40,000 children get lessons in food and farming thanks to The Co-operative
The Co-operative Group’s ground-breaking educational project “From Farm to Fork” is celebrating a major milestone after giving 40,000 children valuable lessons in farming, food production and healthy eating.
From Farm to Fork is an award-winning outdoor learning experience, which began at The Co-operative’s Stoughton farm in 2005, in response to an increasing lack of awareness amongst British children about where their food comes from, how it is grown and how to prepare a healthy meal.
The project proved so successful that it was rolled out to six other farms that are owned or managed by The Co-operative Farms: Ashby St Ledgers in Warwickshire; Tillington in Herefordshire; Blairgowrie in Perthshire; Down Ampney in Gloucestershire; Goole in Yorkshire and the Borders in Berwickshire.
The 40,000th child was part of a class of five and six year olds from Bilton Infants school, near Rugby, who enjoyed a “From Farm to Fork” day at the Ashby St Ledgers farm, which is owned by The Crown Estate and managed by The Co-operative Farms.
Former teaching assistant, Michelle Padwick, who helped set up the original scheme at Stoughton, now co-ordinates all the Farm to Fork projects across the country.
She said: “When we welcomed the first children to one of our farms five years ago, we’d never have believed that the project would grow so big.
“However, we’re delighted that 40,000 children have now taken part in a From Farm to Fork visit. We continue to get such positive feedback from children and teachers who take part in these days, so we’re looking forward to welcoming many more children to this invaluable learning experience.”
A typical “From Farm to Fork” day includes a nature walk, which teaches children how to identify trees, and how flowers on farmland and uncultivated hedgerows can improve the habitat for wildlife and pollinators such as bees.
Children also learn about crops grown and harvested on the farm, how they are affected by the seasons and how the food we eat is produced using these crops.
Each “From Farm to Fork” site has its own food preparation room where children prepare healthy food to take home, using crops grown on the farm such as wheat (for wholemeal flour pizzas) and apples (wholemeal apple muffins) as well as making their own apple juice from some of the 1000 varieties of apple on the farm at Tillington. They also discuss the importance of eating a varied and balanced diet.
Each farm's educational facilities include a classroom that is equipped with interactive learning resources and the “From Farm to Fork” website and workbooks, which help teachers prepare for their visit and devise follow-up lessons that align with current curricular requirements.
For more information about The Co-operative’s “From Farm to Fork” project and other Green Schools activities that The Co-operative Group offer visit the website at: http://www.co-operative.coop/green-schools-revolution/