Children’s meals ‘have more than full day’s safe salt level’

Lunches with more than 4g of salt were found at popular family restaurants including Wetherspoons, Harvester and Nando’s, Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) said.

Nando’s and Wetherspoons both had children’s meals containing three times as much salt as a McDonald’s Happy Meal of a hamburger and fries.

A Nandino’s (Nando’s) veggie burger with creamy mash contained 5.3g of salt, a Wetherspoons Wiltshire cured ham and cheese sandwich with chips had 4.8g, while a Harvester gammon and chicken combo with mashed potato and beans contained 4.3g.

A Sizzling Pub 4oz gammon with mash and beans contained 4.1g salt and another Wetherspoons meal, chicken breast nuggets with chips and baked beans, held 4g.

The survey found significant variations in the amount of salt in meals, even at the same restaurants, but found it was impossible for parents to make healthy choices because of a lack of nutritional information on menus.

Wetherspoons also offered an Annabel Karmel spaghetti bolognese containing just 0.1g of salt, while Sizzling Pub had a chicken breast with jacket potato and peas with 0.8g.

Desserts were also found to be a surprising source of hidden salt, with five found to contain the same or more salt as a packet of crisps.

Cash campaign director Katharine Jenner said: “Children’s meals should provide tasty and healthy alternatives to more adult dishes. It is an outrage that when families go out for a pub lunch, they may be unknowingly putting their children’s health at risk.”

Shadow public health minister Diane Abbott said: “This should be a wake-up call for (Health Secretary) Andrew Lansley, particularly in terms of his discredited responsibility deals, but also for British parents. We have got to start empowering families, not making it harder for them.”

She added: “Responsibility deals that rely on voluntary action by the fast-food business, manufacturers and retailers simply cannot work.”