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I think this is part of it, we probably all know adults who have severe anaphalytic reactions to nuts (I do, and also to seafood) but there were never any food bans when they were children, the main difference is that attitudes towards liability are very different now.:
A friends son has a massive list of allergies and many are anaphylaxis (egg, wheat, dairy, shell fish, nuts, beef, bannanna and more), so bad that if he gets kissed by someone who has eaten say cheezels he comes up in welts on face and at his kinder they did not stop others taking things. They all knew of his allergies and were very careful and kids are not allowed to walk around when eating, share and must always wash hands before and after eating and they had NO issues with him all last year in 3 yr old kinder (went 2 days a week). They even made playdoh that was allergy free so he could use it.
Kinder DS1 was at last year had the usual nut free and egg free but that was it. Was just no quiche and egg sandwich could still have egg in baked goods etc.
Firstly, I would clarify whether the bans are due to an allergy or anaphylaxis.
Our school (which begins at 3 year old kinder) has a no-nut policy but no other foods are 'banned' and allergies are dealt with by close supervision and education of all the children. There is a no-food-sharing rule and the kids do abide by it - to the point that I had to tell me own children that it's ok for them to share with each other!
Personally, and as someone who has dealt with many cases of anaphylaxis, I'm not sure that such a widespread blanket ban is the best way to deal with the situation. The measures feeb has outlined above sound like really good management.
Ultimately, if the bans are in place because of a child with a highly sensitive anaphylaxis I would suck it up - although I'm not sure what my kids would eat because although all the alternatives listed in this thread sound delicious to me, I can guarantee that my kids wouldn't eat 99% of them! If the ban is because the kinder has simply decide that this is the easiest way (for them!) to manage food allergies (as opposed to contact anaphylaxis) then I would be looking to find a new kinder.
What happens when the class is to go on an excursion? Or a school camp? Close management, except in the most extreme cases of anaphylaxis, seems to make a lot more sense to me.
Call me naive but seriously, what is our world coming to? We didn't have anything remotely like this when we were kids in the 70's and 80's. It's getting crazy.
Bloom I've got loads of advice and info from teachers across Victoria. I'm working on copying it so I can pass it on to you.
I'll also check our policy and procedures at work ASAP.