Tesco Ireland launches Stronger Starts Cooks programme in Portnoo primary school

Tesco Ireland has launched their new Stronger Starts Cooks programme in St Conal’s NS Portnoo.

Stronger Starts Cooks is a brand-new, free six-week programme aimed at supporting children’s health and wellbeing. Providing an educational hands-on cooking workshop and learning resources, the six-week programme is now rolling out in Donegal.

St Conal’s NS is currently taking part in the programme, which will see 45 pupils involved.   

This programme will be delivered to almost 3,000 primary school pupils across 42 primary schools this year, giving them hands-on experience with food and nutrition. To gain further insight into the cooking habits and nutrition awareness of the nation’s children, Tesco Ireland commissioned a survey of parents. The results revealed that the majority of parents (92%) would welcome more food education in the primary school curriculum to give children a stronger start in life.   

Stronger Starts Cooks is a curriculum-aligned educational programme that aims to inspire a lifelong love of food and cooking, educate on nutrition, and show the value of home-made meals among primary school children. Professionally developed in consultation with teachers and the support of a qualified dietician, the programme supports classroom learning while helping children build real-life skills in a fun and memorable way.  

Delivered mainly to 5th class pupils (with flexibility for 4th and 6th), the six-week experience includes a hands-on cooking workshop and lessons in food science, food safety and healthy eating. Among the highlights is a visit to a local Tesco store, where students explore the journey of food from farm to shelf, take part in a budgeting challenge, enjoy food sampling sessions, and getting to see behind the scenes of a busy shop environment. Delivered by educational specialists Real Nation, the pilot programme has already received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with the majority (95%) of pupils saying they enjoyed the experience.    

Most parents rate themselves as confident cooks (64%), however, just 26% say they learned to cook at school, with most learning at home or self-taught. While parents are confident in their own skills, fewer than half (44%) say they’re confident their children would know how to cook a basic meal from scratch. More than half of parents (51%) report that they speak to their children occasionally, or not at all, about healthy eating.   

Natasha Adams, CEO of Tesco Ireland was proud to announce the new cookery-based programme: “This programme has the potential to transform children’s eating and cooking habits, delivering Tesco’s long-standing ambition to play our part in building thriving communities nationwide. 

“We know that the kitchen can be one of the most powerful classrooms, and with Stronger Starts Cooks we’re supporting children in building real-life skills that will serve them far beyond the school gates. From learning how to prepare simple meals to understanding budgeting, nutrition and where their food comes from; we are giving kids the tools to make informed choices for a healthier future.”    

Donncha O’Callaghan, campaign ambassador, added: “As a dad, I know how important it is to give kids the tools they need to make healthy choices, and that starts with understanding food. 

“What I love most about the Stronger Starts Cooks programme is that it’s not just teaching kids how to cook, it’s sparking their curiosity about what they eat, where it comes from, and how to make smart decisions in the kitchen and beyond. It’s real-life learning that sets them up for the future, and I’m proud to be involved.”

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Stronger Starts Cooks builds on the success of the Stronger Starts Food programme, launched in 2021, which provides free weekly packs of fruit and veg to children in DEIS schools during school term. And Stronger Starts Food Collections support local family

resource centres and community groups during school holidays. Together, these programmes form part of Tesco’s broader Stronger Starts mission, supporting children’s health and wellbeing through community investment and educational initiatives.