The Co-operative Group’s “Farm to Fork” scheme, which has been welcoming schoolchildren to their farm in Leicestershire, has been rolled out to two other farms.
The Hirsel Estate in the Borders, Berwickshire and Berners Hall Farm in Essex are both managed by The Co-operative Farms (The Co-operative Group’s farming business) and have just opened their doors to schools in their areas.
Lucky pupils from Rothbury First School were the first to visit The Hirsel Estate, and Roding Primary School were invited to Berners Hall Farm. During the visits, the children aged 6-8 enjoyed a busy outdoor learning day. They learnt how to identify seeds such as wheat, see the countryside and hedgerows, and learn about the seasons. They also had the opportunity to see how wheat is used for food, by cooking their own scones and pizzas.
There are further visits planned to the farms for other schools in each area. Managers of Co-operative food stores are visiting local schools to invite them to the farms and many stores have helped to raise money to pay for transport costs.
The Co-operative Group is supporting the Year of Food & Farming, by providing £250,000 worth of support for the project that will enable schools to visit local farms.
