Connecting kids to country and culture

INDIGENOUS students from Cabbage Tree Island Primary School got a lesson in bush tucker and traditional medicine from MasterChef star Mindy Woods during a recent visit to Conscious Ground organic farm at Myocum.

Ms Woods, who also offers Karkalla on Country dining experiences on the property where the native ingredients used in her cooking are grown, said it was wonderful to help reconnect the children with their ancestral past.

“Getting them to connect to country and culture through food was a really special experience for everyone as there’s limited opportunity for them to get out on country and keep that culture and knowledge sharing alive,” the Bundjalung chef said.

“We want them to feel proud of their culture.”

The 30 students aged four to 11 and their teachers and support workers got to taste native ingredients such as cinnamon myrtle, native ginger and Davidson plum, and learn about their medicinal qualities.

“We did a big yarn up and then to burn off a bit of energy we put them to work mulching our finger lime trees,” Ms Woods said.

“Then we did a damper-making workshop cooking on the fire before a beautiful shared lunch with kangaroo curry, crocodile skewers, karkalla salad and damper with wattleseed.

“They were really getting into the bush tucker, which I loved. I think sometimes kids are more open to trying new things than adults are.”

Ms Woods has a strong ancestral connection to Cabbage Tree Island, which was devastated in the 2022 floods, but after the success of the event she plans to extend the opportunity to children from all schools in 2025.

“We believe it’s a shared culture and knowledge and I feel it’s my responsibility to keep it going,” she said. “Seeing the kids so excited reinvigorates me and inspires my own energy.”