Press Release – Trust Garden to Table
Charity Garden to Table is planning to expand its popular growing and cooking program in early childhood education (ECE) centres. The first of the new beds were installed at a nursery in Massey, Auckland, this week.
The foundation provides direct educational support to nearly 300 elementary schools across the country, serving more than 30,000 children and serving more than a million meals each year. As part of the new ECE initiative, children aged two to five years old will learn to grow, harvest and prepare fruits and vegetables using a program adapted to the ECE curriculum.
Ani Brunet, chief executive of the charity Garden to Table, said: This will help achieve long-term health, social, economic and environmental benefits for tamariki, whanau and community(s). Imagine if children grew up learning PAUD preparation from elementary school through high school. Our dream is to see delicious, affordable and nutritious kai grown, prepared and shared as a normal part of daily life for tamariki and whanau in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Demand for garden-to-table has grown rapidly in recent years as parents, teachers and educators realize the educational, social and environmental implications of teaching children how to grow and prepare kai. The school values a hands-on approach to learning, which benefits Akonga in a wide range of subjects, from maths and science to literacy and the arts.
“You'll never be too young to experience the pride and joy of growing and preparing your own fruits and vegetables. We are excited to develop and empower New Zealand's youngest gardeners and chefs. Learning about where food comes from changes children's attitudes towards food and encourages healthy habits during their formative years. It's amazing what little children can do.
“EPE’s support for the Garden to Table program aims to provide lifelong learning opportunities for our tamariki to develop sustainable communities. Parents participate and benefit from the ride home, which extends to the wider community. Social relationships are strengthened by bringing people together through kai.
“Educating Tamariki about gardening and nutrition helps build a strong foundation for lifelong healthy habits to address today's pressing health, educational, social and environmental challenges,” Ani said.
To celebrate the expansion of the Garden to Table programme, a team of volunteers from T&G Global joined the charity at Colville Nurseries in Massey this week to build their first garden and plant fruit and vegetable seedlings with children and parents.
T&G corporate affairs manager Adrienne Sharp said the charity had played a fundamental role in creating a healthy future for New Zealand tamarisk.
“At T&G, our goal is to create a healthier future, and Garden to Table does an incredible job of getting kids excited about fresh, nutritious food by growing and preparing their own fruit and vegetables.
“Thanks to the hard work of Garden to Table and many dedicated volunteers in schools and the community, thousands of children over the last decade have learned to grow their own food and been inspired to turn those ingredients into meals they can cook and enjoy. .
The success of the Garden to Table program demonstrates the importance of providing hands-on learning experiences, and we are excited to continue working with Ani and her team as they enter this exciting new phase of the program,” said Adrienne.
Ani Brunet said: “It is fitting that T&G, which has been our partner for so long, has rolled up its sleeves to help us build our first garden, which will mark the beginning of a new chapter in the history of ECE. They really supported us through elementary school and we are honored and excited to share this new beginning with them.
The Trust hopes to adapt the program and implement it in early learning centers based on lessons learned from a pilot project at Colville Nursery School in Massey, Auckland. This ECE pilot project was made possible by funding from the Jenkins Foundation. Having the support of trusted partner T&G Global, who celebrated 10 years of partnership with Garden to Table this year, was a huge help and allowed us to celebrate a new beginning.
T&G Global first partnered with the Garden to Table Trust in 2013. Since then, the number of participating schools has grown from 21 to 300, serving more than 30,000 children and serving more than a million meals nationwide.
Content from scoop.co.nz
Source URL:
