OTTAWA, ON - Over 75 classrooms across Canada will dive into the pleasures of working with produce as Chef for a Day takes center stage on May 30^th. Established by the Canadian Produce Marketing Association (CPMA), the campaign encourages healthy eating habits and food skills, and it is part of the organization’s Freggie™ Children’s program. This special day is a way for educators to make healthy eating more approachable and easy as students make healthy lunch from start to finish. Students get to eat what they create and learn how healthy eating habits fuel their growing bodies.

“We know that the development of proper food skills is an essential foundation for healthy eating, and that the best way to learn is with a hands-on experience,” President Ron Lemaire said. “We’re hoping this event can provide awareness at the community level as to the benefits of teaching children to cook and sending them to school with more nutritious lunches.”

For teachers looking for guidance on how to best showcase this exciting day’s festivities, blueprints for the event are supplied, which enlist local chefs, dietitians, and keen parents for their assistance. According to a press release, the focus on health, food safety, and great taste will be seen at every event, as the day includes students at every step. Since its piloting phase in Nova Scotia in 2015, the program has since launched into a full-on national program that caters to the needs for each school.

“It can be extremely challenging for teachers to execute one-off educational programs with limited funding and resources. With the easy to follow blueprints and gift cards to purchase ingredients, CPMA has developed a winning combination to get more kids engaged in healthy eating while respecting busy schedules,” Kim Hickman, Community Dietitian, Health Promotion Unit, Government of Yukon, added. “This program is a wonderful way to get kids engaged and excited to make healthy meals.”

Teachers are seeing the benefits of the program, as students learn how to love produce by working with it themselves.

“Students gained confidence in their cooking skills and ability to make their own lunches. Vegetables do taste delicious!” said teachers from Evole Van Belleghem who participated in the Fall 2017 Chef Day.

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Canadian Produce Marketing Association