Mandeville Primary School has set out to educate its pupils about the importance of healthy eating. Nurturing a love for fresh produce from an early age has taught the children to not only eat, but also enjoy their greens
Seeing children tucking into fresh fruit and veg speaks volumes at what the pioneering Tesco Fruit & Veg for Schools initiative aims to achieve.
Mandeville Primary School, in the heart of London, stands out for its large outdoor space which it uses to cultivates fruit and vegetables. This seed-to-spoon approach allows pupils to grow the produce they will later eat during school meals.
Under the tutelage of Head Food Educator Tom Walker, 39, they are all involved in the process. And the knowledge they have gathered at such an early age has not only inspired them to try new foods, but to enjoy them as well.
He said: “Children here literally get dirt under their fingernails [but wash them before they eat] in order to learn where the food they put in their mouths comes from. The knowledge they have gained at such a young age is greater than some adults. They have learned how to hold their knives, how to chop things properly and curate recipes. “I didn’t eat my first curry until I was 21. Pupils here are making Thai green curries and tangines.”
Tesco was so impressed with the way pupils are taught and fed, it has donated £1,000 to Tom’s kitchen and garden – the envy of schools across the capital. The retailer now hopes its Fruit & Veg for Schools scheme will light a similar spark and inspire tens of thousands of schoolchildren across the country to realise healthy food is not boring or tasteless, but fun and nutritious.
Sat around a table awash with fresh fruit, pupils at Mandeville told how they had learned to enjoy different foods after it had become part of the school culture. Malu, seven, said: “I eat lots of fruit and veg. Watermelon is my favourite because it’s so delicious and juicy. I don’t have a favourite vegetable, I like them all.”
Christopher, nine, said: “My favourites are cucumber, strawberries, mangoes, melon and broccoli. I know they have lots of vitamins, which are good for the body.” And Lily, five, added: “I like apples because sometimes it helps to get a hobby tooth out.”
Headteacher Marc Thompson, 49, said: “When children are invested in something, in this case the growing and harvesting of food, they are much more open to trying and eating it. The National Curriculum expects children to be taught about nutrition and how to cook food. But most don’t have the facilities.”
This article has been published in partnership with Tesco fruit and veg for schools.
