Kids eat healthy - right from the start

A Department of Health program is working to ensure children attending long day care centres are receiving healthy and nutritious food and developing healthy eating patterns.

The Department’s Start Right Eat Right program has been taken up by more than 200 Victorian long day care centres.

This year, 80 long day care centres received recognition for completing the program.

These centres have met the criteria for best practice in nutrition and food service and received the Start Right Eat Right Award.

To achieve recognition centres needed to:

• provide at least 50 per cent of the children’s recommended daily intake of nutrients
• have good food hygiene
• have a comprehensive nutrition policy
• provide a supportive and enjoyable eating environment for the children.

Start Right Eat Right is funded by the Department of Health and managed by Gowrie Victoria as a partnering program of Kids – ‘Go for your life’.

Staff working in Start Right Eat Right childcare centres have received comprehensive training in nutrition for young children.

Start Right Eat Right is planning to enter into a new phase with Kids – ‘Go for your life’.

The knowledge and experience of the program will be used to increase the capacity of not just long day care centres but all early childhood services that provide food to children, to help young children develop good eating habits early in life.

All centres are encouraged to be involved with Kids – ‘Go for your life’ and join other early childhood services to make healthy eating and active play a priority in supporting children’s healthy habits.

For more information

For more information about the program including a list of centres that have received the Start Right Eat Right award in 2009–10 visit the Go for your life website.