Table 3

School meal standards for nutrients and foods at follow-up, with proportion of children in intervention and control groups meeting each standard

Nutrient or food typeGovernment school meal standards for EnglandControlIntervention
Primary school nutrient standardDescriptionPer cent meeting standard95% CIPer cent meeting standard95% CI
Starchy food1 portionLow-fat starch, fried food no more than 2 per week89.186.1 to 91.688.484.9 to 91.2
Protein food1 portionGood-quality meat or fish71.667.3 to 75.575.170.5 to 79.2
Dairy food1 portionAs part of main course or dessert52.146.7 to 57.560.654.8 to 66.1
 Cheese16.212.9 to 20.222.718.4 to 27.8
 Milk-based desserts44.339.2 to 49.450.544.9 to 56.1
Fruit1 portionFresh or tinned in juice53.747.1 to 60.158.951.9 to 65.5
Vegetables1 portionSalad or cooked15.711.9 to 20.227.021.4 to 33.3
DrinksPermittedWater, fruit juice and milk permitted26.321.1 to 32.228.022.3 to 34.5
DessertsPermittedCan contain cocoa powder as flavouring11.08 to 14.813.710 to 18.5
Sweetened drinksRestrictedNo sweetened or low-calorie flavoured drinks permitted39.733.1 to 46.339.632.5 to 46.7
Savoury snacksRestrictedNo crisps permitted38.131.8 to 44.551.644.5 to 58.7
ConfectioneryRestrictedNo chocolate, cereal bars or sweets permitted36.631.7 to 41.644.338.7 to 49.9
Energy (E) (kcal)530 (±5%)Mean over a week13.811 to 17.312.59.5 to 16.2
Protein (g)7.5Minimum92.989.5 to 95.294.991.7 to 96.9
Total fat (g)20.6Maximum56.651.7 to 61.355.950.6 to 61.1
Saturated fat (g)6.5Maximum44.039.8 to 48.244.439.8 to 49.2
Total carbohydrate (g)70.6Minimum71.265.7 to 76.175.870.3 to 80.6
Non-milk extrinsic sugars (g)15.5Maximum20.416.3 to 25.317.113.1 to 22
Fibre (NSP) (g)4.2Minimum31.325.9 to 37.337.231 to 43.9
Vitamin A (μg)175Minimum22.818.6 to 27.628.923.8 to 34.6
Vitamin C (mg)10.5Minimum80.676 to 84.583.779 to 87.5
Sodium (mg)499Maximum18.915.1 to 23.419.515.3 to 24.5
Calcium (mg)193Minimum61.455.9 to 66.663.157.2 to 68.6
Folate (μg)53Minimum41.235.5 to 47.144.838.6 to 51.2
Iron (mg)3.0Minimum22.718.4 to 27.526.121.2 to 31.7
Zinc (mg)2.5Minimum27.824.2 to 31.834.530.2 to 39.1
  • NSP, non-starch polysaccharides.