Lancashire kids growing gourmet ingredients

16:59 7th July 2011

Children in Lancashire are using their school's greenhouse to produce food for an award-winning local restaurant.

Every pupil at Asheligh Primary School in Darwen's Ross Street is involved in growing vegetables and herbs for MJ's Restaurant at the Whitehall Hotel, which is situated just around the corner, the Lancashire Telegraph reports.

Neil Bullows, the owner of the hotel, said: "Everyone's a winner with this. It costs us a lot less, there's no carbon footprint and it's very educational for the children.

"The quality of the food they produce far exceeds what you could get from a supplier."

All of the children at the school have time built in to their timetable to take part in gardening classes in which they learn how to plant, weed and pick.

Some of the produce grown at the school and then used by MJ's includes red onions, English mint lettuce, dill cabbage, oregano, sorrel and Greek sage.

"The children absolutely love it," deputy head Susan Tongue said.