Where our food comes from
Ingredients don't just appear in supermarkets — they come from farms, oceans and orchards, often at particular times of year, and knowing this changes how we shop and cook.
Part of your national curriculum
- Cooking and nutrition: Understand the source, seasonality and characteristics of a broad range of ingredients
Lesson overview
What you'll learn in this lesson
Understand the source, seasonality and characteristics of a broad range of ingredients
Key learning points
- • What 'seasonality' means
- • Where key ingredients come from
- • Food miles and choices
This lesson at a glance
- 20 minutes
- 17 parts to scroll through
- 3 quick checks
- Marked quiz at the end
- Gentle pace: short sittings with pauses
Words to know
Scroll down — the lesson carries on below
Watch & discover
Part 1 of 17
Visual introductionPicture this
Where our food comes from
Ingredients don't just appear in supermarkets — they come from farms, oceans and orchards, often at particular times of year, and knowing this changes how we shop and cook.
In a nutshell
Understand the source, seasonality and characteristics of a broad range of ingredients
Learning cycle
Part 2 of 17
Learning cycle 1 of 2
Part 1 · What 'seasonality' means
A short piece of teaching, then a check to make sure it has landed.
Explore the idea
Part 3 of 17
Learn
What 'seasonality' means
Seasonality refers to the natural time of year when a crop is ready to harvest in a given climate: British strawberries are naturally ready in early summer, while parsnips are a winter vegetable, sweetened by frost. Eating in season often means fresher, cheaper and more flavourful produce, because it hasn't needed long transport or storage.
Reset break
Part 4 of 17
Pause
That's sitting 1 of 4 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Explore the idea
Part 5 of 17
Learn
Where key ingredients come from
Wheat for bread and pasta is grown from cereal crops; much of the UK's beef and lamb comes from livestock farming, often on land unsuitable for growing crops; and fish like cod and mackerel are caught from the sea, with sustainable fishing limits designed to stop overfishing.
Quick check
Part 6 of 17
Quick check
Part 7 of 17
Reset break
Part 8 of 17
Pause
That's sitting 2 of 4 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Learning cycle
Part 9 of 17
Learning cycle 2 of 2
Part 2 · Food miles and choices
A short piece of teaching, then a check to make sure it has landed.
Explore the idea
Part 10 of 17
Learn
Food miles and choices
'Food miles' describes the distance food travels from where it's produced to where it's eaten; imported out-of-season fruit, such as fresh berries flown in during winter, generally has higher food miles and a bigger carbon footprint than seasonal local produce. Choosing seasonal, local ingredients where possible is one small way to reduce a meal's environmental impact.
Quick check
Part 11 of 17
Reset break
Part 12 of 17
Pause
That's sitting 3 of 4 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Challenge round
Part 13 of 17
Game · Sort it
Which of these are true?
Drag each card into the right column. Tap a card first if dragging is fiddly.
True
Not true
Challenge round
Part 14 of 17
Game · Fill the gaps
Finish the sentences
Choose the word that belongs in each gap.
____ refers to the natural time of year when a crop is ready to harvest in a given climate: British strawberries are naturally ready in early summer, while parsnips are a winter vegetable, sweetened by frost.
Choosing seasonal, local ____ where possible is one small way to reduce a meal's environmental impact.
Challenge round
Part 15 of 17
Game · Recall cards
What does 'seasonality' mean for an ingredient?
Card 1 of 4
Mastery quiz
Part 16 of 17
Marked quiz
End of lesson quiz: Where our food comes from
4 questions, marked with the reasoning shown. No timer.
1. What does 'seasonality' mean for an ingredient?
2. Why might parsnips taste sweeter in winter?
3. What does 'food miles' measure?
4. Which is a UK autumn crop?
Lesson round-up
Part 17 of 17
Lesson round-up
Ready when you are
Quiz score
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Luna: 0 out of 3 on the practice checks. Only if you feel up to it — one more?
Ask LunaPart 1 of 17 · Watch & discover
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Understand the source, seasonality and characteristics of a broad range of ingredients