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Young people of today are your customers of tomorrow. So play a part in teaching them about British food and farming!
Education is the most important catalyst in achieving a lasting food revolution in the UK. ‘Jamie’s School Dinners’ has got the whole nation thinking about what sort of food children eat. But providing them with nutritious school meals is only part of the challenge. They also need to be taught where food comes from and how it is grown and produced. Otherwise we risk becoming a nation that only buys ready-made meals and fast food and which shies away from buying fresh farm produce because people will not have the knowledge about how to prepare and cook it.
The best people to make the young aware of the pleasures – and health benefits – of Britain’s diverse and delicious food are those who produce it.
Here are some suggestions of how you can help educate the children in your local school about the delights of British food and, in doing so, the importance of the role of the farmer.
Further resources for farmers wanting to host school visits are available by following this link.
Details of training courses for farmers wishing to work with schools are available by following this link.
- Request a meeting with the Head Teacher in your local school. This will be easy if your children attend the school. If they do not, ask a friend who has children at the school to arrange the meeting for you and ideally attend the meeting with you. Primary schools tend to be the most receptive as they are not so busy with exams.
- Offer to host a school visit to your farm or production outlet or to give a talk in the school. Consider offering the children the opportunity to taste different foods that are produced on farms – eating is always a good way to get their attention!
The Head Teacher will want to know how the activity complements the statutory targets set by the national curriculum. Explain that every subject can be taught through food and farming. It fits in particularly well with the following subjects:
| PSHE & Citizenship |
Learn about the rural way of life, how food is produced and about the people involved in its production. Reproduction. |
| English |
Class debates about different types of food production – you could offer to speak atone of them! |
| Design &Technology |
How food is produced and marketed |
| History |
Britain’s food through the ages and the history of British farming – how things have changed |
| Geography |
The effects of climate, terrain and socio-economic factors on food production. The concept of food miles. |
| Maths |
The simple economics of running a farm – cost of production, prices obtained, profits and losses. |
| Science |
What’s in season when? How to grow food. Seed to harvest. |
| Religious Education |
Harvest Festival - British Food Fortnight takes place around the time of Harvest Festival. |
British Food Fortnight has produced a guide to teaching children about food within the national curriculum. See ‘Putting the Ooo back into food – A Resource Pack for Schools’ on the ‘How Schools can take part’ page of this website.
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