About

Mealtimes Matter CIC is a social enterprise born out of substantial evidence indicating that preparing, cooking and enjoying healthy meals with others improves physical, mental and emotional health.

Children that are involved in mealtimes build skills that can be applied to many other areas of their lives.

Benefits to children of creating and enjoying meals with others

SKILLS

  • Meal planning skills – learning to think ahead

  • Creative skills – involvement in exploring foods, recipes and creating meals

  • Communication skills – talking about food smells, textures and flavours

  • Fine motor skills – chopping, mixing, whisking, mashing and kneading

HEALTH & WELL-BEING

  • Mindful eating – slowing down enough at mealtimes to notice the colour, shape, smell, texture and flavour of foods

  • Nutrition – preparing meals from scratch reduces the consumption of processed foods and improves the nutritional quality of meals

PERSONAL, SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

  • Learning patience – taking time to plan and prepare meals before eating. Waiting for food to cook, waiting for others to finish before leaving the table

  • Understanding others – how to share, how to consider other people’s food preferences, how to contribute to preparing food and clearing up after a meal.

  • Environmental impact – learning about food storage, recycling and food waste

  • Emotional health – taking time to talk about the day and listen to each other

  • Mental health – reducing social isolation, working as part of a team and feeling part of something

Our Vision

Our mission at Mealtimes Matter CIC is to support children, families and schools to create positive eating environments and nurture a healthy relationship with food

We aim to;

Increase the number of opportunities children have each day to explore, cook or taste sustainable healthy foods

Increase parental awareness of the factors that influence a child’s eating behaviours and relationship with food

Educate and encourage families and childcare practitioners to use positive food language

Increase parental confidence in feeding their family and creating a positive mealtime experience

Teach children how to recognise their body signals of hunger and fullness to support self-regulation of eating

Nurture the enjoyment of planning, preparing, cooking and eating healthy meals with others