The UK's first 'brain food' menu for schools — aimed at giving pupils the best chance to get the most out of their day, mentally and physically — has been launched by a Gloucestershire company this September 2024.
The new menu from Staverton-based firm Creed Foodservice, one of the UK's leading independent food wholesalers, features meals and snacks inspired by world cuisine that are packed with nutrients to benefit all aspects of wellbeing for teenagers.
Creed, which first launched in the Cotswolds and has more than 50 years' experience supplying food for the education sector, has created the new menu together with leading dietician and author Juliette Kellow.
It comes after research from the company found that 83 per cent of pupils said their concentration is affected negatively if they don't eat something nutritious and filling before or during school, with 65 per cent saying their physical health is also impacted negatively.
The menu features street food-inspired options like a breakfast omelette taco; loaded sweet potato wedges topped with a beef and lentil chilli; and a 'posh pot noodle' with chicken and vegetables in a miso broth, along with dishes like salmon and broccoli pasta in a light cream cheese sauce; and strawberry cheesecake overnight oats, all intended to boost pupils intake of a range of nutrients.
Executive business development chef at Creed, Rob Owen, who co-created the menu, said: 'Half the battle for schools isn’t just encouraging children to eat the right food at breakfast and lunchtime, it’s getting them to eat a proper meal full stop.
'Our findings show that pupils’ main priority at lunchtime is socialising with their friends and 48 per cent of parents told us their child skips breakfast at least one school day every week. No one can function well if they don’t have any fuel inside of them.'
The company also found that an overwhelming majority of parents — 96 per cent — would welcome their child’s school offering a menu that provides dishes rich in nutrients that support brain function, with only 14 per cent of parents saying their child always eats well at school.
The full 'brain food' menu can be found on the Creed Foodservice website.
