Editor's View - Will new government guidelines have the right recipe for healthy nursery mealtimes?

The School Food Trust is being given £350,000 to draw up guidelines and a voluntary code of practice, as well as a self-evaluation toolkit, and monitor the effects of this programme.

But should early years nutrition standards be voluntary or mandatory? And is the funding sufficient to make a real difference across such a diverse sector as the early years - and the Government has specified that both regulated and unregulated childcare should be included, adding to the complex nature of this initiative.

The problem with making the standards voluntary is that some settings are already working far in advance of any likely guidelines, and provide wondeful food, while thoe that are truly poor in their approach to nutrition are unlikely to be influenced by these tactics.

There is, of course, the logistical challenge and high cost of monitoring regulations. But could we not at least ban processed foods from nurseries and other childcare settings. That would be a start in ensuring higher standards.

In the end, nutrition needs to be seen as an integral and vital part of early years provision, not an extra t o be added in. Existing childcare qualifications do not really recognise this, and it is here that best practice needs to be fostered.

As in Italy, food and mealtimes should be something to be proud of, instilling in children an appreciation of healthy food from the start.