Super tuber-day for humble spud

MORE than 220,000 schoolchildren are to be offered 60 tonnes of compost, two tonnes of seed potatoes, 8,000 growing bags and wall charts for “super tuber-day”.

The famine ship, Jeanie Johnston, docked at the IFSC in Dublin, was the inspired venue for the launch of the initiative to mark the United Nations designated International Year of the Potato.

The restored ship with its links to the Great Famine that followed the failure of the potato crop in Ireland more than 160 years ago is a powerful symbol of how the humble spud shines through Irish history, in good times and bad.

Organisers Agri Aware hope primary school pupils will learn about the nutritional, historical and cultural importance of the floury spuds in Ireland and how they are grown and cooked.

Pupils are being urged to sow seed potatoes in February and harvest the crop in June, monitoring progress along the way on a class scrapbook with diagrams, photographs and written observations.

They will be expected to wash the harvested crop, weigh it and send the scrapbook to Agri Aware for assessment. Participating schools have the chance to win more than €10,000 in garden development funds.

The spud starter-packs will be sent to 4,000 primary schools across the country in a major Agri Aware logistical operation for the initiative.

Minister of State Trevor Sargent said it is vital for food security in Ireland and worldwide that more people become involved in growing their own food.

“The skills to grow potatoes and other nutritional food are an important part of a rounded education.

“I also hope more young people will think about agriculture as a career as more schools grow more food,” he said.

Agri Aware chairwoman Mairead Lavery said the potato is the fourth-most important food crop in the world, with Ireland consuming more spuds per head than any other country in Europe.

* www.agriaware.ie