PAL Food Labs

Child obesity, a generation of children which knows little or nothing about where food comes from beyond the microwave oven or the fast food outlet; global commercial pressures on food production and the erosion of consumer choice are just a few aspects of the debate on food that confronts us on a daily basis in all media. From the beneficial effects of a healthier diet on young people’s behaviour to the plight of banana growers and pickers, the numerous complex and critical issues surrounding the production and consumption of food have never been more widely discussed.

PAL's Food Lab programme, in partnership with Commonwork, addresses these critical issues, inspiring young people to investigate them at school and at home. The Food Lab embraces food scientists, artists, food writers and filmmakers, food historians, farmers, school leaders and classroom teachers, nutritionists in schools and cooks: all of whom are passionate about what they do.

Food and healthy eating is a perfect example of a cross-curricular topic, covering Geography, Science, History, Art, English, Personal, Social and Health Education, with a central place on the curriculum. The Food Lab is working with PAL Labs of Learning to produce exciting teaching materials and new workshop ideas, through the media and in the wild, for Key Stages of the National Curriculum.

PAL's partner in the Food Labs is Commonwork, based in Kent on the 500-acre organic dairy farm, Bore Place, home of many PAL Labs. Commonwork’s onsite educational programme introduces young people to the connection between food and the natural world, the importance of local produce and the facts about food miles. Collaboration between PAL and Commonwork offers opportunities for a better understanding of food, nutrition, agriculture and global interdependence to teachers and children.

Lab director
Peter Gilpin

food@pallabs.org

See PAL news for details of recent and forthcoming Food Lab activity.

Click here to view list of participants