Charity: LEAF School Educational Visits

The Henry Sale Foundation continued to support LEAF by providing funding for 4 farm educational visits between March and November 2019. The HSF funding covers the cost of the LEAF Regional Education Coordinator (REC) and the cost of transport from the school to the farm.

This is needed because many young people do not know where their food comes from, the people behind the story of farm to fork and the many opportunities that food, farming and the countryside can offer them. A 2017 survey of 27,500 children revealed 29% of children aged 5-7 and 25% of 8-11-year olds thought that cheese comes from plants. Other common misconceptions included that tomatoes grow underground and that fish fingers are made of chicken (British Nutrition Foundation).

In order to address these issues, LEAF Education work with local schools, farmers and others in the food sector to offer schools exciting farm visits, from primary school pupils having their first experiences on farm and finding out more about food production through to older students studying food technology, science and STEM subjects, understanding the modern world of agriculture.

Educating young people on the countryside’s role in food production speaks to the core of the Henry Sale Foundation’s principles.