I saw a segment on The Today Show that I can't find about food safety and the fact that so many cheap containers don't insulate our children's food well, thus risking their health.
I am seeking some brands that are sturdy, pref bpa free if plastic, GOOD quality lunch apparatus. Any ideas/brands/links, please?
Thanks!
P.s The teacher said there is a thermos at target that rocks, it keeps food hot all day, but I can't find the link...?
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Thermos-Foogo-Food-Jar-10oz-Pin...
They have them at Target, too. It won't keep food hot all day but it will last until lunch time.
We use Rubbermaid LunchBlox. So far, so good.
1) Use an INSULATED lunch bag. The responders here below give good suggestions.
2) IN the lunch bag, you also HAVE TO, use an ice pack, as well. ie: the "blue ice" ice packs. Which you can find at grocery stores. This keeps the contents of the lunch bag, cold. I even use 2 in my kids' lunch bags.
3) Many brands now, are BPA free. You just have to do a search, say on Amazon, and read the reviews. This site is handy to read reviews of products.
4) Keep in mind, that per Kindergarten... they have lunch early. Meaning, it is usually, before 11:00am. At most schools.
Therefore, the child's lunch bag, once you pack it at home, and leave the house... it will be eaten by the Kindergarten lunch time. So the food and contents, are not in the lunch bag ALL day until school ends. It only needs to be kept cold, from the time you leave the house until your child's lunch time.
Per "snacks," if your child brings snacks to school, just pack non-perishable things. Which do NOT have to be, ALL packed in that same lunch bag. This is what MANY of the kids do, at my kids' school.
I also work at my kids school, and this is what I see.
For keeping things hot.... the "Thermos" brand is good.
But again, per cold things and the lunch bag, you NEED to have a blue-ice ice pack IN the lunch bag. If not, the contents will not be kept cold.
I see so many kids, come to school with their lunch bag, and there is NO ice-pack in it at all. So of course, the contents will NOT be kept cold. A part of food safety per our child's lunch/lunch bag/food... is the parent putting in an ice-pack in their child's bag. You would think it is common sense, but I see so many kids, just with food in a bag, not even insulated, and no ice-pack in it. It is about, using the proper INSULATED lunch bags, AND using an ice-pack in the bag as well.
Per ice-packs... do not use those flimsy kiddie sized types that are only like 3" square in size (it does not stay frozen or cold). Use a regular, blue ice ice-pack, of "adult" size, and put that, in your child's lunch bag. And buy at least 2 or 3, to rotate. Because, after each day of use, the blue ice ice-packs needs to be popped back in the freezer and re-frozen.
I drop my daughters off at 8, and my kindergartner goes to lunch at 10:45. So, I need a container that keeps her food cold (or hot) for less than 3 hours. Even if your kid goes to lunch closer to noon, you're looking at less than 4 hours. Most wal-mart containers cool for at least 6, so I don't think I need to spend a lot of money. Also, most all containers are BPA free now.
ETA: Also, keep in mind that kindergartners lose stuff all the time. My kindergartner (who just started monday) left her lunch box at school Monday and Tuesday. Hoping she doesn't do it again today, haha! So, I'm good with spending no more than $10 on her lunch containers!
We use the thermos brand and/or an ice pack in her insulated lunchbox. I also have a plastic container that has an insert for the lid that freezes and keeps the contents cold. The thermos we have can hold drinks and another for foods, they are medal inside.
I also figure that they eat a few hours after getting to school so most items will not go bad in that short time span.
You can find them at Target, Walmart and most supermarkets.
We had good luck with the Fit n Fresh brand of containers last year, so I just stocked up on a few more (so that we have an extra set in the freezer each night). I like both the 1 cup container and the dip-n-dunk, since both have ice packs that snap into the lids. They also have a set where the container goes into the freezer - it is the perfect size for a yogurt and has space in the lid for mix-ins. I don't see them on their website, except in the Baby/Toddler section (chilled snack container)...
http://fit-fresh.com/
We do non-traditional lunches, so I don't have much experience with keeping hot foods hot. I send mostly finger foods, since they have such a short time to eat...
For the cold stuff: Pack-It
My son is in full-day Kindergarten, and his lunch is in his bag from 6:30 am - 2:15 when I pick him up. His bag is always still cold when I take it out of his backpack at pickup .
We like the lunchboxes from LL Bean. They do a good job keeping food cold with an ice pack and they last a long time--more than one school year. You can also wash them on the top rack of your dishwasher which is wonderful.
I recently discovered the Rubbermaid LunchBlox too. I use the containers inside of the LL Bean lunch bag and they are perfect. They come with ice packs. I tend to stick with cold foods for lunch and have never tried to send a hot lunch.
I believe that most coolers today are BPA free. We buy ones made by California Innovations. I believe they are sold at Walmart under the Artic something name.
No matter what kind of cooler you buy I think ice packs are a necessity to keep the food from spoiling.
The thermos' at Target (or anywhere for that matter) are called "food jars" and they are typically made by the Thermos brand. They are stainless steel and the key is to pour boiling water into the thermos, let it sit for 5 minutes with the lid on, and then dump out the water and fill it with the meal.
As an alternative to the food jar, we also have cryopacks that can be boiled for five minutes to heat them. Then there is an insulated pack that they slip into with or without a container. (Think the size of a CD wallet)
We have multiple lunchbags here but it comes down to what will fit everything you want to send (around here it is typically 2 water bottles, a sandwich/thermos, fruit, snack/yogurt) The one we like best is the Artic one that has a lower compartment and then an upper zip compartment. Sort of like these
http://www.californiainnovations.com/lunch-bags/lunch-bag...
Look for a lunch box that has a white or grey insulated lining. Not just a plastic or cloth lunch box. One that has a hard shell is good too so that foods aren't crushed.
Ex.
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12925220
My kids and hubby also love the fresh & fit containers from Toys R Us. They have an ice pack in the lid of the container. My son says that sometimes the sandwich gets a little soggy, so we put the sandwich in a ziploc bag and then the container. Loved them so much I just bought more for this year.
http://www.toysrus.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=f...
