept away from fast food and all kinds of sodas, sweets and chocolates that cause tooth decay,” said Al-Amri.
