Lidl Invests £500K In Schools Programme

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Lidl is investing £500,000 over two years in a new schools programme – Lidl Foodies – to help children across the country develop a love for healthy eating. The free initiative, which provides fun, interactive workshops on fruit and veg, aims to reach a quarter of a million primary school pupils in its first year alone, ensuring more children get hands-on experience with fresh food.

The programme comes at a critical time, as research reveals that over two thirds (73%) of teachers are not teaching diet diversity in healthy eating programmes1. This is despite 97% of teachers recognising the importance of food education, with many citing a lack of curriculum time, resources, or training as key barriers to teaching healthy eating in schools2. As a result, less than a third of children aged 7 to 11 can identify common vegetables like courgette and beetroot3.

Lidl is committed to making healthy food affordable and accessible for all, and Lidl Foodies is an extension of that mission – improving children’s connection with food through self-discovery, exploration, and hands-on learning, while supporting families in making balanced choices through its high-quality, affordable fresh produce.

Since launching in October 2024, Lidl Foodies has already engaged over 130,000 pupils across more than 1,000 schools – over half of which are in deprived areas4. The programme provides teachers with ready-made workshop plans via the National Schools Partnership. As part of the first module, Lidl Tasters, teachers were given access to £100 Lidl vouchers to buy fruit and veg for in-class tastings.

Following its success, Lidl is expanding the programme with two new modules this school year:

Lidl Growers (Spring 2025) – Teaching children how fruit and veg is grown and where their food comes from
Lidl Makers (Summer 2025) – Encouraging children to try new ingredients and learn simple, healthy recipes

Georgina Hall, Head of Corporate Affairs at Lidl GB, said:

“As a mum, I understand the challenges families face when it comes to getting kids excited about healthy food. I’m proud that, at Lidl, we’re making healthy eating easier and more accessible – both through our affordable, high-quality fresh food and by helping children build a positive relationship with healthy choices from an early age. With Lidl Foodies, we’re giving children the opportunity to explore different fruits and vegetables, broaden their knowledge of nutritious foods, and discover what they enjoy."

“Through this approach, we’re not only supporting healthier habits in the classroom, but also helping parents make mealtimes easier and more enjoyable at home. This is just the beginning, and I’m excited to see how the programme will grow and develop. Ultimately, our goal is to inspire a new generation of foodies who not only embrace healthy food but also recognise the importance of fresh fruit and veg for a lifetime of well-being.”

Kamahl Hoque, We Are Futures – delivery partner for the National Schools Program, commented: “Our research shows schools are crying out for more accessible ways to educate, inspire and engage children to eat healthy and affordable balanced diets.

“Lidl’s bold new initiative, Lidl Foodies, not only provides fun food exploration for children in the classroom through high-quality learning, but puts kids in charge of tasting, growing and making the fruit and veg they love – that crucially, teachers and parents can buy at affordable prices."

“Lidl’s commitment to inspiring the next generation of healthy eaters, whilst providing the freshest fruit and veg to schools and families, has led to the creation of a programme with real impact that is driving healthier eating behaviours. It’s been amazing to have supported them on this ground-breaking initiative.”

Lidl’s latest announcement comes after the discounter recently reaffirmed its commitment to responsible marketing by removing all packaging designs deemed attractive to children from its least healthy own-brand products by mid-2025. This builds on its 2020 packaging changes, when Lidl became the first UK supermarket to confirm the removal of cartoon characters from its breakfast cereals to help parents resist ‘pester power’, paving the way for other retailers to follow suit.

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A Coventry charity has taken delivery of a new £8k forklift truck thanks to a donation from one of the UK’s leading intralogistics companies.

The truck provides a vital addition to the team at the Halo Centre warehouse in Binley, from which Feed The Hungry UK and Coventry Foodbank operate.

Gavin Kibble MBE said:

“Jungheinrich's generous donation of a forklift truck to Feed the Hungry is not just a gift of equipment, but a lifeline that will help streamline operations, maximise efficiency, and ultimately enable the charity to deliver food to hundreds of thousands in the UK and overseas.”

He added: “This is the second forklift truck Jungheinrich have donated since we started our operations at the Halo Centre nine years ago. We are extremely grateful for Jungheinrich’s support over the years.”

Feed The Hungry is an international Christian humanitarian organisation committed to fighting hunger due to poverty, war, famine and natural disasters. The charity works to reduce world hunger by establishing feeding programs following disaster relief operations in 21 different countries worldwide.

With its partner organisations, since 1987, Feed The Hungry have globally assisted in feeding over 420,000 children every day in 25 countries. Feed The Hungry also provides disaster relief recovery programs through its network of community programs around the globe.

Partners include: It Works Netherland, Red Wings UAE and UK, Rise Against Hunger, Rotary UK and Ireland and various local businesses, churches and individuals.

Over 250k people have received food from Coventry Foodbank since it was founded by Canon Gavin Kibble MBE in January 2011.

It is currently feeding about 500 people each week across the city. Consistently, more food is being given out by the foodbank than is being donated to the foodbank. Because of this, Coventry foodbank is reliant on generous financial donations from the public to help purchase food to make up the shortfall.

With a team of more than 800 employees operating from four locations across the UK, Jungheinrich offers the industry’s widest range of intralogistics solutions, including high energy efficiency pallet trucks, stackers, counterbalance trucks and order pickers in more than 600 new or fully refurbished truck variants.

A full intralogistics solutions provider, Jungheinrich excels in automation, racking systems, warehouse planning and financial services and operates one of the largest forklift rental fleets in the UK.

The company is a division of the Jungheinrich AG Group, which has direct sales companies in 40 countries and Jungheinrich employs 21,000 people worldwide.

Christian Hanke, Account Management Director at Jungheinrich, said:

"We are thrilled to support Feed the Hungry by donating a refurbished forklift truck to aid their vital work. Efficient logistics is at the heart of what we do, and we are proud to help ensure essential food supplies reach those in need more effectively. This donation reflects our commitment to making a positive impact in the communities we serve."

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Lidl Invests £500K In Schools Programme

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