As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food, Sharon visited the Young Marketeers Summer Market in Borough Market, London.
The market was made up of children from 12 schools from across London who set up market stalls in Borough Market to sell their school-grown fruit and veg and help raise funds for FareShare – a charity that helps tackle hunger and food waste in the UK. The scheme is a joint venture between School Food Matters, FareShare and Borough Market.
As part of the scheme, the children learn about the experience of growing and harvesting food and then selling it to the general public. This scheme allows children to develop important knowledge about where the food they eat comes from, and also learn vital skills on growing, marketing and selling produce; all important skills that can be used in adult life.
After the visit, Sharon said:
“It was absolutely wonderful to see so many children getting stuck into the whole process of growing fresh food and then proudly selling the food they have lovingly grown at school. It was clear when I visited the market that we had some budding Alan Sugars on the stalls that morning.
“Allowing children the ability to learn about where food comes from and the process of selling food will put them in good stead for their futures where they can apply these skills to their adult life by making healthier eating choices, grow their own food and also having an appreciation of how food making its way from field to table.
“Congratulations must go to the children for their commitment to growing their fresh food and selling it to raise funds for FareShare, and to School Food Matters, Borough Market and FareShare for putting on such an excellent market. I wish them every success with the markets planned for the Autumn and for next year’s markets too.”