Neutrog Partners with Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation

Neutrog Australia has partnered with the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation (SAKGF) in an innovative arrangement whereby
the company will support the Foundation’s national Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program to the tune of up to $50,000 annually and provide participating schools with free fertiliser product and fundraising opportunities.

As the leader of the food education revolution in Australia, the SAKGF implements and supports the highly successful Kitchen Garden Program nationally. The Program sees primary school children spend time every week tending a vegetable garden that they have helped design and build, and which they maintain on the school grounds according to organic gardening principles.

They also spend time weekly in a kitchen classroom preparing and sharing a variety of meals created from their produce.

Stephanie Alexander and Angus Irwin launching the partnership at Bridgewater Primary School	Stephanie Alexander in the kitchen at Bridgewater Primary School

Neutrog is developing a vegetable fertiliser which will be supplied for free to the 138 participating Australian schools for use on their vegetable gardens and which will be sold through up to 1500 retail outlets. The schools will also have access to discounted product, which they will be able to sell as a fund raiser.

The SAKGF will receive 5 per cent of royalties from retail sales – expected to be worth up to $50,000 annually off of $1 million in fertiliser sales – to help fund its continued support and expansion of the Kitchen Garden Program nationally.

SAKGF founder and Chairman Stephanie Alexander said the partnership with Neutrog was an important step in helping the Kitchen Garden Program achieve its aim of providing all young Australian children with the opportunity to experience pleasurable food education.

“Our underlying belief is that by introducing this holistic approach we have a chance to positively influence children’s food choices in ways that have not been tried before,” she said.

“We’re enormously proud of what we have achieved to date with the Kitchen Garden Program and excited about the potential this partnership with Neutrog provides to support our existing schools and expand the program to include even more schools in the coming years.”

Neutrog and the Foundation today launched a national competition on their websites (www.neutrog.com.au and www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au), where entrants are invited to name the organic vegetable fertiliser being developed.

The winner receives $500 and $2500 for their nominated school.

Mr Irwin said the partnership between Neutrog and the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation had benefits for all involved.

“Schools in the Kitchen Garden Program will have access to free fertiliser for their vegetable gardens and education on the use of organic fertilisers, the Foundation will have access to a significant amount of funds for its ongoing work and we will have a new addition to our premium fertiliser product range,” he said.

“The work done by Stephanie Alexander and the Foundation in recent years in educating children not only about food, but about the world around them, is fantastic and we’re thrilled to be able to help support that continued education.”

The vegetable fertiliser will be available later this year.