Her Royal Highness at the Dorchester

Her Royal Highness at the Dorchester

Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall had tea in The Dorchester Hotel with the winning pupils of British Food Fortnight's school competition - the Cook for Life Challenge.

The competition challenges all schools in the UK to take part in the annual food celebration by incorporating cookery into their curriculum activities in imaginative ways. Last year's special challenge was for pupils to design and cook a menu using the minimum food miles. The winning school, Hawarden High School in Flintshire, produced a menu that cut food miles by 95 per cent.

As a reward, on 10 February, 15 pupils aged between 14 and 18 spent the afternoon in the kitchens of the Dorchester Hotel with chef, Henry Brosi learning about the quality and variety of British food and how to incorporate healthy cooking into their everyday lives.

HRH The Prince of Wales, commenting in the Foreword to British Food Fortnight's school resource pack, said: "I am immensely impressed by the ingenuity and imagination of the schools that have taken part in British Food Fortnight over the last few years".

Camilla, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, joined the pupils in the kitchens to see them put the finishing touches to the dishes they were learning to make. She presented Hawarden School with their winning prize - cooking equipment to enable them to give more cookery lessons in class.

Her Royal Highness then enjoyed a Dorchester tea with the pupils and other leading participants in British Food Fortnight including representatives from Aramark (one of the largest food service organisations), Budgens, National Trust, Women's Institute, Hoddesdon Girl Guides, Anchor Trust care homes, Bolton Council and some of the chefs who regularly go into schools during the Fortnight to teach children how to cook. Her Royal Highness also met the BBC's 'Hairy Biker' celebrity chefs, Dave Myers & Simon King, who are big supporters of British Food Fortnight.

Reg Barritt, teacher from the winning Hawarden High School, said: "Taking part in British Food Fortnight has been hugely rewarding for our school and the opportunity for pupils to meet a member of the Royal family and be given a cooking lesson in a top London hotel is the icing on the cake."

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