Morrisons is funding a major schools initiative to tackle ignorance about where food comes from.
The Let’s Grow campaign, which encourages children to grow their own vegetables and supports the government’s Growing Schools, launches this week.
Thousands of packets of seeds are being sent to schools taking part in the scheme for teachers to encourage pupils to start planting and grow around 1.5 million salad leaf plants.
Shoppers will be able to collect vouchers that schools can exchange for gardening equipment, including everything from seeds to spades, composting bins to planters and a greenhouse.
A team of gardening experts provided by community garden specialist Federation of City Farms & Community Gardens will be visiting some of the participating schools to give hands-on support.
TV gardener Diarmuid Gavin will front a series of adverts for the initiative.
Research by the supermarket found that one in 10 children do not know potatoes and carrots could be grown in a garden and that one in four schoolchildren have never grown anything in a garden, plant pot or allotment.
Three-quarters of children are not eating their recommended five portions a day of fruit and veg, the study showed.
Gavin said: “By encouraging schoolkids to get green-fingered, we can help them learn more about fresh fruit and veg.
“Planting seeds and tending them to spring up and sprout is great fun and very rewarding. Who knows, having grown and picked their own, they might even get a taste for eating their greens too.”
Let’s Grow scheme director Angus Maciver added: “This is something children can really get stuck into and, by getting their hands dirty planting, growing, pruning and picking, develop a real passion for produce.
“Let’s Grow will get thousands of children out into their school gardens, learning about where good fresh food comes from, how to grow their own and, hopefully, enjoying some tasty fresh fruit and veg as well. What could be better than that?”
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