Yoghurt is not a plant and cotton socks do not come from animals

Yoghurt from a plant? Cotton socks from animal fibres? What are they teaching kids in school these days?

A Primary Industries Education Foundation (PIEF) survey has revealed an alarming decline in students’ and teachers’ knowledge of food and fibre production. 75% of year 6 students surveyed thought that of cotton socks as an animal product, while 27% of year 6 students thought of yoghurt as a plant product.

The survey, undertaken by the Australian Council of Educational Research (ACER) and supported by Woolworths, revealed that 45% of students could not identify that everyday food items like bananas, bread and cheese originated from farms.

“This survey is a wake-up call to government, industry and educators and comes at a time when the primary industries are being excluded from the national curriculum,” said Dr Cameron Archer, PIEF Chair, in a media release.

“The survey results are clear in demonstrating that this approach is not working. Our young students do not have enough of a basic understanding of where their food, clothing and building materials come from.”

Based on the study, the PIEF recommends a long-term, cross-industry, whole-of-government approach to school education and career attraction in order to meet the challenges related to food security in the next 50 years.

“The primary industries sectors face a critical shortage in attracting new entrants at all levels of the supply chain. This will have serious implications in the next five to 10 years as we begin to understand the implications that an ill-informed public, climate variability and the skills shortage will have on Australia’s ability to feed 70 million people here and abroad,” said Dr Archer.

In the Australian Curriculum, the latest version of the draft Sustainability Curriculum contains no direct reference to sustainable food and fibre production, despite representations from industry and education bodies. The survey also demonstrates that 100% of primary teachers and 91% of secondary teachers believe it is very important that students are taught about the origins of their food and fibre.