'Too much salt' in patient food; HEALTH: Survey sparks row over quality of hospital meals.

Byline: By Nick McCarthy

FOOD served at three West Midlands hospitals is filled with too much salt and fat, according to a leading consumer group.

Which? sent dieticians to food outlets at 21 hospitals across the UK, including Heartlands in Birmingham, Walsall Manor and New Cross in Wolverhampton.

It judged dishes against Food Standards Agency guidelines and found 18 of the 21 main meals contained too much salt, 14 contained too much saturated fat and 11 contained too much fat.

But Manor and New Cross hospitals today defended the food they served up.

A New Cross spokeswoman said: "From what I have seen about the report, it is all based on one lasagne and we do not have a canteen.

"We have an on-site Greggs bakery, cafe and a restaurant.

They do serve chips because people want them, but they also offer salads, jacket potatoes and a full range of healthy options."

A spokeswoman for Manor Hospital said: "It's a shame we were judged on one meal, a braised beef meal, which is a standard NHS recipe.

"It is also very disappointing because we have introduced a number of healthy meals.

"It is also important to point out our menus do reflect what people ask for, but there is still choice."

Nobody was immediately available to comment from Heartlands.

Just five of the 21 hospitals included vegetables or salad with meals, with 16 canteens charging between 30p and 90p extra for a portion on meals already costing between pounds 2.50 and pounds 5.

Nikki Ratcliff, head of services research atWhich?, said: "Hospitals have a responsibility to serve and promote healthy food, so the situation at the moment is farcical.

"Although we did find some examples of good practice, our results show there's a need for better signposting and labelling to help customers eat more healthily."