Teesdale pupils tuck into EU research project

SCHOOL meals at a rural dale school are being analysed as part of an international food study.
Bowes Hutchinson’s Primary School is taking part in Strength2Food which is a five-year European Union funded research programme.
As part of a pilot study in County Durham, researchers from the University of Edinburgh are investigating the environmental, economic, social and nutritional outcomes of school meals provision.
Dr Mary Brennan and Dr Maysara Sayed visited pupils during their lunch break earlier this month.
As well as observing the children, photographs were taken of the meals belonging to key stage one and early years pupils. The before and after images will be analysed using nutritional analysis software which will identify how much of the different food categories have been eaten.
Dr Brennan said: “The overall aim is to look at the nutritional value of the food they are eating as well as where it is being sourced from and what impact those choices of sourcing have on the local community. We are looking to see how much of the money spent on school menus is staying within the region.
“In the case of this school, all of their meat is organic and is sourced locally from Cross Lanes Organic Farm. The school also has Food for Life gold accreditation. They are unique and it is one of the reasons we are interested in them.
“It is all about sustainable food chains. We are particularly focusing on public food procurement in primary schools to see if there are differences environmentally, economically, socially and in terms of nutrition.”
Research will also be carried out in Serbia, Croatia, Greece and Italy with ten schools from each country taking part.
Dr Brennan said: “We are looking at how school lunch happens. It can be very different between schools with very different spaces and very different numbers.”
The research team will be working closely with Durham County Council, primary school headteachers, catering staff, catering contractors, suppliers and farmers to gather the information they need.
Headteacher Chris Matthewman said: “I think the whole topic around food, viability and healthy eating is crucial for our children to understand.
“This project is interesting and it is beneficial for the children. We have been looking at food miles and production. It has been embedded across our curriculum. It is fun for the children as they like food and they like engaging with it. To see what we are doing have an impact on a larger global scale is really exciting.”