More than 300,000 primary school pupils across the country are gearing up to harvest their Grow Your Own Potatoes project.
The Potato Council-led scheme, which encourages children to plant, care for and harvest their own potatoes, has become the biggest of its kind in the UK.
Park Way Primary School in Maidstone, Kent, was one of the first of the 10,000 participating schools to lift their crop, with the help of local grower Anthony Curwen.
They produced an impressive crop of Vales Emerald potatoes, weighing in at 1074g, and Rocket potatoes, weighing in at 990g.
Anthony Curwen, from Quex Park Estate, near Birchington, said: “Grow Your Own Potatoes is such a fantastic initiative. It is so very important that future generations understand more about how their food is grown and the value potatoes can offer as part of a healthy balanced diet.
“The enthusiasm of the children proves that this project, which allows them to be really hands on from planting to harvesting, is incredibly effective. It is fun and engaging yet manages to get across many important messages in a very simple way.”
The harvesting day included a healthy eating workshop, where pupils learnt more about the role potatoes play in a balanced diet before tasting some potato dishes that were enjoyed by older generations, such as Woolton Pie, made famous by the Potato Pete character, during World War II.
Park Way head teacher Karen Dhanecha said: “The children have not only had great fun growing and harvesting their potatoes but they have learnt so much too. For children, nothing beats being able to see things for themselves and this is an excellent educational activity that really brings how things grow to life.”
Tracy Coult, project manager for the Potato Council, added: “The Grow Your Own Potatoes project this year has been phenomenal. Since its inception just four years ago, we now have 10 times the number of schools taking part. It is an exceptional project, which targets children at an influential age and educates them on basics of the food chain, while leaving a lasting impression.
“There are no limitations and the project can be as big or small as each school wishes. The involvement from farmers adds a real element of excitement, and we were delighted that so many have been helping their local schools with harvesting.”
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