10 tips to make packing a healthy lunch box easier

Kids will take around 200 packed lunch boxes to school each year so getting organised makes the job easier.

Here are some helpful tips:

1. Watch our  ‘How to pack a lunchbox’ video.
2. Check your school policy for food, such as nuts, that cannot be taken to school.
3. Find out if your school has Crunch & Sip – what day(s) and what the school would like the kids to bring.
4. Check lunch boxes and drink bottles are still in working order and are labelled. If they need replacing, see our blog on Choosing a lunch box. If you have a child starting school, get them to practice opening and closing their lunch box, small containers and drink bottle. For older kids,  a thermos can be useful in winter to keep food hot.
5. Think about food safety. Particularly during the summer terms, food taken to school must stay cold until it is eaten. Pack an ice brick or frozen water bottle to keep food safe. For more information on  food safety see our Make your lunch box food safe blog.
6. Start getting kids involved in planning and packing their lunch box. Use the Healthy Lunch Box builder  to talk to your kids about what they would like in their lunch box .  Plan a few lunch boxes and include items your kids can pack themselves.
7. Do some cooking and freezing – muffins for the lunch box and easy dinners that can turn into lunch the next day. Even better, get kids cooking – see the 6 reasons to bring the kids into the kitchen blog.
8. Stock the pantry with items that can be used to make packing the lunch box easier, like long life milk, wholegrain crackers, packets of plain popcorn and tins of chickpeas, corn and tuna.
9. Stock up on easy fruit and veg for school like carrots, cucumbers and celery for cutting into sticks, apples, mandarins, bananas and berries.
10. Finally, don’t forget to pack hand sanitiser, SPF 30 or above sunscreen and a Sunsmart hat.

Please print out the handy Healthy lunch box back to school checklist and pop it on the fridge as a reminder.

For more ideas, see our blogs on What to pack in a healthy lunch box.

© Cancer Council NSW 2024 Head Office Address: 153 Dowling Street, Woolloomooloo NSW 2011. Cancer Council NSW is registered with the Australian Taxation Office as an Income Tax Exempt Charity: Charitable Fundraising Authority No. 18521.

Some images on this site have been supplied by Cancer Council Western Australia's Crunch & Sip website