Start Right Eat Right

Child care centres have an important role to play in encouraging children to experience a wide variety of healthy foods and drinks which can help them develop healthy eating habits early in life. Start Right Eat Right (SRER), funded by the Department of Health and managed by Gowrie Victoria, encourages healthy eating and recognises best practice in nutrition for long day care centres in Victoria. Centres who achieve the SRER Award ensure they:

•        plan and assess menus to provide children with 50% of their recommended daily intake.
•         provide a positive mealtime environment for young children.
•         prepare a comprehensive Food and Nutrition Policy for the centre.
•         meet food safety regulations.

Thousands of children have benefited from improvements to centre’s menus, policies and mealtime environments as part of Victorian long day care centre’s involvement in the program. 

Gowrie Victoria no longer trains long day care centres for the SRER Award. We work with Kids – ‘Go for your life’ to support centres that have participated in SRER to achieve the Kids – ‘Go for your life’ Award. Kids – ‘Go for your life’ enables centres to demonstrate their achievements in not only promoting healthy eating, but also active play to children.

All early childhood centres are encouraged to make healthy eating and active play a priority for  children. They can receive support and information by becoming a Kids - 'Go for your life' member and working towards the Kids – ‘Go for your life’ Award. 

Further information on the SRER program and a list of currently awarded centres can be found on www.goforyourlife.vic.gov.au/startrighteatright

Please contact Ingrid Tadich on 03 9362 2236 for information on the above and for information on Kids - 'Go for your life' please call 1300 739 899.