Firm promotes healthy veg to schoolchildren

Freshtime, based in Marsh Lane, visited Staniland Academy to launch its third annual Fun Club – which educates and encourages children to munch on wholesome Lincolnshire-grown produce.

During the session, 47 pupils from Year 3 took part in an interactive vegetable-themed quiz and pea-planting session, hosted by Freshtime’s head of agronomy, Mel Miles.

Armed with a box of groceries including okra, kale and broccoli, ready to test the children’s knowledge, Mr Miles engaged the youngsters by allowing them to pass the vegetables around while asking questions and encouraging them to think about the shapes, colours and textures of each fresh item.

“I always look forward to hosting the Freshtime Fun Club,” he said.

“It’s great to see how each one will pan out, because the level of intrigue and interactivity among the children varies from school to school.

“At this stage in their lives it’s about finding new ways of generating excitement and interest in food provenance, which is why we launched the fun club in the first place.”

Staniland teacher James Russell commentedd: “The first session went really well and the children thoroughly enjoyed it.

“We have been learning about the plant system in class so it’s been especially nice for them to actually participate in the planting.”

He added: “Schemes such as this one are so important as they provide an opportunity for children to get excited about vegetables and think about the positive impact of healthy eating.”

The school says it hopes the Freshtime Fun Club will inspire pupils to get involved with growing some of their own plants and vegetables at home.