We're partnering with national food education charity TastEd to bring food education to nurseries across the city.
Every nursery in Brighton & Hove will be offered training and support to transform their approach to food education and help children develop healthy eating habits.
TastEd’s sensory food education approach encourages children to explore food through sight, smell, touch, sound, and taste, without the pressure to eat.
This could include children listening to different foods to work out which is the loudest and crunchiest and which is the quietest. This method has been shown to help children feel more comfortable trying new foods which leads to healthier diets.
Research shows that early exposure to a variety of foods is key to shaping long-term eating habits. However, 33% of children in the UK aged 5 to 10 eat less than one portion of vegetables a day, and fruit and vegetable consumption is in decline across all age groups.
When healthy food is served in schools and nurseries, much of it goes uneaten, with vegetables being the most wasted item on school lunch plates.
This initiative will give young children in Brighton & Hove the chance to explore and enjoy a wider variety of foods, including those they may not regularly encounter at home.
Councillor Emma Daniel, Cabinet member for Children, Families and Youth Services, said: “I’m delighted that we’re partnering with national charity TastEd to bring their sensory approach to food education to nurseries across Brighton & Hove.
“We know that many young children don’t eat enough fruit and vegetables, so this project will create exciting opportunities to explore new foods in a familiar environment and shape healthy eating habits.
“This will support other council initiatives designed to help us build a better future for children and young people in the city, such as our Holiday Activities and Food Programme, free swimming scheme and school counselling project.”
Following a successful pilot in 2024, the expanded programme will allow even more children to benefit from TastEd’s sensory food education, with practitioner training sessions beginning in June 2025.
The 2024 TastEd pilot programme in Brighton received overwhelmingly positive feedback from nurseries and parents, with many reporting that children were more willing to taste and enjoy fruits and vegetables both in nursery settings and at home.
In January, we also held a sensory food education training session for primary schools in Brighton & Hove.
Nine local primary schools took part in the training, and following the training we provided small grants for schools to buy fruit and vegetables to run food education sessions. We are hoping to run further training sessions for primary schools in 2025/26.
Fran Box, Director at TastEd, said: "Too many children in the UK grow up disconnected from fresh, healthy food. If we want them to eat better, we have to change the way we introduce them to food.
“Sensory food education gives children the confidence to explore and enjoy fruits and vegetables in a way that feels fun and inclusive. We’re delighted to be expanding our work in Brighton & Hove and look forward to working with nurseries and schools across the city."
