Childcare centres have been branded 'lunchbox Nazis' with new policies banning vegemite and even fruit.
The program Good for Kids - Good for Life has been rolled out across 300 preschools and daycare centres in the Hunter-New England region to combat obesity.
Nutritionist Rosemary Stanton says while not every guideline makes sense, it's about improving children's health.
"The problem with things like Vegemite is that it's very salty and I suppose they're trying to get mothers to put better quality stuff in the kids' lunchboxes," Ms Stanton said.
"We do have a problem and we do need to address this problem that kids are bringing junk food from home to school."