Cumbria Food for Life

News Release

Questions and Answers

What is Food for Life?

It is a national initiative set up in 2003 by the Soil Association and various organic business individuals with the ultimate aim of improving school meals.

Food for Life sets targets which schools may aim for when providing meals. These are;

1. 75% of the food to be unprocessed.

2. At least 50% of ingredients to be sourced locally.

3. At least 30% of the food served to be organic.

4. School lunches should meet the nutrition targets set by the Caroline Walker Trust.

5. Better classroom education on food and sustainability issues. For example, schools should be encouraged to take children on a farm visit.

How is it working in Cumbria ?

It’s encouraging to know that quite a number of local schools are now working hard to improve the quality of their meals.

Cumbria Organics, as well as being happy to support schools in helping them source local and organic food, is at the moment helping schools address point 5 above.

To complement what children are already being taught about healthy food, we have trained facilitators who can deliver Food for Life one day workshops in primary schools in Cumbria.

Thanks to funding from Distinctly Cumbrian, the workshops are FREE.

Cumbria Organics can also arrange for schoolchildren to visit a local organic farm, or for a farmer to visit a school to talk about his work.

Cumbria Organic farms where you can go on a visit.

What does the workshop involve?

The fun, participative workshop is mainly aimed at Key Stage 2 pupils [but can be adapted for older or younger children]. Learning is through small group activities and whole class discussion.

The objectives are:

To understand the meaning of a balanced diet, in which all foods can have a place.
To appreciate what influences the choices we make when buying food.
To understand that these choices can affect our health and the environment.
To understand that other people, including advertisers, can influence us.

Do schools have to sign up to the national targets in order to have a workshop?

No, we think the workshops are valuable in themselves.

Have any local schools taken part?

Over 25 local schools have hosted Food for Life workshops during the past year.

What do I do now?

Ask your school if they’ve seen the Food for Life Workshop leaflet [circulated to all Cumbrian primary schools at the beginning of the summer term]. If the school can’t find the leaflet then please contact Kay March [details below], who will be happy to send them one.

If you think your school would be interested in hosting a Food for Life workshop, or you would like more information, then please contact Kay, e-mail; cumbriafoodforlife@googlemail.com or ring; 01768 889068

If you want to find out more about the national aspects of Food for Life, then visit; www.soilassociation.org/foodforlife