Smoothies by the Sea at Agri Aware Healthy Eating Week launch with the help of Dole Ireland in Realt na Mara NS Dundalk.
Smoothies were the order of the day as Agri Aware and Dole Ireland visited Réalt na Mara National School in Dundalk, with the help of Deirdre Doyle from the Cool Food School as part of the Incredible Edibles Healthy Eating Week.
PICTURED: Eilis Greene – Agri Aware Programme and Events Manager, Oonagh Trehin – Bord Bia Healthy Eating Executive, Devine Iheanacho, Deegan Kelleher and Naomi Cassidy – Dole Ireland Marketing Manager
Ms. Mc Gee’s fifth class learned first-hand what can be done with some fruit and vegetables at home to ensure primary school children eat their seven portions of fruit and vegetables daily. A smoothie is a great way to increase the portions per day.
The Réalt na Mara pupils enjoyed an interactive demonstration from Deirdre, founder of The Cool Food School before showing their own culinary skills as they chopped the ingredients for a healthy smoothie under the watchful eyes of their teachers.
The pupils have been taking part in the Agri Aware Incredible Edibles healthy food programme where they learn to grow their own fruit and vegetables. The project supports their school Healthy Eating policy by partaking in Healthy Eating Week. This year being celebrated in schools from May 9th – 15th.
The challenge is to eat seven a day for seven days – The recommended amount for those aged five and over from Healthy Ireland and the HSE – and fill out a food diary available on the Incredible Edibles website.
This also encourages the pupils’ families to get involved by bringing their healthy eating learnings home with them.
PICTURED : Cillian Agnew, Devine Iheanacho, Deegan Kelleher and Sara Kornelia-Woj of Realt na Mara NS Dundalk
The fruit and vegetables on the day were very kindly donated by Dole Ireland, the world’s leading premier fresh produce provider. Pupils not only got to take home a goodie bag for themselves, but the whole school will also receive two deliveries of free fresh fruit and vegetables to help them on their Healthy Eating Week Challenge!
Dole is one of fifteen sponsors of the Agri Aware Incredible Edibles programme, which is impacting over 76,000 primary children this year alone.
This exciting challenge comes ahead of Bord Bia’s Bloom in the Phoenix Park, on the June bank holiday. At Bloom, a further 1,000 Incredible Edibles project pupils will attend and receive an educational tour of the farmyard – run by Agri Aware, the Eat Well Marquee and Organic show garden.
Naomi Cassidy, Marketing Manager for Dole Ireland said:
“As an Irish company, we’re incredibly proud of our association with Incredible Edibles. Growing and marketing, as we do, produce synonymous with nutrition and best sustainable practices, we are hugely supportive of the amazing work the project does in promoting health and local producers. We are delighted to support this initiative, particularly in our hometown of Dundalk.”
Alan Jagoe Chairman of Agri Aware said:
“Our Incredible Edibles programme is our longest-running and like the fruit and vegetables every year, it continues to grow.
“Thank you to all the children and teachers here at Realt na Mara who got involved and of course to Dole Plc for their sponsorship of the programme and kind donation of fruit for the school.
“It is great to see the children getting stuck into one of our schools’ programmes in such a practical way and hopefully it can lay the foundations for a healthy lifestyle and a positive relationship with Irish grown food for the rest of their lives.”