LACA chair’s school meal comments make national media
LACA chair Lynda Mitchell has been busy responding to national media interest in school meal standards following outspoken comments on the subject by Jamie Oliver.
She was sought out by Observer newspaper political editor Toby Helm for reaction to Oliver’s attack on Education Secretary Michael Gove for allowing academies and free schools to ignore the national nutritional standards.
The Observer reported: ‘Last night Lynda Mitchell, the national chair of the of the Local Authority Caterers Association, said she had been told of cases where academies were lowering standards and of cases where vending machines with sweets, crisps and fizzy drinks were being introduced.
“It is very worrying. We have clear evidence of this happening,” she said, adding that vending machines could be moneyspinners for schools, bringing in profits of £14,000 a year each – enough to pay for a teaching assistant.’
The thrust of Oliver’s argument was that some of Gove’s flagship academies are lowering nutrition levels among pupils and profiteering from junk food vending machines because they have been allowed to ignore national standards.
Meanwhile today’s Daily Mail has followed up on the interview with Oliver, reporting his criticisms of Gove and his fears for the health of young people in the UK if school food standards are allowed to slip.
The Mail reports continues: ‘The Local Authority Caterers’ Association said it was aware of bad habits creeping in which had not been seen since standards for secondary school meals were introduced in 2009.
National chairman Lynda Mitchell said: “I’ve come across an academy school where pupils have been allowed to go through with a plate of chips and a piece of cake.
“It is about high volumes of pupils and turning a profit.” She also said she had seen several examples of vending machines in academies selling confectionery.’
Lynda also travelled to Birmingham to record comments for a Channel 4 television news item on Oliver’s comments – only to find the interview was dropped at the last minute by breaking news related to the protests in Bahrain.
Below are links to the original Observer and Dail Mail articles:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/apr/22/jamie-oliver-academies-junk-food