Moray pupils get a “soup-er†taste of food careers with Baxters
11 May 2015
Pupils at Milne's High School in Moray experienced an exclusive factory visit to one of Scotland's largest food manufacturers, Baxters, to learn first-hand how food and drink products are developed and brought to market.
As part of a challenge set by the company, 68 S2* pupils were tasked with creating a soup that would appeal to teenagers and contain two portions of the recommended daily intake of fruit and vegetables ('5-a-day'). Industry experts from Baxters, other local businesses and the Scottish Food and Drink Federation (SFDF) judged entries from the teams at an event held at Milne's High School.
The winning team, 'Soup-er Scots', beat the competition with their 'Gamekeepers Gun Roast' soup, made with pheasant, venison and vegetables. Team members Shaun MacLeod, Euan McLean and Christopher McGill were then treated to a visit to Baxters' Moray factory to see how recipes such as theirs are scaled up and put into production on an industrial scale. Team member Connor McPhee was unable to make the visit.
The challenge, a part of SFDF's 'A future in Food' schools programme, allowed pupils to develop skills in five subjects: new product development (Home Economics); food testing and nutritional analysis (Biology); creating catchy advertising jingles (Music); product marketing (Business Education); and label creation (Art).
Alison McDonald, Senior Development Technologist at Baxters, commented: “This is a fantastic opportunity for the pupils from MHS to engage in a very exciting and realistic project. It is an excellent example of Curriculum for Excellence linking five different subjects into one project and allowing for pupils to excel in various areas. There is a real buzz of enthusiasm around the school and the support and encouragement from teaching staff have enhanced the pupils learning experience. There are many and varied career opportunities for our own 'home grown talent' and we are proud to support this excellent innovative challenge."
Liz Woods, Head Teacher at Milne's High School, said: “We are very grateful to Baxters for their continuing support of the Milne's High Soup Challenge in preparing our young people for the challenges of lifelong learning and work.''
Moira Stalker, SFDF Schools Programme Coordinator, said: “We're impressed with all the products. The winning soup has an original flavour and texture, making it a worthy winner. We're delighted to be working in partnership with Milne's High School and Baxters on this innovative challenge. Through this initiative not only pupils learn more about our industry and how food is made, but they also get a taste of the wide range of exciting careers the Scottish food industry has to offer.”
More information
For more information or photographs, please contact Kirsty Richie at SFDF on 0131 229 9415
Photographs from the day are available on FDF's Flickr page.
Contact Kirsty Ritchie, Scottish Food and Drink Federation (SFDF), at: kirsty.ritchie@sfdf.org.uk, or 0131 222 8040.
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