This Autumn term, primary schools in the county will be tucking into Cumbrian-grown carrots and discovering the benefits of local food through an exciting pilot scheme. Cumbrian Carrot Connections aims to connect children with where their food comes from, planting the seeds of healthier habits, and a better understanding of the relationship between food and climate.
As well as tasting carrots grown by local farmer, Richard Crayston of the VistaVeg Ltd co-operative, pupils at participating schools will have National Curriculum-aligned lessons and assemblies about the carrot’s journey from seed to plate. This will be supplemented by school trips to meet the growers and see where the food has come from.
For schools, participation in the pilot is free and will highlight the importance of food in Climate Action Plans (the decarbonisation strategies all schools are required to have in place by September 2025). School caterers will also receive training and support to help integrate more locally grown vegetables on school menus.
Food and drink make up a quarter of the average Cumbria residents’ carbon footprint. Getting low-carbon food into schools and inspiring the next generation to eat sustainably are important steps towards a zero carbon county. Carrots were an obvious choice for the pilot because they can be grown in Cumbria in natural conditions almost all year round, meaning associated emissions are low. As well as their low-carbon credentials, carrots are healthy, familiar and affordable, making them perfect for a children’s food programme.
Back in the field, small growers have typically been prevented from supplying to schools because of factors like cost and the smaller scale of their production. Through collaboration between different stakeholders, the pilot will aim to overcome these barriers and develop a scalable model. Lynn Barnes, director of Vista Veg, said, “Getting locally-grown food on to the plates of Cumbrian school-children is such a simple and achievable concept but at the moment it’s simply not happening here in Cumbria. This project is a really exciting opportunity to turn this situation around and to encourage everyone involved in producing school meals to think differently about how ingredients are sourced.”
It’s hoped that networks built between schools, caterers, parents and growers will allow the pilot to expand and deliver wider economic, health and environmental benefits. “We are excited to see where the pilot takes us and hope that, if successful, we can expand the project to other foods in the future” says Laura Blake, Futureproof Cumbria’s Low Carbon Food project manager. “I have been delighted by the response so far and the support from all of our project partners and those we have shared our ambitions with.”
The Cumbrian Carrot Connections pilot marks an exciting collaboration between local and national partners. Futureproof Cumbria and Zero Carbon Cumbria have launched the project alongside local growers co-operative Home Grown Here, global citizenship charity Cumbria Development Education Centre, and Westmorland and Furness Council. ProVeg UK, an NGO seeking to replace 50% of global animal products with plant-based and cultivated foods by 2040, is also a key partner on the project. The pilot is free to schools thanks to funding from the Place-to-Plate project, itself part of the wider Rural Net Zero Project, which seeks to understand and overcome barriers to decarbonising food systems and business processes in Westmorland & Furness. The Rural Net Zero Project is supported by the national government innovation agency, Innovate UK.
The scheme was developed with input from Cumbrian secondary school students, who set out their recommendations for delivering low-carbon, healthy and affordable food in the Cartmel Commitment 2025.
Schools wishing to get involved in the Cumbrian Carrot Connections pilot can find out more and register their interest here.
