SCHOOLS will struggle to meet tough new Government targets on healthy meals because the average school dinner costs less than a tin of dog food, experts warned last night.

Despite a pledge to crackdown on junk food, nutritionists said the Government would have to allow a big rise in spending if school food was to improve.

Experts hit out ahead of tonight's episode of Jamie's School Dinners, filmed at Eden Community Primary School in Peterlee, County Durham.

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has been a critic of school meals and has launched a crusade to get rid of processed foods from school kitchens.

Since his visit last year, Eden Community Primary has decided to opt out of its school meals contract.

From September, it will offer a new menu that will be cooked on the premises.

The TV chef said he was disgusted to find the money available to caterers for school meals was just 37p per main course - less than the 57p per meal spent on inmates at Deerbolt Young Offenders Institution in Barnard Castle.

He is urging the Government to increase that to 50p. He asked: "How can we have allowed a situation where we're asking schools to cook growing kids a meal for the price of a packet of crisps?"

Successive studies have linked poor diet with childhood obesity.

Ministers have pledged to introduce minimum specifications for processed foods - such as beefburgers, sausages and cakes - from September.

Education Secretary Ruth Kelly called on the food industry, caterers and nutritionists to work with the Government to develop a national school food trust to improve standards.

From September, healthy eating will be part of Ofsted school inspections.

Health Secretary John Reid said: "Children's health must come first. We want to make sure that children have access to healthy diets both in and out of school."

But food experts warned the healthy eating drive was doomed to fail unless the Government was prepared to pay more than the cost of a tin of dog food on school meals.

But Ian Brown, a senior lecturer in food studies at Northumbria University, said even that wouldn't be enough.

"The Government has introduced guidelines but set no standards," he said. "If it really wants to make a difference, surely it can double the amount spent on meals?

"For anything to happen, there has to be a substantial increase.

"I don't blame the caterers. They can't do anything else with the money they are given. No one could feed their kids for less than the price of a tin of dog food."

Experts say the Government should lay down a "minimum spend" on meals instead of leaving the decision to education authorities

The Department for Education and Skills said it wasn't directly responsible for spending on meals and there are no plans to change the rules.

A spokesman pointed out the DES had increased funding for all schools and laid down minimum standards