Chicken nuggets – yes or no?

Chicken nuggets are a favourite among children but they are not the healthiest lunch or snack due to the high amounts of saturated fat and sodium they contain. Because of this some canteens prefer not to sell them while others do sell them as they’re very popular and they generate a good profit. If you do decide to have chicken nuggets on your menu, here are some things to consider:

Firstly, check that the chicken nugget is AMBER and not RED

For NSW schools, you can use our Fresh Tastes calculator to check your products.

For ACT, schools you can use our National Healthy School Canteen calculator to check your products.

The easiest option is to have a look at our Buyers’ Guide and choose a chicken nugget from there. These products are the healthier chicken nuggets you’re going to find on the market.

TIP: When comparing chicken nuggets, look at the ingredients list and choose the option that has the highest percentage of actual chicken.

Remember, chicken nuggets are an AMBER food

AMBER foods should not be sold often and only in small portions. This means if you do decide to sell chicken nuggets, they shouldn’t be on the menu every day.  Consider only selling  them one or two days each week. Also, sell them in small batches of three and limit the amount of packets that can be bought by any one child. Ensure that parents know you have a limit on the number of chicken nuggets that can be bought by putting a note on the menu or on your online ordering system. It can be hard to keep track of what children are buying but do your best to make sure that a child is not having a whole lot of chicken nuggets for lunch.

GREEN them up!

Sell a chicken nugget salad meal by putting together a regular green salad with 2-3 chicken nuggets.

Create a meal deal including chicken nuggets, veggie sticks or a fruit salad and a bottle of water.

 Make your own!

We realise that for many canteens making your own nuggets may not be feasible, as they’re fiddly and can be expensive. If you do choose to make your own, you’ll need to price them higher. See recipe here. Remember, if you follow the recipe and oven bake them, you can have GREEN chicken nuggets on your menu.