News

Garden to Table’s fabulous new facility and gala dinner

More New Zealand primary school students will soon be growing, harvesting, preparing and sharing fresh seasonal produce! Our friends across the Tasman, the Garden to Table Trust, have recently turned the first sod on a new kitchen and garden site in the Wynyard Quarter in inner-city Auckland.

The new facility will encompass an edible garden and a kitchen classroom which will be available to Auckland school children. This will mean more students will be able to learn skills that will last a lifetime, and discover how much fun it is to grow and cook their own seasonal vegetables and fruits.Along with teaching children, the site will also be used for adult education workshops, school holiday programs and events. It will also be the new home of the Garden to Table office. What a truly beautiful place to work!

The New Zealand Garden to Table Programme is closely modelled on the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program. It  began in 2008 when New Zealand food writer and cook Catherine Bell gathered a group of like-minded people together. Three pilot schools joined in 2009 and there are now seven schools involved in the Programme with four more due to join over the next year.

Waterfront Auckland has generously given the use of 1500 square metres of land to create their new facility. The project is being made possible by support committed from many organisations. The Trust is also seeking partners to help develop the kitchen classroom facility, re-surface the ground and provide secure fencing. The Garden to Table Trust is holding a gala dinner on 30 August 2012. The glittering event will feature delicious seasonal food from six of New Zealand’s best chefs, wine from a leading New Zealand vineyard and an auction of luxury items to raise funds for the Wynyard Quarter project. Visit their website for more information and to purchase tickets.

All the best to the Garden to Table Trust, the dinner is sure to be a success and we look forward to hearing of progress on the Wynyard Quarter site!

Find out more about the Garden to Table Trust here.