Unity College joins national kitchen garden program

Unity College will be one of 30 schools and early childhood services in Australia to receive sponsorship and get involved with the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program.

The college will be among the first schools to receive support through a three-year partnership between the program and Costa Group, the owners of Costa Adelaide Mushrooms at Monarto.

The program will provide hands-on learning experiences for students to grow, harvest, prepare, and share fresh seasonal food.  

Costa Group CEO Marc Werner said his company wanted to contribute to the health and wellbeing of the community and reduce the incidence of chronic disease and morbidity.  

“We know that an effective way to do this is through educating children about the benefits of eating a balanced and nutritional diet, which includes regular serves of fresh fruit and vegetables, and we are delighted to be teaming up with the foundation to support schools in our local communities,” he said. 

Across the next three years, the sponsorship will provide institutions with a two-year membership to the Kitchen Garden Program, as well as a grant to assist with infrastructure and resources that the schools and services may need during the program.

Unity College principal Francois Pienaar said the school was looking forward to the garden-to-plate approach of the program.

“Students not only grow and harvest fresh produce, but they also use it in cooking sessions: developing practical skills in the kitchen, learning about nutrition, and experiencing the satisfaction of preparing and sharing meals made with ingredients they’ve nurtured themselves,” he said.

Unity College was one of 10 regional schools sponsored in South Australia, alongside Nairne Primary School, Nangiloc Colignan and District Primary School, and Loxton District Childcare Centre.

• More information: www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au.