Tired of packing the same old lunch for your kids? Good food habits set early in childhood can last a lifetime. Lunches provide around one third of our daily nutritional needs, so it’s important to put some thought and planning into them.

Here are some tips on how to prepare a healthy lunchbox that your child will eat and enjoy.

1. Include a wide variety of foods

For a balanced diet they need fruit and vegetables, starchy foods, protein and dairy

2. Vary the types of bread

For example, pitta bread, bagels, wholemeal rolls – keep a stock in the freezer

3. Cook extra rice or pasta in the evening

These can make great salads. Try a pasta salad or filled tortillas

4. Brightly coloured bottles can make plain water more interesting!

Fluids are important for children – up to 6 cups of fluid should be encouraged daily. Milk and plain water are the best options. 

5. Get your child involved in packing lunches

Let them help choose some element of their lunch. Pick a colourful lunchbox or let them decorate one  with stickers

6. Try out new ideas at teatime or the weekend

Children often need to see and taste new foods several times before they accept them, so try them out before including them in a lunchbox

7. Try to offer different foods every day

They may just want to stick with their favourites but encouraging them to eat a variety of foods is really important.

Healthy lunchboxes

Want to know what goes into a healthy lunchbox? The possibilities are endless! To help you and your kids pack tasty, nutritious lunchboxes we have a leaflet with practical suggestions for each day of the week.

• Download the healthy lunchboxes leaflet