Jamie Oliver takes on his ‘most formidable’ college dinners mission but

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has embarked on what is being described as his most ambitious school dinners mission yet – having previously battled to have Turkey Twizzlers removed from pupils’ canteens.

The father-of-five, 49, hopes to massively expand his initiative to teach schoolchildren about food and nutrition – and get the Government to restore an A-level in the subject, which was dropped under ex-Prime Minister David Cameron.

Oliver has set up a Ministry Of Food foundation, offering lessons teaching students aged between 11 and 14 how to cook from scratch.

The 10-week programme dubbed ’10 Lessons to Save Your Life’ is now being offered at 320 schools across the UK, taken up by about 80,000 pupils.

But his Jamie Oliver Group organisation now hopes to ultimately reach as many as 4,000 different secondary schools.

Do YOU have a school dinner horror story? Email [email protected]

Pupils taking the programmes are given practical advice on skills such as chopping and frying, as well as being given nutritional information.

Lesson plans, recipes and worksheets are delivered to students, while they are also shown videos featuring Oliver and his 13-year-old son Buddy.

The restaurateur told the Times: ‘I’ve never lost my passion for improving school dinners, both in terms of how many children can access free school meals and in setting high standards for what’s being offered.

‘But having worked with eight different prime ministers over the years, what I’ve learnt is that making progress at that level is tricky.

‘Which is why, as well as pushing for legislative change, I want to be proactive and show how things can be done in a really positive, celebratory way.’

He called for ministers to stop what he called ‘the bombardment of junk food ads’ and also bring in new laws demanding ‘clear, honest labelling on food packaging’.

Oliver added: ‘The UK is in the grips of a health crisis, which makes it an economic crisis too. 

‘Obesity rates are rising, the levels of child tooth decay are frightening, and the NHS is buckling under the strain – nd all of this is being exacerbated by a cost of living crisis that’s forcing more people to buy cheaper, processed foods that are missing the vital nutrients they need to thrive.’

His teaching scheme’s impact has been assessed by a nutritional epidemiology group at the University of Leeds, based on 20 schools taking part.

Researchers say 98 per cent of children agreed that learning to cook was important – and 76 per cent told of making at least one of the meals they were taught at home following the lessons.

The most popular suggestions were fajitas, pancakes and pasta, while others which were highlighted included fishcakes, soup and stir fries.

Oliver’s foundation is now campaigning for food and nutrition to be restored as a standalone A-level subject, having been discontinued in 2015 although it is available and proving popular with students as a GCSE.

Oliver told the Times: ‘Food teachers are doing a brilliant job. But the subject is not being given the support or recognition it deserves, and therefore it has inadequate funding.

‘This is about teaching kids a fundamental life skill that’s just as important as English or maths. It should be at the heart of education. Food is so much more than just what we eat.’

The Department for Education said a curriculum and assessment review will publish recommendations next year, with a spokesman adding: ‘The government will consider changes to the national curriculum, including in relation to food education, in the light of the recommendations of the review.’ 

Among the schools taking part in Oliver’s teaching scheme is King Edmund School in Essex, whose associate assistant head teacher Michelle Woodard said it offered ‘essential skills that students need’.

She added: ‘It’s really manageable because it covers everything in the curriculum and it’s all in one place.

‘But also it helps that it’s Jamie Oliver – they’ve seen him on TV, and they love that he cooks with his son too.’

Oliver’s firm is said to be investing £450,000 per year into the project. 

He first launched his ‘Feed Me Better’ campaign to improve schoolchildren’s nutrition in 2005, most prominently protesting against Turkey Twizzlers which he criticised for containing just 34 per cent meat.

The rest of the content was water, pork fat, rusk and coating along with additives, sweeteners and flavourings.

Under the weight of public disapproval, manufacturer Bernard Matthews axed Twizzlers in 2005 – but they returned to supermarket shelves in 2020 based on a new recipe.

Oliver himself first rose to fame when his series The Naked Chef launched in 1999 on the BBC. 

He and his wife Jools share five children Poppy, 22, Daisy, 21, Petal, 15, Buddy, 13, and River, eight.

Buddy appears to be following in his father’s footsteps, and even launched his own Let’s Cook recipe book in July and featured in a CBBC show.

His new programme show Cooking Buddies, which followed the teenager winning success on YouTube, will be co-produced by his father’s media company and will also feature ‘surprise appearances’ from the Oliver family.

Meanwhile, earlier this month Oliver launched his own range of frozen meals, including dishes  named the Mighty Moussaka, the Comforting Cottage Pie and a Chicken Tikka Masala.

The frozen meal mains, priced from £4 a serving, have already gone on sale in Iceland stores and will be made available in Waitrose branches next month.