Nude food vs plastic wrapped
Is nude food really a huge hassle or is it something to get excited about? Our school has a nude food policy in place – playground rubbish bins were removed a few years ago. So I was surprised to recently learn that some parents still send lunches to school containing plastic wrappers and cling film.
There are a few arguments for nude food.
- less landfill – see below
- potentially healthier food options (let’s face it most of that “snack pack” stuff is a “sometimes” food)
- financially better off – if you are buying in bulk or baking at home it’s going to make a difference to your shopping docket
- less rubbish ending down the drains and in our waterways/oceans
Our school phased in a nude food policy back when Immi (10) was in Prep – and prior to that, our kindergarten was very enthusiastic about recycling. One of my bugbears is just how much packaging some food has… I get that it needs to stay fresh and travel safely, but things like individually wrapped biscuits and the like, gah – our ancestors in 1000 years (if we have any) are going to be digging that stuff up and shaking their heads.
The guys at Smashbox and Nude Food sent us a bunch of their new lunch products to run a little experiment. What would a week of lunches look like in their lunchboxes versus cling wrap and a bag? I hope you see the outcome and realise just how much plastic is potentially ending up in school yards around Australia. The lunchbox products from Smashbox and Nude Food are versatile and (if your kids are anything like mine) the kids love them. They are dishwasher safe.
With options this cool and easy to use, using the old excuse that plastic wrapped is easier is no longer viable.
Lunch in the Smashbox
Lunch in the Nude Food Movers
Lunches in the Nude Food Envirobox
The same lunches wrapped in plastic
Disclosure: this post isn't sponsored, but we have been supplied with products to test and keep.
The rice crackers and crudite+dip containers are brilliant! Must get on this…
I have done banana bread but I like the idea of muffins as they probably don’t stick together like the loaf slices do when they are frozen.
I just discovered this hack too and it works really well!
The banana thing is cute (my son still flatly refuses to eat them even with a cute message) and I love the sponge idea – could come in handy for sticky fingers and spills at lunchtime too!
Such a neat Idea Mikaela!
i get the kids to bake all their school snacks so they can keep the sugar to a minimum and experiment with great flavours. because they made it they are more likely to eat it
Use re-useable pouches and freeze yoghurt in them, they help to keep everything nice and cool.
I use colours of the rainbow and make it a game to see if the kids know what colour is missing that day – lots of fruit and veg, all cut up with no plastic wrap in sight! A good set of containers is a must!
Ohh frozen grapes is a great idea!
Make sandwiches on a Sunday and freeze them
Spinach scones are my sons favourite. Dinner (with soup) on Wednesday then the leftover scones are his lunch on Thursday. So 1. Don’t have to make a separate lunch and 2. SPINACH!!!
core an apple and put it in a fruity mover! the kids love it and no mess.
Reusable squeezy pouches for yogurt, mashed up fruit smoothies, freeze and use as ice packs for the Aussie heat!
Our school doesn’t have a nude food policy but I still encourage my children by not wrapping their food, and using good quality, hard wearing containers. My son thinks he’s having a picnic every lunchtime!
Meatballs – an easy way to give children much needed protein. Makde big batches and freeze then mix it up by alternating chicken, beef, lamb and pork with different dips such as hummus, tzatziki and greek yoghurt.
KISS! (Keep is simple!) Give them what they like to eat so that they will, now isn’t the time to experiment, that is done on holidays.
Frozen fruit juice keeps lunches cool,
For all who work and for kids at school.
Nude Food products to pack it right,
No more cling wrap to keep it air tight.
Less rubbish in out waterways,
Healthy lunches, happy days.
freeze grapes and berries, mix in with yoghurt for a healthy, cool and refreshing lunchbox snack. I have little glass containers, so the environment loves I\]this lunchbox hack too xxx
Let your children have some input into their own lunches, it’s a failsafe way to make sure they eat everything in their lunchbox!
I have an array of healthy snacks, that are on offer for selection. The kids get to choose, therefore reducing the risk of the food coming back at the end of the day.
I make Healthy Muffins in a big batch fortnightly, then wrap individually and freeze them, so that they always have a healthy treat to eat.
Make cheese stick sushi, ,wrap a cheese stick with meat and a tortilla wrap, then slice, add lettuce for colour
genius… I must admit I love this idea as much as it terrifies me!
We freeze squeezie yoghurt so that they are ice packs but also a cool snack later in the morning. Also, we are teaching the kids to pack their lunches as well. Its a hack for me time wise, but also a valuable lesson for them.
Get the kids to make their own lunches so they have an investment in eating them.
Yum!
I recently discovered freezing half the bottle and then filling the remainder with water in the morning meant that they didn’t have to wait half the day for it to melt for a drink ?
Bananas, apples and kiwi’s are my fav lunch box fruits. They require no container, sandwich bags or cling wrap. They come in their own either compostable or edible packaging.
My hack to encourage my children to eat at least some of their packed lunch is to include a variety of different textures and colours in their lunchbox. So, some red capsicum chopped up, a couple of black olives, a baby green cucumber, some yellow baby corn spears, a little tub of yoghurt and a handful of crunchy cereal… and I mix it up a bit every day so they’re always wondering what’s going to be there next!
My favorite hack is a simple one. Add a frozen drink to the lunchbox so that food remains fresh and tasty.
I make jaffles instead of sandwiches. These are by request from my daughter, who loves running around at lunchtime and hates how her sandwich fillings always fall out. When they’re toasted together in a toasted sandwich or jaffle, they don’t! So every day she has a cheese and olive jaffle for lunch, and doesn’t lose any of it to the ground!
make lunch the night before and make it fun by involving the kids
Pack frozen grapes as an edible ice pack
Corn muffins with poppy seeds and I camouflage it with crumbed bacon on top.
I always add an apple to my kids lunches.
I do a couple of things. I don’t use plastic/cling wrap. They have lunch boxes and I use containers. I use a make my own ice pack. I freeze wet sponges and then place them in a ziplock bag (which the kids bring back home with the sponge). If sending a banana, I usually use a butter knife to put a message on it for a fun surprise.
I’ve been using the Tupperware lunchboxes but as the kids are rapidly growing I notice there doesn’t seem to be room for snack increase, and as I don’t like using wrappers in their lunchboxes, this would be the perfect alternative!
I freeze half a bottle of water the night before, then top up to full. It keeps the lfood cool and he has a sugar free drink.