FOOD SECURITY IN SCHOOLS
Through our major sponsorship of the EduPlant programme we, together with Absa and Engen, assist South African schools in developing permaculture food gardens. In 2010, 8 000 educators benefited from participating in the EduPlant programme, co-ordinated by Food & Trees for Africa. This is the Trust’s flagship food security and educational initiative and provides sustainable food security through food gardens to school communities. The project currently receives in excess of R1.5m a year from the Woolworths Trust.
Through the EduPlant programme, schools develop food gardens using permaculture techniques. In harmony with nature, EduPlant schools grow vegetables, fruit, herbs and medicinal plants. These schools provide food for hungry school children and the communities around them.
Through their participation in the EduPlant programme, thousands of schools across the country have become champions of community development; promoting food security, improved nutrition and self-reliance.
In the second half of 2010 Woolworths, together with ABSA, will be funding a pilot project in Siyakhana food garden in Bezuidenhout park in Johannesburg. The Siyakhana Food garden is a project of the University of Witwatersrand and it has the objective of improving availability and accessibility of nutritious food and providing education to the surrounding communities on producing their own food.
Record number of Educators reached through EduPlant workshops and record number of EduPlant entries in 2010
The 2010 EduPlant workshops have been a great success. This year the programme welcomes Engen, Absa and the Woolworths Trust as the funding partners. They are growing and developing this national school greening and food gardening programme, founded and coordinated by FTFA, that is now in its 16th year.
A record number of over 8 000 delegates attended the 72 educator workshops run across South Africa and a record number of over 580 schools have submitted entry forms for the competition this year.