New partnership will excite kids about vegetables

Vegetable consumption in New Zealand is falling, with less than 20% of New Zealanders eating the recommended amount per day. New Zealand vegetable growers have formed a partnership with EATucation to reverse this trend…

New Zealand vegetable growers have formed a partnership with social enterprise, EATucation to provide young New Zealanders with the skills they need to value and eat vegetables throughout their lives.

“Our new partnership complements what we are doing through the Add One More Vegetable initiative to increase vegetable consumption,” says Vegetables NZ Chair, John Murphy. 

“EATucation’s programme will improve children's attitudes towards vegetables and drive better health outcomes throughout their lives.  

‘We also reckon these young New Zealanders will take their enthusiasm and new knowledge and skills home to their communities.”

Recent Australian research shows that the average Australian’s intake of vegetables is 1.7 serves per day. New Zealand’s statistics are similarly low – and far short of the recommended 5+ A Day that health professionals advocate.

“Vegetable consumption in New Zealand is falling, with less than 20% of New Zealanders eating the recommended amount per day,” says John.

“This situation has a negative impact on people’s health and wellbeing, and costs the public health system billions of unnecessary taxpayer dollars a year.

“That’s why New Zealand vegetable growers are investing in programmes to increase consumption.” 

EATucation provides early childhood, primary, and secondary school teachers with ready-made resources that build students’ food literacy at every stage of their education journey.

EATucation founder, Matt Robinson, says that while working as a food technology and hospitality teacher, he saw first-hand our declining rates of food literacy and the impact this was having on young people.

“EATucation believes food education is a taonga (treasure) worth protecting and offers an opportunity to reduce the toll poor diet takes on communities.

“We provide teachers with ready-made food education resources that connect to all aspects of the curriculum from literacy to numeracy to science and technology. This allows teachers to cover the subjects they teach everyday while also ensuring their students leave school food literate.”

Matt says EATucation is committed to increasing the amount of food education every learner in New Zealand receives, by supporting schools with evidence-based resources that provide the ingredients for a healthy and resilient future.

“By increasing learners’ food literacy, we can decrease the health statistics that are trending in the wrong direction. We also know that accessing a balanced diet supports learners’ academic performance, and social and emotional well-being.”