Liverpool children to become market traders for a day at Liverpool ONE

Local primary school children are set to become market traders for a day, offering their fresh, school-grown fruit and vegetables to the public for a noble cause.

Next Tuesday, 9 July, from 11am to 1pm, the young entrepreneurs will set up stalls alongside seasoned traders at Liverpool ONE, showcasing their produce and marketing skills.

The initiative, named Young Marketeers, is spearheaded by the charity School Food Matters.

School Food Matters exists to educate children about food and to improve their access to healthy, sustainable food during school.

They provide fully funded food education programmes to schools, using their extensive experience to inform and strengthen campaigns, ultimately bringing the voices of children, parents, and teachers to government policy.

It provides children with the opportunity to grow food from seed with the guidance of expert gardeners. After months of nurturing their crops, these enterprising students will now bring their fresh and tasty produce to market, ready to share the fruits of their labour with the local community.

Dozens of children from 11 primary schools will participate, selling a variety of produce including potatoes, kale, beetroot, courgettes, cherries, blackcurrants, and herbs. The young traders have also received marketing training to help them effectively engage with customers and promote their stalls.

All proceeds from the sale will be donated to FareShare Merseyside, an organisation dedicated to redistributing surplus food to vulnerable people in the area. This initiative not only teaches children valuable skills but also supports a critical local cause, reinforcing the importance of community and giving back.

Dela Foster, Development Manager at School Food Matters, said:

“For more than a decade, the Young Marketeers programme has been teaching children about where their food comes from and helping build vital life-long skills. Through taking part in planting, growing, and harvesting, students can reconnect with nature and see food as more than something they can buy at the supermarket.

“Young Marketeers allows children to interact with the food they eat in a meaningful way, and it’s these experiences and memories that stick with them throughout their time at school.”

School Food Matters is dedicated to educating children about food and improving their access to healthy, sustainable meals during school years. Through engaging projects like Young Marketeers, the charity helps students understand the journey of food from farm to fork.

Now in its fifth year running outside of London, where it originated in 2012, the Young Marketeers programme has proven successful in Liverpool. School Food Matters is calling on local organisations and businesses passionate about food education and sustainability to support the continuation and expansion of this initiative in Liverpool.

In a recent survey of children involved in Young Marketeers, 73% reported learning a new gardening skill, 66% gained new insights into food origins, and 84% expressed a desire to continue gardening and growing their own produce in the future.

For more information on School Food Matters visit their website here.

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