Primary 6 pupils from Salen, Lochdonhead and Ulva Primary schools treated all staff and pupils to a lunch of locally produced food as the highlight of Health Day where the theme was Healthy Eating. They took over the school kitchen for the morning and, under the guidance of sous chef Michael Shannon from the Western Isles Hotel, assisted by Iona, and Eilidh and Debbie from the school kitchen, they prepared and served a feast of wonderful Mull produce which had been kindly donated by local producers.
On the menu was Oni Boa’s pork, Glengorm beef, Scottish Sea Farms salmon, Sgriob-ruadh cheese, Island Bakery biscuits and sorbet from Isle of Mull ice cream. The pupils learned a huge amount about food preparation and local food and, enjoyed the whole experience. Some of the pupils commented “ it was hard work to get everything ready in time” (Talia), “it was quite technical to get everything right, and it was important to taste everything as we went along” (Bailey), “it was a really good experience” (Jay), “it was really good fun and I’d like to do it again one day (Dylan),
“I might be a chef when I leave school” (Peter), “it was good to see how our lunches are made”(Sam) , “I found it really exciting, it took longer than I thought to get everything ready” (Johnnie), “it was really fun and inspired me to do more cooking and now I know how to make a really good pudding” (Charlie), “I enjoyed it, but sometimes it was tough to get everything ready and on time” (Camrie), “I’d never tried the Isle of Mull cheese before, but it was really good” (Euan).
The schools would like to thank all the local producers for giving the pupils this opportunity to use and enjoy fresh local produce. Many thanks also to volunteers who came to speak to the pupils in the other Health Day workshops – Gerry Ralston worked with the children on Heartstart emergency lifesaving skills, Joyce MacIntyre and Fiona Sanderson spoke about the importance of healthy eating, staff from the Glasgow Science Centre told the pupils all about “disgusting digestion” and “a journey through my body” , Duncan Travers, Head Gardener at Torosay Gardens, taught the children how to sow and grow courgettes, Andrea Mckenna and Jane MacLean got everyone moving with their Zumba routines. Mrs Bowman worked with the children to produce a huge map of local produce, which showed what a variety of delicious foods are produced here on Mull.
