Awards – Best Teacher by the British Nutrition Foundation, Teacher of the Year award, and winning Best School Food Education.
Stirring More Than Food: Why Food Education Matters
By Joe Mann, Head of Art, Design and Food, Queen’s College
‘For me, teaching food isn’t just about showing students how to chop, mix, or bake. It’s about helping them understand where their food comes from, how it is grown, reared, and caught, the importance of seasonality and provenance, and the incredible story behind every ingredient. Food connects us all, telling tales of land and labour, culture and care, and every classroom is an opportunity for students to reconnect with where their food comes from.
Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of shaping students’ understanding of food far beyond the recipe book. I’ve introduced game meat lessons, brought in local producers, chefs, and food celebrities, taken students to farms and even game shoots, and helped initiate food growing across the school, from foraging to polytunnels brimming with fruit and vegetables. Seeing a student realise that their meal grew in soil outside the classroom, was reared on a local farm, or caught by a fisherman in front of them is one of the greatest teaching moments. That light-bulb moment of realisation is what food teaching is all about.
I’ve been fortunate to see this passion recognised through awards celebrating the value of food teaching. Being named a Best Teacher by the British Nutrition Foundation, receiving the Teacher of the Year award, and winning Best School Food Education were humbling moments that reaffirmed the importance of what we do. More recently, being honoured with the Champion of Champions award at the BASC Eat Game Awards, Highly Commended in the national Best Schools Awards for Experiential Learning, and shortlisted for Outstanding Educational Partnerships in the Independent Schools Awards has highlighted the impact of hands-on ‘Field to Fork’ education, supported by local suppliers and butchers.
Beyond the classroom, my food teaching journey has taken me to national stages and film sets. As an educational film presenter for AQA and Hodder Education, I’ve helped shape resources used by teachers and students worldwide. Speaking at international food industry events, food festivals, national shows, and leading teacher workshops allows me to amplify a core message: food education matters. It has the power to create healthier, more curious young people who understand what’s on their plate and why it matters.
Every lesson I teach is an opportunity to spark curiosity. Students grow in confidence, creativity, and awareness. To anyone who thinks cooking in schools is just a nice extra, I’d say this: food demonstrates the curriculum in a delicious, tangible way. It is truly the practical application of Science, Maths, English, Art, Design, Geography, and even Languages. Only in my lessons do students get to eat what they’ve learnt.
Teaching food isn’t about creating chefs alone. It’s about inspiring thoughtful, informed, and passionate humans who carry these lessons for life, as our motto at Queen’s College school in Taunton says. We teach young people to appreciate the toil and journey of an onion or carrot, the craftsmanship and science in a loaf of bread, and the story behind every ingredient they use. That’s the beauty of food teaching: it nourishes the body, mind, and soul for life.’
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