Breda wins the 2023 Golden Carrot as a school-garden-friendly municipality

For the 2023 Golden Carrot election, municipalities were invited to submit a vlog about the importance of school gardens. "We were immediately impressed by Breda’s video. A young reporter showed us what is happening in Breda and why a school garden is fun and important for schoolchildren. The municipality supports this with, among other things, vegetable garden coaches and also calls on other municipalities to participate. In addition, the school-garden project is supported by several organisations in Breda, giving it a solid foundation for growth. We are therefore delighted to present the 2023 Golden Carrot to Breda," said Marjan van Creij of the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality and the Jong Leren Eten programme, on behalf of the jury.

Food literacy
Alderman for Health and Education Arjen van Drunen was pleased that Breda had emerged as the winner, as he said this morning at the award ceremony at De Liniedoorn primary school. "In Breda, we consider school gardens extremely important because they show children and let them experience where our food comes from. They can taste pure flavours and learn how to prepare healthy and delicious food. We call this ‘becoming food literate’. In the school gardens, children learn a great deal about nature, enjoy being outdoors together and stay active. Children also ask their parents whether they can grow vegetables and fruit at home too. That is why we want to open even more school gardens in the coming years. Winning the Golden Carrot is a wonderful boost that shows we are on the right track."

Provincial executive Elies Lemkes-Straver (Agriculture, Food, Soil and Broad Prosperity) of the province of North Brabant attended the festive award ceremony: "We encourage green schoolyards and school gardens because they bring together health, sustainable food and nature. This needs to happen in the municipalities. Breda is a wonderful example for other municipalities in our province."

Honourable mention
In addition to the Golden Carrot, the jury also awarded an honourable mention to the municipality of The Hague. It is one of the municipalities that has enabled children to practise school gardening for more than 100 years. The jury appreciated the enthusiastic way in which alderman Arjen Kapteijns emphasised its importance for the city in the vlog, as well as the fact that The Hague gives 1,450 children from all neighbourhoods every year the opportunity and experience to sow, care for and harvest their own food.

A top experience
"Across the country, we can see that the school-garden movement is growing and flourishing. More and more municipalities are realising that a school garden is a great way to offer children an excellent experience in which they encounter healthy food, learn about nature and biodiversity, and stay active," says Arjan Klopstra on behalf of the School Gardens Alliance and Jong Leren Eten. "The current attention being paid to healthy, local and responsibly produced food has also contributed to this. When children learn how to sow, care for and harvest their own vegetables, fruit and flowers, their interest in healthy food is sparked. A home-grown carrot simply tastes best."

Golden Carrot jury
The jury for the 2023 Golden Carrot consisted of Marjan van Creij (senior policy officer at the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality and Jong Leren Eten), Ignas van Schaick (EMS, School Garden Film), Marcel Webster (coordinator of Knowledge and Educational Innovation for the province of North Brabant’s Agriculture and Food programme), Irene Harmsen (independent education consultant) and Dieuwke Hovinga (Professor of Nature & Child Development, Leiden University of Applied Sciences).

School Garden Week
In 2022, the Golden Carrot was awarded for the first time to the municipalities of Teylingen and Arnhem during the national School Garden Month. In 2023, School Garden Week began on 22 May under the motto ‘Sowing together, growing together’. No fewer than 47,525 pupils are sowing seeds or planting plants this week and caring for their plants in the classroom, in the schoolyard or in a school-garden complex.