Children hold the key to the future of food justice and education in Scotland

19 February 2019

Mhairi Barrett is a PhD Gastronomy student, and a speaker at our national food conference, Biting Back: transforming food experiences for Scotland's children.

Ahead of the event, we asked her more about her interest in food education and what she thinks is next for food justice in Scotland.

What was the main reason you wanted to be part of the event; what do you want people to know about the work you do?

Children in Scotland works tirelessly to address all forms of poverty. However, from my perspective this conference is so important because it highlights a wide range of the food challenges associated with poverty.

Poverty, exclusion and access – how do these terms translate into the everyday lived experience of parents and carers feeding their children in areas with multiple pockets of deprivation? What are the long-term consequences of poverty and exclusion on children?

Poverty affects all aspects of a child’s life, past, present and future. Equally, food influences much of a child’s everyday existence. It affects their ability to concentrate in school, their energy to play, and ultimately their health and wellbeing, physically and mentally; now and in the future as an adult. The Children in Scotland conference provides a platform to discuss these issues through the lens of food.

Having always believed that all children and adults are entitled to have access to good, safe and healthy food I realised, whilst doing research, that access to food was not only a physical challenge, but also a cultural challenge. What do I mean by a cultural challenge?

“Who do you think you are?

In certain areas it can be classed as above yourself to cook things from scratch, posh or whatever, when you could just buy something for the microwave and stick a fork in it. Who do you think you are thinking that you can cook things from scratch or that you need to?”

This was a direct quote from a participant who took part in my Masters research dissertation, ‘Investigation into the suitability of integration of alternative education principles into mainstream education vis-à-vis food’. This quote provides a good example of the range of cultural challenges that need to be reflected upon when considering access to food and was also the inspiration for my PhD.