Our Trust
Garden to Table Trust was established as a charity in 2008 to develop and introduce a curriculum-linked food education programme in New Zealand schools. The Trust established its first three Garden to Table schools in Auckland in 2009, with all three still running the programme today.
Now in nearly 300 schools around Aotearoa, the Garden to Table programme was originally inspired by the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation established in Melbourne, Australia, in 2001.
Motivated by a desire to make a positive difference through connecting children to nature and helping them understand where their food comes from, our programme has grown into New Zealand’s leading food education programme, helping schools and kura to connect the garden and kitchen with their curriculum.
Our small, dedicated team around Aotearoa includes working school teachers, scientists, and members with expertise in fields as diverse as health and nutrition, sustainability, community resilience, and outdoor adventures. Not to mention we’re keen gardeners and avid recipe developers!
Our vision for tamariki across Aotearoa is that all access the skills and knowledge to grow, harvest, prepare, and share kai. We are working hard to make Garden to Table accessible to every school and kura who wants to join us. As New Zealand’s leading food education programme we help schools grow their students by connecting gardening, cooking, and academic learning.
It’s important to us that all students can see themselves reflected in the Garden to Table programme, and we recognise Māori as tangata whēnua of Aotearoa. We have begun our work to learn more about te ao Māori and how matauranga Māori can enrich the Garden to Table offering for all New Zealand children. To do this, we want to work with Māori in the spirit of partnership embodied in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
As we grow, we are committed to engaging with schools and kura ensure the Garden to Table programme can be delivered in line with their learning priorities, in ways that reflect and enhance their school culture.
We will continue to develop high quality resources, provide helpful best-practice guidance to schools, and support networks who stand alongside schools across Aotearoa.
Our Patron
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Dame Cindy Kiro, GNZM, QSO, Governor General of New Zealand
Much of Dame Cindy’s career has been in the tertiary education sector, where she became a distinguished researcher and held leadership roles at Massey University, Victoria University Wellington/Te Herenga Waka and the University of Auckland.
Her public sector roles have included Children’s Commissioner (the first woman and first Māori to be appointed to the role) membership of the Ministerial Cross-Sector Forum for the Ministry of Education, and Chair of the Welfare Expert Advisory Group. Dame Cindy has had extensive experience in the public health sector, including a role as General Manager Funding and Services Planning and Māori Health for the Auckland District Health Board.
Prior to taking up her role as Governor-General, Dame Cindy was Chief Executive of the Royal Society Te Apārangi. Dame Cindy is the first Māori woman to be appointed as Governor-General.
Our board of trustees
Catherine Bell
Chair and founding Trustee
Catherine co-founded the Garden to Table Trust in 2009, having seen the benefits of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation in Australia. Known for her work over the years as a food writer and educator through the Epicurean Workshop and Dish magazine, Catherine is dedicated to ensuring children will grow up with a love of good food and an understanding of the joy it can bring to their and other’s lives. She also recognises the importance of food education as a means to help combat health related disease. In 2019 she wrote and published Bounty, cooking with vegetables with all proceeds donated to the Trust.
Paul Lawrence
Treasurer
Paul is a Chartered Accountant and has over 25 years experience working in the accountancy sector. Up until 2022, Paul was a partner at Crowe, responsible for the provision of audit and assurance services to a range of organisations. Paul now works as a Chief Financial Officer in the insurance and financial services sector. Paul has a young family and believes that it is important that children have a good understanding of nature and where the food they eat comes from.
Nadia Lim
Trustee
Nadia is a trained dietitian and nutritionist, and co-founder of New Zealand business My Food Bag. She is well-known to New Zealanders as a celebrity chef, entrepreneur, food writer and television personality. Nadia is passionate about food and its provenance, and believes it is a fundamental right of every child to be able to develop the skills they need to access and love fresh nutritious food, no matter their circumstances.
Stephanie Patterson
Trustee
Stephanie is a specialist in Recruitment and HR, where she has worked extensively in the not-for-profit sector, as well as some freelance photography and running a small business in the past. She has studied nutrition and has a passion for educating our next generation about the vital role growing and consuming fresh food can play in overall health and wellbeing.
Teresa Ciprian
Trustee
Teresa is a Director on the Boards of several food industry related entities. Early on, as a Food Science graduate, she designed and developed many retail food products and went on to build an executive career with major local and multinational food manufacturers. Having had the privilege of growing up with fresh fruit and veg from the backyard garden, Teresa sees significant value in the essential life skills and pride that children develop from learning, cultivating, nurturing, sharing and consuming foods they have grown, and wants as many children as possible to have that experience.
Clare Wall
Trustee
Clare is Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of Auckland, and a registered Dietitian. Clare is an active member of the nutrition community in New Zealand and has served on a number of national committees in the infant and childhood nutrition area.
Clare’s research interest is in examining the interconnected relationship between food, nutrition and health in early life. She is passionate about ensuring that all children can have access to good food and food education.
Andrew Green, LLB
Trustee
Andrew is partner at Brookfields Lawyers where he practises in the area of resource management and environmental law. He is a dedicated "foodie" and appreciates the benefits of fresh produce, simply prepared and shared with family and friends.
Katherine Turner
Trustee
Katherine is head of Finance at Tomra Fresh Food, a global leader for integrated, turnkey packhouse solutions for fresh fruit and vegetables. She is also a Director of Bremworth Carpets, manufacturers of NZ’s finest wool carpets. Katherine has a wealth of financial, commercial and sustainability experience across food manufacturing and primary sectors. She is inspired by supporting young people with opportunities to develop, grow and feel secure with themselves, and feels honoured to be part of the Garden to Table team and support its kaupapa.
Ian Greaves
Advisor to Garden to Table
Ian is an experienced manager, director, investor and mentor across a wide range of food production and processing industries, including kiwifruit, apples and dairying, investing in and supporting businesses in honey, wine and vanilla. He is heavily involved in supporting a children’s home and micro-enterprise projects in India, including the development of a coffee plantation. As well as being an insatiable gardener he regularly gives plants, fruit, advice and hands-on help to a vast range of people. In 2020 the kiwifruit industry honoured him with their highest award - the Hayward Medal. Ian’s heart for business and passion for assisting people make him an ideal fit for Garden to Table.
Our story
From Catherine Bell, co-founder and chair of Garden to Table trust:
Garden to Table began with a seed of an idea and has slowly but surely grown year on year. The journey has required resilience and the collective passion and hard work of many.
In 2008 I initiated a plan to develop a food education programme for New Zealand primary schools, modelled on the successful and well-proven Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program in Australia. From our first 3 schools, Garden to Table is now practiced in hundreds of schools, across the country.
It is rewarding to reflect on this growth and on how the organisation has evolved to become more accessible to all schools. However, there are many more children who are not receiving this vital food education so there is still much work to be done.
It has always been part of the Garden to Table Trust’s mission to work at enabling every child in Aotearoa to have the opportunity of developing a love of good food that they have grown themselves, while learning vital life skills that enrich and empower their lives.
Just as it did in the very early days, visiting a Garden to Table school still gives me goosebumps. Not only is it a great pleasure to garden and cook with the children – aged anywhere from 6-11 - and to see their enthusiasm, wonder and curiosity - and, even more importantly, their pride in what they have achieved - but it never ceases to astound me how knowledgeable and confident the children are after even just a short time in the programme.
However, Garden to Table is so much more than a food education programme.
I believe Garden to Table can help solve many of the ills that afflict modern life. When you plant a seedling and look after it until it bears fruit, you learn to nurture. When you know how to nurture, you are more likely to care for the people around you, the environment in which you live, and so on. When you sit around the table and share food with others you too feel nurtured.
Whether through learning how to make compost, chop an onion or set a table, or by sharing a recipe and new knowledge, Garden to Table strengthens lives. We know this not only benefits the children, but also their families, the volunteers, the teachers and their community.
As Garden to Table grows, more and more Principals are seeing just how important food education is to increase resilience around food insecurity and health. They also see how it provides a place for children, who may not thrive with traditional classroom learning, to shine.
I, along with the trustees and the team at Garden to Table, will continue to work hard, with the aim of having every child in New Zealand experience the joy of growing, harvesting, preparing, and sharing their own food at school.
Tēnā koutou i tō koutou āwhina, and thank you for coming with us on that journey.
