Students prove big hit selling school-grown fruit and veg at market 

Local students turned market traders last week, selling school-grown fruit and vegetables at Enfield Market as part of a programme promoting healthy eating, cooking and sustainability. 

Dozens of pupils from Enfield secondary schools rubbed shoulders with seasoned traders at the morning sale, selling rhubarb, potatoes, spring onions, lettuce, herbs and more, making a total of £230 which will be reinvested back into their schools. 

The programme, called Know Your Onions, is run by charity School Food Matters and gives students an opportunity to experience cooking and growing at school, with the help of expert gardeners and food teachers, to stimulate an interest in food and a love of the natural world. The free programme for schools, now in its fifth year, also sees students visiting a nearby market garden to observe how the professionals do it. 

Fifty pupils from Enfield Grammar School, St Ignatius College, Durants School and Aylward Academy took part in the Know Your Onions programme this year. In total across five boroughs, more than 160 students sold their fresh and tasty produce at local markets in Walthamstow, Croydon, Hackney and Camden 

Dela Foster, School Food Matters development manager, said: “Teenagers can be initially confused about why they should learn about food growing and cooking. But for many, visiting the farm is the moment when they see why this is important. Then when they taste the amazingly fragrant, spicy dishes they have created with vegetables, they start to understand the fun.   

“And then, finally, market day gives them this incredible opportunity to interact with the public and see the value their community places on home-grown veg.” 

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