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JAMES MARTIN NEWS-SHEET |
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While The Forum Is Closed We Shall Be Open |
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So many stories, so little space! Having James himself back online and providing fans with their official focus, has given us an opportunity to ‘re-cycle’ our friends re-united page. So we’ve moved in a selection of snippets from initiatives our chef has become involved in. James is asked to ‘front’ or endorse a great number of projects around the country. Here are a few details on some of the ones he has chosen to give his time to. |
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Helping Hand |
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One Million Green Fingers Yorkshire Water James launched a new, outdoor learning project at primary schools in Yorkshire, aimed at creating sustainable school gardens. In his usual ‘hands on’ fashion he helped to build raised veggie beds. Food grown in the new gardens will be used in the school kitchens. Yorkshire Water has thousands of volunteers ready to create more than 350 gardens by 2010. The launch of their One Million Green Fingers initiative coincided with British Food Fortnight and the start of a Year of Food & Farming.
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Cooking Bus As one of Focus on Food’s supporting celebrity chefs James donates his time to work alongside students in this ‘travelling classroom’. The bus is an articulated pantechnicon which opens out to provide a fully equipped state-of-the-art kitchen for 16 students. Focus on Food always strive to buy food within a 30-mile radius of the school being visited and to make effective use of local produce.
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In an interview on BBC Breakfast, James talked about a project which he is involved with that sees inmates from local prisons build veggie plots for schools in their area. |
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Veggies for Schools James was on hand at a school in Chesterfield where Gerald Treweek had set up a vegetable garden, based on the principles of hydroponics, to teach the children about healthy eating. Gerald was one of the judges from GBVS and James went along to teach the kids how to cook some of the veg they had been growing. |
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Young Chef Challenge Each year James is involved in the judging of this eblex challenge which sees school children competing to produce winning recipes based around beef mince.
2007’s winning finalist was Victor Zanetta from Ludlow C of E School. In 2006 the culinary cook-off tour produced such innovative ideas as Chinese chilli mince pancakes and Caribbean meatballs.
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Toque D’or Nestle’s competition for final year catering students celebrates it’s 20th anniversary year in 2008. Each year James gives up his time to take a leading role in the competition.
Clips from 2006, with James as Chairman of Judges, were featured in ‘Digs Deep’. This year he presented the final at London’s Dorchester Hotel.
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Pets as Therapy James became Patron of the Pets as Therapy Junior Club in 2004 when he took Fudge to Crufts to celebrate the Club’s first birthday.
He sits on the celebrity panel which chooses the six finalists for the PAT Dog of the Year and takes time out to present special trophies to the charity’s most enthusiastic junior workers. |
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Mentoring under 21s James was one of ten celebrities taking part in the Alliance & Leicester’s mentor programme for youngsters who are choosing a career instead of university.
A lucky few spent a December day at his home near Winchester, learning how to grow and cook veggies from his garden. VIDEO
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Naomi House
As a Special Guest at their September Open Day, James was on hand to welcome visitors and help out in the coffee shop. In early December, James helped to raise the profile of Naomi House, a hospice just north of Winchester, when he launched a Christmas card collection for their charity shop in the town. After the launch he bought a selection of cards exclusive to Naomi House shops across central southern England, which help to raise funds for the hospice’s work in supporting life-limited children and their families. With just 10% of their income coming from government, the charity relies on the generosity of people in the community to continue its work. |
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Food Standards Agency VIDEO James has worked with the FSA on several events, most notably the Cooking Bus. Feb 5th saw him in Scotland giving a healthy cooking lesson to more than 100 children at St Cadoc’s Primary School, following a win by one of their pupils in an FSA poster competition.
The competition invited primary schools across Scotland to design posters promoting good food hygiene, healthy eating or allergy awareness. |
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James commented, “I think it’s fantastic to come here and teach kids about great food, using some of the ingredients they’ve never tried before” ……. He managed that by bringing along some salsify ….. He added “It’s also important that young people learn that doing simple things like washing your hands thoroughly can make a huge difference in helping to prevent food poisoning”. |
