Guidelines won't rule out diet of chips

The Government is planning another effort to make schoolchildren eat healthier food when it launches diet guidelines on balanced menus for schools.

However, an education department spokesman denied that the guidelines, due for publication "fairly soon", were a revival of plans to stop children eating too many chips and other fried food.

In March, plans to force schools not to serve these foods more than three times a week were dropped after caterers argued for better dietary education and more choice (Caterer, 9 March, page 4).

"It [the latest guidance] won't explicitly say you can't have chips five days in a row. It will offer guidelines on different food types," said the spokesman.