Napoleon was right when he said an army marches on its stomach. So shouldn’t we be worried if those soldier’s stomachs contain little more a Gregg’s sausage roll and a few pints of beer? This, along with other long running backdrops of frustration, has been going on for far too long.

Going back a few years, all service personnel paid a fixed food charge to cover three meals per day – even if they didn’t eat them. But a review showed on average only half of the meals were being eaten. There were complaints because service personnel didn’t always have their meals on base. So the powers that be decided a new system was needed. How about one where they actually part with cash for the food they eat? Enter Pay as You Dine (PAYD).

The majority of PAYD food is provided by contract caterers. It’s calculated a soldier needs around 3,300 calories a day. So the three core meals have been designed to provide roughly the same number of calories and overall nutritional balance as the ‘old regime’ for the same price. Great plan, eh?

PAYD does provide more choice in terms of where and what to eat. You can’t argue with that. But over the last few years, it’s become clear there are problems. Oh, what a surprise.

Pay in the lower ranks isn’t great. It’s claimed many service personnel are in budgeting chaos. Some don’t plan for the number of meals they will be eating each month.

Young soldiers, like any teenagers flush with their first pay packets, tend to run out of money. It burns a hole in their pocket. So they economise by missing meals or buying cheap, nutritionally poor junk food.

Of course, the Military thought of that. New recruits are given budgeting advice. Trainees get booklets, lectures and guidance about eating habits. But we all know how difficult it is to convince youngsters to eat a healthy, balanced diet. Are they seriously going to spend money on food when there are other more pressing needs? Things like the latest iPhone, those new trendy trainers, Saturday night’s clubbing and beer, of course. Don’t forget the beer.

How many trainee squaddies have their family homes close to barracks? Not many. There’s no Mum on hand to make sure they eat properly. And if they spend their money travelling home, dinner might end up being a bowl of cereal or a bag of chips. That’s no meal for a combat soldier.

The MOD has tried to ease the situation with a ‘hungry soldier’ scheme if their money runs out. This is basically a food voucher system for PAYD. The value of vouchers is then docked from the next pay packet.

Wouldn’t it be easier to let them run up a meal bill each month and deduct that at source? That way, our troops are properly fed and no-one’s paying for food they haven’t eaten. It would also reduce the risk of money being spent on other things.

And what about those who manage to budget? Do the PAYD menus really offer the healthy options they’re meant to provide? There are guidelines (aren’t there always?). Breakfast must include cereals, yoghurt and fruit. Salads and fresh vegetables should be available at lunch and dinner. But if we’re talking about youngsters who haven’t been brought up to eat healthily, are they going to change their habits at the Military’s behest?

You don’t have to look too hard to see endless complaints about the standard of PAYD food. One member of the services commented ‘They started watching you like a hawk from the minute you pick up your plate, and charging you for every little thing. You’re allowed one cup of squash and two sauce sachets per meal, any more you get charged’.

There have been loads of complaints about portion sizes – one soldier said he had to buy the double the amount to get a decent plateful. We’re told processed and reheated food is the norm. Would you want to eat that every day? No? Me neither.

Not a surprise then that soldiers – and other services personnel – look for alternatives. And what’s the alternative? Nine times out of ten it’s going to be fast food that’s high in fat and low on nutrition. So now we’re triggering alarming predictions of obesity in the armed forces. How on earth can we expect our troops to be in a fit state to go into combat?

Soldiers can’t train on empty stomachs. I doubt obese soldiers would want to train at all. Some say they prefer being on manoeuvres because – at least for now – the food is better and it’s free! How long will that be the case?

In the future, will they have to line up at a mobile PAYD canteen? Perhaps Joe’s Big Value Kebab van will follow its local unit and cash in on the hungry squaddies. We need to be concerned about the eating habits of our military personnel.

This is our crack fighting force. They’re here to protect the nation and our shores and everything we believe in. And they’re not going to be fit to do that on a pot noodle or a sandwich.

What must happen before someone takes a long hard look at the scheme that’s become known as ‘Save as you starve’?