The advisory panel on food and nutrition in the early years concluded that there should be a recognised, national set of guidelines, which all settings should be encouraged to use, but they were not in favour of implementing regulations to set minimum standards for food for pre-school children.
The panel's recommendations will contribute to the EYFS review. It will then be up to the Government to decide whether to implement the guidance.
The review into the standards of nursery food, which was commissioned last year by the previous Labour Government and supported by the School Food Trust, found that there was often confusion among nurseries and childminders about the nutritional needs of young children and a clear need for guidance and training.
Research carried out for the review found that nearly half of the early years practitioners surveyed had not received any training about food or nutrition, hampering their ability to provide healthy food and drink in their settings.
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