Steve Reed sees Veg Power in action

Defra secretary Steve Reed witnessed Veg Power’s campaign in action yesterday (25 March) during a visit to a south London primary school.

Reed, who is MP for Streatham and Croydon North, accompanied Veg Power CEO Dan Parker to Sunnyhill Primary School in Lambeth, where he saw the influence of the charity’s ’Eat Them to Defeat Them’ veg consumption campaign on children in his constituency.

During his visit, Reed joined in with the vegetable-themed activities designed to inspire pupils to eat more veg, and discussed the benefits of the campaign with the teaching staff.

Commenting on Reed’s visit, Veg Power’s Parker said: “We were thrilled that The Rt Hon Steve Reed was able to join us on this school visit and see the Eat Them to Defeat Them campaign in full swing. The school visits really bring the campaign alive and by making vegetables fun, he was able to witness the change in children who were soon chomping on their vegetables.”

Eat Them to Defeat Them is a multi-award winning campaign that helps to tackle one of the major public health issues in the UK – poor vegetable consumption.

The Eat Them To Defeat Them campaign inspires kids to eat more veg in school and to continue that behaviour at home.

This year, 420,000 children from 1,511 primary and special schools across the UK have benefited from the campaign, which was sponsored by major supermarket and food brands Co-op, Sainsbury’s and Tilda.

Nicola Gentleman, deputy head, Sunnyhill Primary School, Lambeth, said: “Our pupils and staff have thoroughly enjoyed participating in the Eat Them to Defeat Them campaign. There has been a real buzz around the school and lots more vegetables consumed as a result.”