Spudding Young Chefs

Branston is supporting thousands of children and their families in Lincolnshire with the sponsorship of a series of workshops designed to educate children on cooking and nutrition.

In partnership with the Lincolnshire County Council, as part of the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme, the interactive cookery sessions are being conducted by social enterprise GoGro CIC.

Eamonn Hunt and Rob Hewis, creators of GoGro CIC will present 20 sessions throughout the summer holiday HAF programme. Each session will involve hands-on cookery demonstrations and teach children about the versatile and economical nature of fresh potatoes, in a bid to help them embrace affordable and nutritious eating habits.

The government-backed HAF scheme is a nationwide initiative and takes place across 85 venues in Lincolnshire including sports centres, community halls and schools.

Eamonn Hunt, co-director of GoGro CIC said: “We are thrilled to be associated with Lincolnshire County Council’s HAF Programme and Branston Ltd. We welcome the opportunity to cook with children from around the county, passing on skill sets and informing them about where the food they eat comes from. We all have great fun and love encouraging the kids to eat healthily!”

“Simon Telfer, HR director at Branston, said: “The HAF programme is a fantastic initiative and it’s the ideal opportunity to support children across the county in learning more about healthy and affordable food, in particular fresh potatoes.

“It’s about raising awareness from a young age about how food is grown and the best ways to cook it, but also about making this a fun and enjoyable activity that helps young people develop skills for life.”

Branston has also donated three tonnes of fresh potatoes to the HAF programme, along with some bespoke recipe cards, so that all the children could take away a family-sized portion to be cooked at home.

HAF sessions can be accessed for free during the holidays by any child aged between five and 16 years in receipt of benefits related free school meals, with other eligible parties including young carers, refugees, vulnerable children and more. To find out more please visit: www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/school-pupil-support/holiday-activities-food-programme.