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FOOD AND DRINK

How to snack (or not) like a French person

Snacking in France has its own set of rules, writes British writer in France Jackie McGeown.

How to snack (or not) like a French person
Potato chips on a supermarket shelf in near Marseille. (Photo by Christophe SIMON / AFP)

Old snacking habits might die hard for foreigners living in France but luckily Jackie McGeown, who runs the site Best France Forever is on hand to help you wipe those greasy crisp paws clean for good with her rules for grazing à la française. 

Over to you Jackie.

1. Snacking is not allowed in France

Eating between meals is acceptable in Britain – encouraged, even. Think of the health advice that says you shouldn’t go longer than two or three hours without eating to keep your blood sugar levels up – though always with the caution that it should be something healthy like carrot sticks, raw almonds or  – I don’t know – rice cakes smothered in despair.

In France, snacking is considered to be a symptom of a problem, not the natural way of things; it is something to be fixed. The first culprit in the battle against snacking is not eating enough at mealtimes. Drink just a small coffee for the petit déj and it’s no wonder that you’ll be tempted by pains au chocolat in the patisserie’s windows, says Femme Actuelle magazine, in the most unintentionally and adorably French advice ever.

The consensus opinion is that eating a complete, balanced meal will stop you from wanting to snack. Particular emphasis is given to the importance of including carbs (especially bread), dairy products and fruit/veg at every meal. Eat properly, the advice goes, and you have no genuine reason to need more food.

Which leads us to psychological reasons for eating, such as boredom, stress or pure greed.  For these, Top Santé magazine recommends trying on your swimming costume, tidying your cupboard and breathing. Food for thought.

So snacking is a big NON in France, right? Well, pretty much right. But the French aren’t daft, they like crisps and cakes as much as the next nation, they’ve just figured out a way of eating them that isn’t technically snacking. Which brings us to rule number 2.

2. If you really insist on snacking then do it at 4 pm

4 o’clock is when French children have their after-school snack. Known as le goûter or simply le quatre heures, this period of the day is quite an institution in France. Its purpose is to keep kids going until dinner time (French children generally eat later than Brits) and usually takes the form of a cake/biscuit/bread, plus milk/juice and some fruit.

Strictly speaking, adults are meant to have grown out of needing this afternoon boost but they do indulge in le goûter, particularly on family occasions. Eaten with extended family, it takes on more of an afternoon tea form, with fancy cakes from the boulangerie. Le goûter is the perfect time to get your cake fix.

But even if you’re on your own at work and fancy a Twix, then wait until goûter o’clock and feel smug that you are participating in a centuries-old tradition.

3. Snack properly or don’t snack at all

If you want a chocolate cake, eat a fudging chocolate cake. Don’t make do with some sort of low-calorie cereal bar or brownie-flavoured diet yoghurt. French people would rather have one amazing cake once a month than a miserable low cal substitute food every day.

In Britain, there’s a whole industry creating pretend food, filled with chemicals, that claim to taste of cheesecake/brownies/whatever. These don’t exist in France (or are very hard to find). The French attitude is very black and white: eat the cake or don’t eat the cake. Sadly we Brits have adopted a grey area of eating substitute foods without getting the pleasure or satisfaction. We are literally trying to have our cake and eat it. And failing.

The French idea (as endorsed by none other than Queen Mary Berry) is that expressed in another maxim: a little bit of what you fancy does you good.

4. The only time you should go near crisps and nuts is during the apéritif

Recently I was sitting next to a very nice French man at dinner who, as a conversation starter, mentioned to me that British people eat more crisps than anyone else in the world. And you know what? It’s true! Naturally, I was bursting with pride (“What? Even more than the Americans?!”) but upon reflection, it’s perhaps not a good thing.

When I was a lass, it was de rigueur to eat a packet of crisps during morning break at school. But having a packet of crisps for second breakfast isn’t the healthiest option and it is something that would definitely be frowned upon in France.

Here the time for salty snacks is the apéritif, ie that golden time before dinner when you get to graze on goodies while getting your booze on. This is why crisps are generally sold in huge packets in France: they’re meant to be shared.

5. Take time to eat and appreciate your food

We’ve established that you’re not really meant to snack in France but should you choose to, Femme Actuelle magazine advises that you take the time to enjoy and appreciate your food. If you’re going to do something ‘naughty’ you might as well make the most of it. Don’t eat standing up and finish in two minutes; sit at a table, have a tea or coffee and savour your treat.

This goes for mealtimes too. Eating slowly without distraction can lead to you eating less. If you eat quickly, your brain may not have the time to catch up and tell you how full you’re feeling and before you realise it, you’ve overeaten.  

The problem with eating while you’re doing something else, like watching TV, is that you don’t focus your attention on what you’re eating. It’s easy to lose track of how much has gone in your gob if you’re two-feet deep in Game of Thrones.

Jackie McGeown runs the site Best France Forever. Follow her on Facebook here for regular updates.

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SCHOOLS

Are packed lunches really banned in French schools?

School children in France are entitled to a lunchtime meal of three, or even four courses – but what if you prefer to provide meals yourself? 

Are packed lunches really banned in French schools?

French school meals are, famously, pretty good – children get a three or even four-course meal of properly prepared dishes and the menu (including cheese course) is usually published in the local town newsletter so everyone can see the types of meals being served.

The concept of a proper meal at lunchtime is an important one. “The diet of a school-age child is essential for their growth, mental development and learning abilities,” the French Education Ministry says in a preamble about school meals on its website. “It must be balanced, varied and distributed throughout the day: for example 20 percent of total energy in the morning, 40 percent at midday, 10 percent at four o’clock and 30 percent in the evening.”

And it’s not all about nutrition, the social aspect of sitting together and eating a meal is also important – the ministry continues: “Mealtime is an opportunity for students to relax and communicate. It should also be a time for discovery and enjoyment.”

All schools provide meals in a canteen and most pupils take up the opportunity – however it’s also possible for pupils to go home at lunchtime so that they can eat lunch with their parents.

The idea of taking in a packed lunch (panier-repas) is much less common in France – but is it actually banned?

The rules on lunch

At écoles (up to age 11), the local authority or établissement public de coopération intercommunale (EPCI) is responsible for providing quality school meals. This generally involves meals being provided via a central kitchen, and then delivered to the school’s kitchen, where it can be kept warm, or reheated as necessary.

The system is slightly different in collèges and lycées (attended by children aged 11 and up). In those establishments, catering falls into the purview of the wider département or region – and is routinely managed directly by individual establishments, which will have catering staff on site to prepare meals. Often, meal services are outsourced to private businesses, which operate the kitchens.

There are various rules and regulations in place regarding what food is offered, and how long a child has to eat – which is, in part, why the school lunch period is so long. Children must be allowed a 30-minute period to eat their meal, from the moment they sit down with it at the table. 

Then, they’re given time to play and relax before afternoon classes start.

READ ALSO What you need to know if your child is starting school in France

At a minimum lunch must include a main course with a side dish, a dairy-based product, as well as a starter and/or a dessert. Meals must also, the government says, be composed of 50 percent sustainable quality products (including 20 percent organic).

Some local authorities go further and serve only or mostly food that is organic, locally sourced or both.

Water and bread must be freely available, but salt and condiments can only be added in preparation – no sauce bottles or salt and pepper on the tables. 

Daily menus are generally available to view on school websites and many town newspapers or newsletters also publish them.

Parents pay a fee for the school lunch, which is calculated according to income and can be free in the case of low-income families.

Packed lunch

But what if your child doesn’t like the school lunches and you don’t have time to pick them up, cook a full lunch and take them back in the afternoon everyday? The obvious solution would seem to be to send them in with a packed lunch, as is common in the UK and USA.

In theory this is possible, but only in certain circumstances and with very strict rules and caveats. 

The Ministry, in a written response to a Senator’s question in 2019, said: “The use of packed lunches [home-supplied meals] by primary school students can provide an alternative to school meals. This method of catering is authorised in particular for children with a medically established food allergy or intolerance, requiring an adapted diet.”

READ ALSO How to enrol a non-French speaking child in school in France

It added: “the preparation and use of packed lunches in schools must follow certain rules. First of all, it is important to respect the cold chain”.

The cold chain is a term applied to food handling and distribution – it’s usually used by food-preparation businesses, but in the context of a packed lunch it means that food prepared at home must be kept in appropriately cool conditions until it is ready to eat. It would be the responsibility of parents to ensure that the food is delivered to school in containers appropriate for the job (ie an insulated cool bag).

Once at the school, it is up to whoever manages the kitchen to ensure that food is properly reheated. This becomes the sticking point at which many parents’ requests to send their children to school with a packed lunch, rather than go to the canteen, or eat back at home, are refused.

The reheating concern suggests that schools are also expecting parents to prepare a proper meal – rather than just throwing some sandwiches and a cereal bar into a bag.

Unless there’s a genuine and proven health reason for your child to eat a home-prepared meal, most parents will probably find the school won’t budge on this – even in cases of a strike by kitchen staff or lunch monitors.

READ ALSO Just how much do private schools in France cost?

The Ministry’s written response explains: “[A]s this is an optional public service, the municipality can justify its refusal to admit the children concerned by objective material and financial constraints, such as the need to equip itself with additional refrigerators, or for additional supervisory staff to supervise them during lunch.”

As well as the practicalities, for some schools this is an equality issue – because of the varied fee structure for school lunches what happens in effect is that richer parents are subsidising a good quality lunchtime meal for poorer students in the class; if everyone brought in a packed lunch and therefore stopped paying the fee, the lower-income kids would miss out. 

What about allergies or other health issues?

Children with allergies or other health issues that require a particular diet must be accommodated. An individual meal plan – known as a projet d’accueil individualisé (PAI) can be set up. More details (in French) are available here, on the government’s website.

It also becomes easier for parents to provide home-produced meals in such instances. As ever, it is up to the parents to ensure any meals are appropriately packaged and transported to school.

Not all schools

Some individual schools in France do permit pupils to bring in meals from home. They must be taken to school in an appropriate cold-storage container, and they will be stored in the kitchen area until they are needed, when meals will – if necessary – be reheated.

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