BRIGHTON Palace Pier has ranked second worst in the country for the healthiness of food on offer to punters, despite being a key player in celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's campaign for healthier food.

The popular Brighton tourist attraction, well-loved for kiosks selling Brighton rock candy, donuts and ice-cream, fared badly in the Soil Association's league table, which also looked at the overall eating experience.

Anne Martin, managing director of Brighton Palace Pier, said it was disappointing as the pier's Palm Court restaurant had started offering many reduced sugar items as part of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's anti-sugar campaign.

She said: "The Palm Court family restaurant sells only sustainable fish and this is advertised on all menus. It is especially disappointing as the kids' menu in Palm Court was at the forefront of Jamie Oliver's national Sugar Smart campaign offering reduced sugar items to children and has received many compliments for this.

"Hopefully next time Palm Court's commitment to sustainability and provenance will be recognised and we will be happy to take part in future surveys."

The Soil Association's national annual Out to Lunch survey found 75 per cent of children's lunchboxes sold at popular attractions did not include any vegetable or salad option - and 50 per cent offered boxes that included muffins, cakes and sweet treats but no fresh fruit.

Parents acting as secret diners also reported that few attractions actively provided free fresh drinking water for children, but made sugary drinks readily available for sale - while a lunchbox at one attraction was found to include 36g of sugar - 189 per cent of a child's recommended daily allowance.

A pier spokesman added: “We were one of the first companies to partner with Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution and the Sugar Smart initiative, and we have reduced sugar and salt in our meals.

“Our kids menu clearly shows we have peas and salads and fruits as options.”

The Natural History Museum received the lowest ranking and responded it was "continually striving to minimise our own negative environmental impacts".

It added: "We look forward to engaging more fully in the survey next year and are confident that our high standards will result in a better ranking."

Alton Towers, which also received a poor score, said: "We have spent many thousands of pounds investing in the ability to provide healthy alternatives to popular food choices."