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EduPlant, which was started in 1994 by Food & Trees for Africa (FTA) and is supported by Tiger Brands, is Southern Africa’s largest school food security and nutrition initiative.
According to Robyn Hills, head of programmes at FTA, the food garden at Philip Kushlick School was a finalist in the EduPlant competition in 2020 and was chosen to highlight the work done through the programme to new representatives from the different supporting organisations, as well as the public.
Speaking to Farmer’s Weekly, she said that EduPlant focused on schools, learners, and their surrounding communities and developed school-linked food security clusters in under-resourced communities and townships.
Empowering learners
“To promote household food security in a sustainable way, we must empower vulnerable communities with the knowledge and practical skills to grow their own food,” she said.
She added that the programme’s focus on practical, hands-on learning fitted in with how children at the school learn best.
“In addition to EduPlant supporting the agroecology prevocational subject, the junior learners use the garden to develop tactile sensitivity with structured exercises of sand play therapy, water therapy, and plant textures.
“Hand-eye coordination and memory skills are enhanced after their garden visits to do clay modelling exercises of plants and flowers.
“Each class is involved in environmental awareness programmes, especially in creating a litter-free school and water saving,” Hills explained.
“Through their work in the garden, learners can develop and apply practical skills in a safe, natural setting; enhance [their] physical dexterity and coordination; deepen their understanding of environmental management and sustainability; gain access to healthy, fresh vegetables, improving their nutrition; create pathways to potential careers in agriculture and related fields; and foster [their] independence.
“It also equips learners and educators with the knowledge and practical skills to grow their own food, helping to address household food insecurity in vulnerable communities,” she added.
According to Hills, since Tiger Brands became a sponsor in 2019, EduPlant has supported the establishment of food gardens at more than 1 200 schools across South Africa.
She added that the programme complemented government’s National School Nutrition Programme and Tiger Brands’ in-school breakfast initiatives, which it conducted in underserved communities.
“The programme is also approved by the Department of Education, so it can run as part of the school curriculum during the school day, where most other extracurricular activities would have to run after school.
“[EduPlant] is also accredited with the [South African Council for Educators], so educators are supported to integrate the knowledge effectively,” Hills said.
Theory and practice
Hills explained that the programme was structured to provide practical and theoretical learning through a combination of one-day workshops, followed by hands-on application and assessments over a period of two years at each school, which culminated in a competition where learners showcased their food gardens.
“Facilitated cluster workshops run over seven school terms, involving teachers, learners, and community members alike. EduPlant provides educators and learners with theoretical and practical training. FTA facilitators cover permaculture concepts, garden design, soil testing and conditioning, seed bed preparation, and environmental ethics.
“This is practically workshopped and then implemented by learners at each school with the necessary gardening tools like spades, rakes, and watering cans, and planting materials such as seeds, seedlings, and compost, provided to them.
“The programme maximises the use of the school garden, integrating it into multiple activities and aligning with the curriculum to reinforce learning across subjects,” she explained.
Speaking about the programme’s impact, Hills said: “We have found that EduPlant’s impact extends beyond the learners and school. External monitoring and evaluation found that over 60% of learners and community members involved in the workshops replicate the activities learnt [through the programme] in the household.
Sharing with communities
“This often means that it is the learners who take control of their food sovereignty and encourage their parents to start growing their own food.”
She said surplus produce from the gardens is shared with surrounding communities or sold to generate income, reinforcing both nutrition and economic opportunities.
Maanda Milubi, director of group enterprise, supplier development, and transformation, said: “Through the EduPlant programme, with its focus on building self-sustaining communities, we are not only addressing immediate hunger but helping to restore hope and resilience for the future. This is how Tiger Brands lives its purpose to nourish and nurture more lives every day.”
Chris Wild, executive director of FTA, added that working in a school garden offered a supportive, practical setting where under-resourced children could discover a sense of purpose and calm, growing not only plants but their resilience and self-confidence, too.
Learners are encouraged to replicate and share what they learn during the programme to establish food gardens at home and in their communities, multiplying the programme’s impact, he added.
“The implementation of EduPlant at Philip Kushlick School is a powerful example of how a school food garden can go beyond education to directly improve the lives and prospects of its students and the broader community. The tangible improvements in the garden and harvest impact positively on the growth and development of our often marginalised and differently-abled learners,” Wild concluded.
