Until next October 7, contributions can already be made to the Royal Decree for the promotion of a healthy and sustainable diet in educational centers. Contributions can be made until next October 7, at 6:59 a.m. to the email [email protected]
The project, which is part of this Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN OA), establishes a series of minimum criteria for nutritional quality and sustainability, to guide the contracting, acquisition and supply of food and beverages in educational centers.
According to the project, taking into account the time that children spend in school, and the fact that many schoolchildren consume at least one main meal in this type of establishment, it is considered appropriate:
Encourage healthy eating patterns.
Contribute to reducing socioeconomic inequalities.
Achieve greater and better efficiency in the use of public funds.
Among the various points and chapters, we highlight what is considered an average menu and its portions:
a) First courses:
– Rice: one serving per week.
– Pasta: one serving per week.
– Legumes: one to two servings per week.
– Vegetables: one to two servings per week.
b) Second courses:
– Meat: maximum three servings per week.
– From one to three weekly servings of white meat.
– Maximum one serving of red or processed meat per week.
– Maximum two servings of processed meat per month.
– Fish: one to three servings per week.
– Eggs: one to two servings per week.
– Dishes based on foods that provide plant-based protein: from zero to five servings per week.
c) Side dishes:
– Varied salads: three to four servings per week.
– Other side dishes (potatoes, vegetables, legumes): one to two servings per week.
d) Desserts:
– Fresh fruit: four to five servings per week.
– Other desserts, preferably yogurt and curd without added sugar, fresh cheese: maximum once a week.
e) Other requirements:
– Water as the only drink. The presence of running water as the only drink will be guaranteed, unless it is not possible due to the conditions of the
supply.
– At least once a week whole wheat bread will be offered.
– At least once a week the rice or pasta will be integral.
– White and blue fish will alternate.
– In relation to the recommendation on fish consumption, fish species with a high mercury content should be avoided, such as swordfish/emperor, bluefin tuna (thunnus thynnus), shark (dogfish, mako shark, spiny dogfish, dogfish and blue shark) and pike.
– Fried foods will be limited to a maximum of two servings per week.
– The use of pre-cooked dishes such as pizzas, cannelloni, croquettes, dumplings, fish or battered meats, among others, will be limited to a maximum of three servings per month.
– Use of iodized salt in a reduced form in culinary preparations.
