In an attempt to encourage healthy lifestyles, the National Dairy Council has launched a competition to encourage pupils to eat sustainably. The competition will run in conjunction with the School Milk Scheme (SMS) and will be known as the Eating Sustainably Classroom Challenge. The competition will be open to all schools participating in the SMS.
Teachers will each receive a unique login and password upon registration for their specific class and pupils will then be assigned classroom and home tasks that will encourage them to adopt sustainable eating habits. Teachers can provide a link in for parents, allowing them to support the children’s activities in the home, for example, making soup from leftovers and placing food scraps in the compost bin.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue said this is a great initiative from the National Dairy Council. It is designed to encourage pupils and parents to understand the importance of living more sustainably. It is also seen as a way to carry out the practical everyday changes that will really make a difference to our planet in the future. He said that he is pleased to note the inclusion of the UN Sustainable Goals and particularly pleased that the reduction of food waste is one of the tasks included in the challenge.
Pupils will receive points for each positive action they complete, 30 points for challenges completed as a class, and five points for tasks completed at home.
The Eating Sustainably Classroom Challenge will run from Monday, 28 March until Friday, 1 April, 2022.