MUM’S THE WORD

A COMPREHENSIVE study by the British Potato Council (BPC) reveals that Liverpool is one of the most honest places to eat in the UK, as 2/3 of mums are battling the pressure to ‘stretch the truth’ about what they feed their kids. The phenomenon of foodie fibbing has hit almost every area of the country except Liverpool, as nationally 68% of mums will admit to fibbing about food. This is a direct result of increased media, social pressures and mis-information about what is / isn’t a healthy meal.

These startling figures and confusion over potatoes put Liverpool near the top of most honest mum’s across the country. The findings emerged as the BPC commissioned extensive research into the nation’s mums and meal times to determine attitudes and practices around the country. The Mum’s The Word Report (How the Potato is Making Britain’s Mums More Honest) found mums from Liverpool will readily tell a fib to make life easier, and will openly fib about food. 76% of this group claim that ‘bringing the kids up properly’ and ‘feeding them the right kind of food’ are the main catalyst for fibbing – many mums believe they’re feeding their children the ‘wrong’ kinds of food and feel the need to ‘cover up their inadequacies’.

Most prolific fibbers Most honest mums

1. Cumbria         1. Greater Manchester
2. Durham          2. Merseyside
3. Norfolk           3. London

The study discovered that, shockingly, British mums misunderstand many of the foods their kids love and often want to eat. 70% of mums from Liverpool who took part in the study considered fish fingers and chips to be ‘junk food’, while believing spaghetti Bolognese, pizza and chicken curry are seen as healthier alternatives.

In reality, fish fingers and oven chips are lower in fat, calories and salt than many other, common tea-time alternatives:

NB. Dinner Equations:-

· 3 grilled fish fingers + a medium portion of oven chips (135g) + 3tbsp of peas or sweetcorn = approx. 390 cals, 13g fat (only 5g saturated), 1g salt and 16g protein

· 1 slice of pizza contains twice as much saturated fat as fish fingers and oven chips

Few people in Liverpool realise that potatoes – a staple food in the UK for generations – are actually lower in fat and calories than pasta and rice.

Nutritionist, Fiona Hunter, isn’t surprised that Liverpool’s mums are confused by what to feed their kids:- “The rise of faddy diets means that key food groups are sometimes being overlooked and are often considered ‘bad’ by mums, which in turn has a knock-on effect on what mums perceive to be a balanced meal for their kids.  Despite what mums believe, fish fingers and oven chips are certainly not unhealthy and when served along with vegetables they make a healthy balanced meal for hungry kids.”

The Mum’s The Word Report (How the Potato is Making Britain’s Mums More Honest) established that guilt over what mums feed their children was the key driver to the increasingly prolific fibbing, with the main ‘victims’ being mums’ own mothers and sisters. Dr Miriam Stoppard, psychologist and mother of 4, analysed and supports the report and commented:- “Previous generations thought that to be good was enough, nowadays, mothers feel they have to be the best.”

The BPC commissioned the Mum’s The Word Report (How the Potato is Making Britain’s Mums More Honest) to investigate and address these mis-understandings about food and alleviate the guilt mums feel about what they feed their children.

Catherine Lange, spokesperson for the BPC, explains:- “As a busy mum with two young children, I was not surprised to hear the number of fibs being told on a daily basis to ‘cover up’ for the perfectly acceptable food parents are giving their children but thinking it is bad – we all feel under tremendous pressure to be perfect.  Any mum knows that looking after a family is a real challenge and clear help and advice along the way is much appreciated. Our study underlines the pressures that we as mums are under and the misconceptions many of us hold, so potato farmers want to replace fiction with fact and, hopefully, make Liverpool mums’ lives a bit easier. The message to all of us busy mums is that potatoes really are lower in fat and calories than pasta or rice.”

INFRASTRUCTURE KEY TO BOOSTING BUS USE IN BRITAIN

BETTER transport infrastructure coupled with improved connections between buses and other transport services are key to boosting bus use across Britain, according to new research from transport and engineering specialist Trueform.

The survey, conducted for Trueform by Experian among 2,507 UK adults, found that while 59% of Britons believe more frequent services are key to encouraging greater bus usage, the quality of the transport infrastructure and information systems are also vital.  The survey found that 53% of Britons cited real-time travel information and displays as the thing most likely to encourage them to use bus services. Better integration between bus and train services also scored highly, with 40% of those questioned saying this would make them use buses more often.

Having greater numbers of bus shelters in convenient locations also scored highly, with 36% of Britons saying this would encourage them to use bus services more.  However, despite the vast amounts of money invested in modern bus fleets by operators, only 21% of Britons said new state of the art vehicles were likely to make them use services more frequently.

Clean and new bus stops and shelters (32%), CCTV and other security measures (33%) and clearer branding of buses and routes (35%) were all viewed as more important then new vehicles in encouraging greater bus use by Britons.  In all, just 13% of people said that nothing would encourage them to use bus services more frequently.

“The findings give a fascinating insight into what encourages people to travel by bus and what changes would make them embrace bus travel and use the services more frequently,” states Trueform Technical Director Jonathan Morley.  “While the quality of the service is clearly key to encouraging people to travel by bus, it is also obvious from our survey that the environment in which people wait for the bus and the information they receive in helping them to plan their journey is equally vital. Indeed in many cases it is more important than the quality of the bus itself in encouraging people to use the service.”

Full findings are as follows:-

Standing to attention:- Pupils to sign up at Skills Show?

FLYING a Typhoon Fighter aircraft and driving a Formula One racing car are activities that not many people will ever be able to experience. That is, unless you are between 14 and 25 years old and attending Skills NorthWest on 14 Nov. to 16 November, the region’s largest learning and skills show for young people.

Whether it’s reaching for the sky or keeping your feet firmly on the ground, a visit to the Armed Forces stand at Skills NorthWest will give an insight into the many different careers available in the Army, RAF and Royal Navy.

The RAF stand will be giving pupils attending the show the opportunity to sit in the cockpits of life size replicas of a Typhoon Fighter aircraft and a Euro Fighter, which both feature a simulator game so that the experience can be completely realistic.

If the thought of flying high doesn’t really appeal, the Army are offering a thrilling ride of a different kind in the form of a Formula One racing car simulator game. A climbing wall will be in place for future recruits to try their hands at, and weapons and equipment stands will also be displayed.

Along with the interactive elements of the Armed Forces’ stand, recruitment specialists will be available to discuss the many career options available. Plasma screens will also be set up showing pupils what a life in the Armed Forces can offer.

Skills NorthWest, supported by the Learning and Skills Council, is the largest FREE skills show to take place outside London. Almost 20,000 pupils have already been signed up by their schools, and this is the perfect opportunity for the North West’s students to discover, learn, explore and plan for the future.

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