Bookings open for LMC post primary cookery demonstrations

 THE Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) is gearing up to share the positive farm to fork story of Northern Ireland Farm Quality Assured (NIFQA) beef and lamb with thousands of pupils across Northern Ireland through interactive cookery demonstrations.

Bookings for the Commission’s annual round of school cookery demonstrations opened on 1^st September. The popular initiative will see LMC’s team of expert demonstrators travel from Derrylin to Downpatrick and Ballymoney to Banbridge in a bid to educate the next generation of consumers on the benefits of eating beef and lamb.

Encouraging teachers to book early, LMC marketing and communications manager Lauren Patterson said, “The most recent academic year saw the LMC team travel the length and breadth of Northern Ireland delivering 375 cookery demonstrations in post primary schools.

“This year plans are in place for the roll out of demonstrations between September 2022 and March 2023. While we do make every effort to facilitate schools, in previous years all slots have been allocated within a few weeks so early booking is advisable to avoid disappointment. Teachers can book their demonstration today by visiting our website www.food4life.org.uk and filling out the cookery demonstration booking form.

“Each cookery demonstration can be tailored to uniquely reflect the class syllabus and specified learning outcomes. Teachers are invited to note any specific requirements on their booking form. Some of the main themes spanning across the year groups are, the Northern Ireland Beef and Lamb Farm Quality Assurance Scheme (NIBL FQAS), food provenance, food safety, food security and sustainability. These topics are relevant to the CCEA GCSE and GCE syllabuses. While showing skills in preparing and cooking a NIFQA beef or lamb dish the LMC demonstrator will speak to pupils about these topics and provide an opportunity for pupils to ask questions.

“At the end of each demonstration pupils can sample the beef or lamb dish. Last year’s firm favourite was the popular honey chilli beef rice bowl! Pupils also take away a LMC recipe book which provides a selection of beef and lamb recipes and is also filled with information relevant to the NIBL FQAS and CCEA curriculum.”