Food literacy encompasses the knowledge and skills required to make healthy and sustainable food choices. School garden and cooking programmes provide hands-on opportunities for children to learn about growing, preparing and eating food, and have been shown to improve nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes and dietary practices in school-aged children (1). This study evaluated changes in food literacy among New Zealand primary school children participating in the Garden to Table, a curriculum-integrated school garden and cooking programme. Year 6 students from two Auckland primary schools completed a validated online food literacy questionnaire before and after participating in the programme (2). The questionnaire, developed for New Zealand children aged 9-10 years, assessed three domains of food literacy: food origins, nutrition knowledge and food skills (2). Scores were expressed as the percentage of correct responses. Paired t-tests were used to compare pre- and post-programme scores, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05. Data were available for n = 114 students with a mean age of 9.4 years who completed assessments at both time points. Following participation in the programme, mean scores increased across all domains of food literacy. Food origins scores increased from 69.7% to 72.5% (+2.8%; p = 0.152), nutrition knowledge scores increased from 55.4% to 59.5% (+4.1%; p = 0.028), and food skills scores increased from 59.8% to 63.6% (+3.8%; p = 0.088). Overall food literacy increased significantly from 59.9% before participation to 63.6% after participation (+3.7%; p = 0.026). The largest improvement was observed for nutrition knowledge, while positive but non-significant improvements were observed for food origins and food skills. These findings suggest that participation in the Garden to Table programme can improve food literacy among primary school children and support the development of knowledge and practical skills related to food. Given the importance of food literacy for promoting healthy dietary behaviours throughout life, school-based garden and cooking programmes are an effective nutrition education strategy. This study adds to the growing evidence supporting experiential food education programmes and provides one of the first evaluations of the impact of a school garden and cooking programme on food literacy in New Zealand children.
Reference:
1. Chan CL, Tan PY & Gong YY (2022) BMC Public Health 22, 1251
2. O'Sullivan T (2015) Measuring food literacy in 9 and 10 year old New Zealand children: questionnaire development, validity and reliability. Master of Dietetics thesis, University of Otago.