A Lincolnshire primary school has been applauded for growing 3,800 grams of potatoes in less than three months.
The Grow Your Own Potatoes (GYOP) initiative, by AHDB, teaches schoolchildren where their food comes from and how it grows.
The Market Rasen-based school competed against almost half a million primary school pupils in England, Scotland and Wales.
With the help of 70 schoolchildren, the school grew and harvested almost 225g more potatoes than any other school.
Potato variety Rocket performed best, with growth fuelled by a special ingredient.
“Reducing food waste is really important, so we decided to mix used coffee from the filter machine into the soil to help them grow. That could be the secret to our success,” said Rita Griggs, Teaching Assistant at Faldingworth Community Primary School.
“The children particularly enjoyed harvesting and finding the potatoes hidden in the soil. All kids should know where their food comes from and how it grows.”
On behalf of farmers and growers, AHDB organises the free activity for schools, which can now register to take part in the competition for 2020.
AHDB Education Manager Sue Lawton, said: “While the competition is great fun, we’re also educating children on how potatoes fit into a healthy, balanced diet, where they come from and how they grow.
“We had a fantastic uptake with almost 16,000 kits sent out to primary schools all hoping to win the top spot, or one of the 10 regional prizes up for grabs.”
Launched in 2005, GYOP was one of the first ever primary school based growing projects in the UK.
Since then, it has become the largest of its kind with over 2 million children taking part in learning where potatoes come from, how they grow and the health benefits.
Growing kits are limited and schools have been urged not to miss out for next year. Closing date for applications is 24 January.
