Stuart WoodFood and Farming Day, the annual agricultural educational festival for younger children, marked its 7th annual event at the East of England Arena and Events Centre on June 28, 2019.
4000 children came to the venue for a fun day of stimulated learning about our food and where it comes from.
Food and Farming Day is the headline feature of the Agricultural Society’s 12-month schedule of educational outreach events, developed seven years ago in conjunction with local schools and council bodies to meet Key Stage One and Two national curriculum teaching goals.
Sandra Lauridsen, education manager of the East of England Agricultural Society, commented: “We started our education programme seven years ago, after the success of the cooking for children activity at the East of England Agricultural Show.
“Teaming up with teachers, the council and agricultural specialists, we developed a show and associated events where every single educational aim is linked to a part of the national curriculum. We create stimulated learning opportunities for five to eleven year-olds, where they can find out where food comes from, what it takes to grow or raise it, and how it gets to their plate. From cooking and planting seeds, to raising chicks and harvesting potatoes, we take children through the entire life cycle of the foods they see on their plates every day.
“Having the East of England Arena and Events Centre gives our events a great venue here in the heart of a great food-producing region, and the space to bring in combine harvesters, livestock and this year we welcomed over a hundred education exhibitors to the event.”
Jason Lunn, venue director, East of England Arena, said: “Food & Farming Day is a central component of our venue’s commitment to the local and regional community. It’s a genuine pleasure to see so many children having the greatest time, not even realising that they’re learning important lessons about food, farming and agriculture.”