Nick Nairn Inspires Scottish Pupils to Cook Healthy Meals

One of Scotland’s favourite chefs, Nick Nairn, visited a Fife school this week to cook a Scotch Beef dish with pupils studying home economics and health and food technology.

This week’s visit to Woodmill High School in Dunfermline was one of three cooking sessions Nick is undertaking with schools this month, including Boroughmuir High School in Edinburgh and Inverclyde High School in Greenock.

During the visits Nick is joining dietitian Jennifer Robertson, Health and Education Coordinator with Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), to show the children how simple it is to cook a tasty, nutritious meal using beef, lamb and pork.

QMS undertakes around 170 demonstrations to school children every year with the emphasis on the importance of healthy eating and the role beef, lamb and pork play in a good diet.

The Fife school cooking session was filmed by BBC Scotland and will appear on Landward next Friday (May 3rd) on BBC 2 at 7pm with the two other school visits also set to be screened in the coming weeks.

Jennifer Robertson, QMS’s Health and Education Coordinator, said: “It is incredibly important that young people learn basic cooking skills and understand the importance of good nutrition.

“We have concerns about the number of young people leaving school without this knowledge and the impact this can have on their quality of life going forward.

“We hope these demonstrations will encourage children to appreciate how easy it is to eat well and - cooking is great fun!”

QMS offers every secondary school in Scotland a free meat voucher of up to £100 in value, depending on school size, to purchase quality beef, lamb and pork for use in cookery lessons.

Local butcher Alex Mitchell supplied the Scotch Beef for the Fife visit during which fajitas were prepared with the children. Mr Mitchell runs a shop in the Glamis Centre, Glenrothes, with his wife Margaret , their daughter Katherine and her husband Paul. The family business, a member of the Scotch Butchers Club, was established in 1962 and currently employs 15 staff.

“It is important that the younger generation have a good understanding of the important role of red meat in a healthy, balanced diet.  It is equally important that these young people, our consumers of the future, have a good understanding of the fantastic provenance and quality assurance our industry has behind it,” said Mr Mitchell.

“QMS are doing a great job and it’s really encouraging to see a high profile chef like Nick Nairn taking time to get out and about in Scottish schools motivating and inspiring youngsters in this way,” he added.

Caption: Chef Nick Nairn with pupils of Woodmill High School flanked by Jennifer Robertson, QMS Health and Education Coordinator, and Alex Mitchell, Fife Butcher.

EndsFor further press information, please contact Carol McLaren, QMS Head of Communications, on 0131 472 4112 or mobile: 07739 900653 email: cmclaren@qmscotland.co.uk www.qmscotland.co.uk