Wednesday 26 October 2016

The importance of Food Education

The social media is full of articles about how bad supermarket food is - especially processed food - and about how much food is wasted. It makes very disturbing reading, although I'm sure that this sort of thing is nothing new; it's just that we hear more about it these days. I read an article yesterday that said that Denmark has reduced the amount of food it wastes by 25% in 5 years. I don't know whether this is true or just another unverifiable made-up statistic, but I hope it is. One of the reasons given for being able to achieve this creditable result is that most Danes still understand how to make "proper" food, and can cook from raw ingredients. Allegedly, a high proportion of them (even young people) bake bread at home. Even more miraculously, they understand what makes a sensible portion of food!



Now this has caused me to think more deeply about why we in the UK (and I think in the USA too) are so bad at food waste, and at cooking. I think there are a number of reasons, but these are some of them:

1. Very little about cooking and nutrition seems to be taught in schools. If I were in charge, I would make this a compulsory element of the curriculum, because I think it is an essential Life Skill. (Financial Management would also be on my list!)

2. Anecdotal evidence suggests that few parents teach their children how to cook any more - unless you count how to operate the microwave! I know there are exceptions (to which our foodie granddaughters will bear witness), but I think the vast majority of people rely very heavily on Ready Meals, or food that is substantially pre-cooked, like ready-made sauces.

Two of our grandchildren prepping food


3. The second point above begs the question "Why do they want / need to eat Ready Meals?" Some people will say they don't have enough time to prepare real food, but I don't accept this. The reason they don't have time is often that they are too busy playing games, chatting to each other on their phones or on the social media, or watching the TV! In my view, a good parent educates their child that good food is more important than all those things. Furthermore, shopping for, preparing, cooking and eating food together is extremely good for social and family bonding.

4. The social benefits of eating together are well known and have persisted for centuries - until now. My feeling is that many families seldom sit down to eat a meal together, except perhaps for special occasions (and those are normally hosted in a restaurant). Now, is this the cause of some of our bad eating habits, or is it a result of them? Consider also: is the reduction in the number of "traditional" families (I mean one man, one woman and their children) a cause or an effect of our changed eating-habits?

5. Another thing I feel very strongly about is the fact that in the UK being a chef (other than one with a Michelin star), or waiter / waitress, barista, "server" or whatever, is considered low-status - almost too demeaning to constitute a proper job. All too often our restaurants are staffed with ill-trained, demotivated, surly staff with little interest in the food and drink they are serving. Many of them appear to be students doing part-time or holiday jobs, aiming to get into something "better" as soon as possible. This is in stark contrast to many of our European neighbours. How many restaurants in the UK have a trained Maitre d'Hôtel these days, or a Sommelier? How many waiters can even describe Soup of the Day in sensible terms or know its ingredients???

6. Isn't it ironic that information about cooking and recipes has never been more accessible, thanks to the internet? Despite the fact that in our house we have loads of cookbooks, covering most of the different cuisines of the world, the internet is the first place I go when I'm looking for a recipe - even a recipe that I know we have in one of our books - because it is often easier to find it. Nonetheless we still buy cookbooks. They are often a source of general inspiration, rather than specific recipes to be followed. This is part of the deal, surely? To cook good / nice food, you have to enjoy doing it, don't you? For me, browsing a good cookbook definitely counts as part of Food Education!



7. Talking of ironies, isn't it strange that in a nation descending at an alarming pace into obesity, millions of people are obsessed with a TV programme about baking cakes? I have nothing against cakes per se (in moderation), but if only, instead of the Great British Bake-Off we could get people to be as enthusiastic about cooking and eating healthy, well-balanced meals for their families! We went a little way in that direction with Jamie Oliver, but I think even he fell victim to the lure of money. The pressure to keep producing yet another cookbook every few months (to keep the revenue flowing) must be very strong.

8. Now of course poor knowledge of cooking is often a cause of excessive food waste. If a finished dish is not good, it will be thrown away, not eaten. If it is served in too great a quantity, some of it will be wasted, for sure. If the cook doesn't understand the ingredients and how to prepare and cook them, they will end up in the bin. Despite this, the shops (often supermarkets) have a role to play here too. They sometimes sell food in inappropriate units, for instance huge bags of something instead of just one or two items. It must be depressing to be shopping for just one person! It happens less frequently than before, but some supermarkets still have special Buy One, Get One Free offers or pricing structures which persuade shoppers to buy more than they need, simply in pursuit of "turnover".

9. We also have a problem with image. I mean the spurious idea that all food has to look perfect. This is especially true in the case of vegetables. We have been conditioned (by the supermarkets) into expecting every single fruit or vegetable to be unblemished, uniform in size, and regularly shaped. Naturally this results in a high proportion of wastage, usually at the expense of the producer. As a gardener, I know full well how difficult it is to produce this sort of veg! We need to do away with this ridiculous prejudice and return to the more important considerations of nutritional value and above all, flavour.




10. (I'm going to finish at Point No. 10, though I could go on a lot longer!) My final point today seems obvious. Why do food vendors here not do more to persuade their potential customers to buy their wares by offering free samples for tasting? You sometimes see this at a Farmer's Market, and occasionally a supermarket will offer samples of a new product they want to push, but it is relatively rare. On our trips to France though, we have noticed that it is much more common there. Some vendors are very generous with their samples. A vendor confident of the quality of their product knows this will attract people who might baulk at paying a fair bit of money for something they might not enjoy. If the potential customer can try it for free, the battle for their custom is half won already!

If you have any strong views on this subject, I'd love to hear them!

21 comments:

  1. Oh la la !
    I share most of your views here.
    While it is a good idea to have a school curriculum where cooking and nutrition is an 'ingredient', I find, since it is a life skill (like you said) it is mainly the responsibility of the parents. Just like they teach their children how to walk, talk, use the potty/toilet, brush the teeth....
    It is a cop-out to lay this at the door of schools only.
    I am well in my fifties and I didn't have that subject in the school curriculum. Still I am a grand cook (even if I say so myself) and know a thing or two about nutrition (even if I don't always adhere to it). My mother was a very good cook and my father was very engaged with healthy and unprocessed and/or organic foods.
    In essence, my parents where the catalyst for my love of cooking and eating.

    People who say they don't have time to cook are trying to fool others and themselves. It is all about priorities. Hell, I don't have time to do the laundry ! (if you get my drift) Let's just say, I prefer cooking to doing the latter.
    Just admit that you don't want to do it. Nobody can ever be that busy (important) not to be able to cook a quick and nutritious meal. If you have kids, it is your duty !

    I believe some people believe they are cool when they can say "I don't cook or can't cook or I am just too busy"

    There are already a few generations that have lost total touch with the concept of real food. And continental Europe is catching up with the US and UK.
    Quite a few (15) years ago I was making chips for Belgian visitors and the 11 y/o said to me "Are you making chips from potatoes ???" "Yes, of course, what else ?" "I don't know, my mum buys them frozen from the supermarket. I didn't know they were made from potatoes"
    It is something I'll never forget.

    I cannot ever forgive anyone who throws food in the bin. Try and rescue it first. Give it to the chickens or the dog and lastly compost it !

    Better get of my soapbox.



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    1. One of your best Mark. My wife Brenda used to teach domestic science and apart from teaching young people how to cook the subject also taught many life skills and also basic applications of maths and science. I fear it will not reappear on the curriculum.
      I think you might have said more about misleading Government guidance and dubious advice....and their subservience to industry lobbying

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    2. Yeah, the "Misleading advice" thing is a big subject in its own right - as is the complete dominance of Parliament by big business, which prevents good legislation against the malpractices that lead to poor diet, ill health and obesity.

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    3. Patricia, we had the same experience as you with our children's friends not recognising real chips - and not knowing what corn on the cob was (because it normally came ready-prepared, in a bag).

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    4. A friend once had a young son's friend stay and was making tomato soup from scratch. The friend was mystified and was heard say, "Doesn't your mum know that soup comes in tins?"

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    5. My sister and I are chalk and cheese she lives off ready meals from a fear of being laughed at when cooking and i try and make as much from scratch as possible even tried the above mentioned tomato soup but i used the wrong type of tomato it was so awful lol ,i try to cook as many meals from scratch as possible and it isnt always perfect There is a wealth of wonderful tastes and a sense of achievment in cooking from scratch even if you have never done it before its as simple as just having a go!

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  2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVk31Yv9vlg

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  3. I'm one of the baddies.
    I used to be able to cook but am useless now.
    I find I relate better through the internet (either on it or talking about it) than I do when sitting at a table.
    I think it's better to throw away food than eat too much
    and think the reason most food tastes horrid is because most vegetables are completely un-interesting. Home grown ones are different but if you don't have a garden or an allotment, you're stuck.
    Organic doesn't necessarily mean 'tasty'. Apart from carrots, most organic vegetables taste the same as inorganic. Jersey potatoes used to be that wonderful I'd eat a dish of them on their own when they came into season and now they are the same as all other potatoes - and all other potatoes taste the same as each other regardless of variety.
    So . . . there's no joy in cooking if the results are bland or uniform.
    I cower now in your wrath!

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    1. Lucy, I think you are right about the "sameness" of potato varieties. How many people could tell them apart in a blind tasting?? These days one has to become more adept in adding flavour - e.g. with the use of herbs and spices.

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  4. When i started teaching I often cooked and baked with the children. Enter the National 'overloaded' curriculum and educational targets, SATs tests and such things as this and arts and crafts were squeezed out in favour of academic subjects. Always something that I considered to be ill conceived.
    Our greengrocer gives samples of new lines.

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  5. Well said. You've picked up on lots of points there. I think it's sad that very little cooking is taught in schools these days. I remember Daniel and Eleanor having a term each and that was it and in that term one of the dishes they made was fruit salad!

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  6. Well said Mark, unfortunately too many people eat purely for the body -not for the soul, and 'food' is far too cheap, by that I mean ready or processed food. Any one can cook, it's not rocket science, when someone say they cant cook what they mean is the wont or cant be bothered.

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  7. What you count as ready meal? Micro food or pies and pastry also?

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    1. If you bought the pie, I would count it as a ready meal; if you made it, not.

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  8. I was just reading an article tonight about how kids are disassociated from their food and where it comes from. I find it completely unbelievable, but in the article they mentioned a couple of boys who where 5 years old and had never tasted broccoli. What?? How is that even possible? Boggles the mind, really.

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    1. Ah, now I think there is a significant proportion of our population that goes through their whole lives without ever tasting broccoli! It's one of those foods that many people see as being repulsive, without ever having tried it.

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  9. People often shock me, most don't know that you can eat pumpkins. Of course pumpkins are only for lanterns. Even a friend of mine bought 2 large ones for £5 and when I asked about soup he looked blank at me. £5 was considered worth spending just for a night or 2 of a lantern. Also the amount of people that have no idea what Chard, Spinach is shocks me. All the more shocking when I offer a bag for free for them to try - they won't try it.

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  10. I totally agree. It shocks me how much food people waste. I've started teaching my children to grow their own food and cook from an early age and it's great seeing them begin to develop an understanding of their environment and the importance of being responsible with food. I think food education should definitely take higher precedence in schools!
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

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  11. Such Education is very essential for the effective use and nurturing of the garden. It is very important for people to know about the basic techniques as well hacks for proper garden flourishing.

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  12. This is adorable. Thanks for sharing!

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  13. Thank you so much for sharing this post.
    I am a gardener and a mother of two children and every time I always make sure that my family has the fresh food.

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