Foodwatch Chief Chris Methmann in an interview: "The Alete children's cookie makes me angry."

Choosing a snack for a child can feel oddly complicated. A packet may feature fruit, oats, farm animals or reassuring phrases about little ones, yet still be, in practical terms, a sweet biscuit or dessert.

The useful trick is to turn the pack over before treating the front as guidance. Child-friendly branding is not the same thing as nutritional advice. The remark in the headline captures a wider concern: foods aimed at children can be presented as everyday essentials when they are better thought of as occasional treats.

Why children’s food packaging needs a second look

There is nothing wrong with children having biscuits, sweetened yoghurt or cereal bars sometimes. Families need convenient options, and food does not have to be perfect to be enjoyable.

The difficulty is that products marketed specifically for babies, toddlers and school-age children can make a sweet snack appear more wholesome than it is. Bright colours, cartoon characters and pictures of fruit or grains are designed to make a quick impression.

A picture of strawberries does not necessarily mean a product contains much whole fruit. Likewise, words such as “organic”, “with vitamins” or “made for toddlers” do not, on their own, tell you how much sugar or salt it contains.

A child-focused design is marketing, not a recommendation from a nutrition professional.

Spot the front-of-pack “health halo”

A health halo is created when one positive feature makes a whole product seem healthier than it really is. It might be a reference to fibre, fruit, organic ingredients or added vitamins.

Those features are not automatically bad. They simply do not answer the key question: what sort of food is this, and how often is it likely to be eaten?

Look more carefully when you see:

• fruit images, particularly where fruit purée or juice concentrate may be used mainly for sweetness;
• “no added sugar” claims on products that are still sweet because of concentrated fruit ingredients;
• “organic” wording, which relates to production standards rather than sugar or salt levels;
• vitamin or mineral claims on biscuits, cereal bars or sweet dairy desserts;
• very small suggested portions that make the numbers look lower than the amount a child may actually eat;
• phrases such as “for growing kids” with no clear explanation of what makes the food suitable.

Call the food what it is

Before comparing every number on the label, give the product a plain description. This can make supermarket decisions much simpler.

A biscuit remains a biscuit if it contains oats. A fruit-flavoured pouch is not necessarily the same as a piece of fruit. A sweetened yoghurt dessert has a different role from plain yoghurt with fruit added at home.

That does not mean any of these foods need to be banned. It simply helps to put them in the right place in a family routine: everyday foods most of the time, treats at other times.

A three-step supermarket check

1. What would I call it without the packet?
   If the answer is biscuit, dessert, sweet cereal or confectionery, treat it as such rather than as a nutritional necessity.

2. What are the first ingredients?
   Ingredients are generally listed by weight. Look out for sugar, glucose syrup, rice syrup, honey, malt extract and fruit juice concentrate. Several sweetening ingredients can appear in the same product.

3. Is there a simpler alternative?
   Depending on the meal or snack, that could be a banana, toast, porridge, plain yoghurt, cheese, oatcakes or unsalted crackers.

You do not need to find the perfect snack. You only need a clearer idea of what you are buying.

Read a UK nutrition label with confidence

The back or side of the pack is usually more useful than the front. UK nutrition information normally gives values per 100g and, sometimes, per portion.

When comparing two similar foods, start with the per 100g figures. Manufacturer serving sizes are not always the portion a child will eat, especially with small biscuits, snack bags or multipacks.

Check the following:

• Sugars: compare like with like. A yoghurt and a biscuit have different roles, so comparing two similar yoghurts or two similar cereal bars is more helpful.
• Salt: worth checking in savoury snacks, crackers, ready meals and processed meats.
• Fibre: a useful feature in cereals and bread-based snacks, but it does not turn a high-sugar product into an everyday food.
• Ingredients: the order can tell you more about the product than a cartoon or health claim.
• Age guidance: “suitable from” does not mean a product is needed, or that it should be offered frequently.

Where it appears, the voluntary traffic-light label can be a useful shortcut. It works best as a comparison tool, rather than as a verdict on whether a food is good or bad.

Extra care with babies and toddlers

Babies and young children have different needs from older children and adults. During weaning, NHS advice is to offer a variety of foods and avoid adding sugar or salt.

It is sensible to be cautious about heavily sweetened foods marketed at very young children. Offering a range of flavours and textures can help make family meals less dependent on one type of snack.

Texture matters for safety as well as nutrition. Whole nuts, hard sweets, popcorn and firm pieces of raw apple can be choking hazards for young children. Prepare food in a way that matches your child’s age and eating skills, and supervise them while they eat.

If you are unsure about a food for a baby or toddler, check the pack’s age guidance and use NHS information or ask a health visitor for individual advice. Do not rely on a cartoon character or a “little ones” label.

Build a realistic lunchbox

A lunchbox does not need to look like a social-media photograph. A practical goal is to include a filling main item, familiar foods your child will eat and a little variety over the week.

Depending on your child’s age and school rules, useful options include:

• a sandwich, wrap, pasta salad or leftover rice dish;
• soft fruit, prepared vegetable sticks or a whole piece of fruit they can manage safely;
• plain yoghurt or cheese kept chilled;
• oatcakes, breadsticks or crackers with a savoury filling;
• leftovers from the previous evening, cooled and stored safely;
• water or milk instead of sugary drinks.

Check your school’s policy before packing nuts or nut-containing foods. For chilled foods, use an insulated lunch bag with an ice pack. Even in a British autumn or winter, a lunchbox may sit for several hours in a warm classroom.

Common mistakes when buying children’s snacks

• Treating organic as a nutrition verdict. Organic biscuits and fruit snacks can still be high in sugar.
• Assuming fruit purée is identical to whole fruit. It can be convenient, but it offers a different texture and eating experience.
• Looking only at calories. Sugar, salt, fibre, ingredients and how filling a food is can be more useful for everyday choices.
• Focusing on one ingredient alone. A single word on a label rarely tells the whole story; consider the product and how often it is eaten.
• Making treats forbidden. Strict rules can create unnecessary tension. Predictable routines are often easier for everyone.
• Paying more for baby or child branding without checking the label. A higher price does not automatically mean a meaningful nutritional advantage.

Ask for clearer marketing, too

Parents can read labels carefully, but the responsibility should not sit entirely with them. Consumer organisations, including Foodwatch, have argued for clearer food labelling and tighter limits on the marketing of less healthy foods to children.

If an advert or packaging claim appears misleading, you can raise the issue with the retailer or manufacturer. Concerns about non-broadcast advertising in the UK can also be reported to the Advertising Standards Authority, where relevant.

For day-to-day shopping, keep the approach manageable. Find a few lower-sugar staples your child accepts, compare unfamiliar products once, and keep treats ordinary rather than emotionally charged. Looking past the smiling characters is often enough to make a more confident choice.

A sensible safety reminder

Food labels are useful, but they cannot replace food-safety basics. Follow storage instructions, respect use-by dates, and keep chilled lunchbox items cold until they are eaten. If your child has an allergy, always check the current label, even on products you have bought before, as ingredients and factory warnings can change.