As an official Team Partner of Australia’s Paralympic and Olympic Teams, Australian Beef has announced two new virtual modules for school students, offering students an exciting opportunity to engage with athletes around healthy lifestyles and join a virtual cooking class with chef Matt Sinclair.
Australian Beef will play a key role in the Be Your Greatest Virtual Classroom Program, featuring Paralympians and Olympians to inspire and connect students with athlete heroes, learning about their journey to greatness and the importance of active lifestyles and healthy meals ahead of the Tokyo Games in 2021.
The first of the new modules will launch in Term 3 August 2020, with a focus on athlete stories. Paralympians, Eliza Ault-Connell and Scott Reardon, will be joined by Rugby Sevens’ most capped female player, Emilee Cherry, and Vice-Captain, Lewis Holland, Co-Captain of the Hockeyroos, Emily Chalker, and Olympian Basketball player, Chris Goulding, as Australian Beef’s Athlete Ambassadors.
In Term 1 and 2 in 2021, MasterChef Australia Alumni Matt Sinclair will join the Be Your Greatest Virtual Classrooms along with the Athlete Ambassadors for a virtual cooking class to show students the delicious versatility of cooking with Australian beef as part of a balanced lifestyle.
Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) Community and Industry Engagement Manager, Fiona Thompson, said the new education activities were a great way to further engage with students to show the value of an active lifestyle as well as health and nutrition credentials of Australian beef in a healthy diet.
“We’re really excited to bring these national sporting heroes into schools to connect with young Australians. Sharing their stories is a great way to inspire a passion for keeping active, eating well and finding their greatness within, and critically showing how beef is an important part of a healthy meal,” Ms Thompson said.
MasterChef Australia Alumni Matt Sinclair, who will join the Be Your Greatest Virtual Classrooms along with the Athlete Ambassadors for a virtual cooking class in 2021, added “as a dad, I’m really passionate about making sure my child knows what goes into a healthy meal, so I can’t wait to teach more kids some easy kitchen skills so they can get excited about cooking Aussie beef as part of a balanced and active lifestyle.”
Ms Thompson said MLA currently has a range of Australian curriculum-aligned materials and programs to support teachers in educating students about sustainable farming practices, red meat production and red meat nutrition.
“MLA’s virtual classrooms program aims to improve community understanding of the Australian red meat and livestock industry in an interactive and engaging way that also aligns to the school curriculum,” Ms Thompson said.
In the 2019-20 financial year, 17 producer advocates participated in 34 livestream classes, which reached over 13,884 students.
MLA also undertakes a broad range of community engagement programs, including resources like national curriculum study guides, lessons and activities, digital lessons, classroom posters, virtual farm visits, online board games and the beef and lamb Paddock to Plate virtual reality as well as interaction at careers expos and conferences.
To learn more about the virtual classrooms and how schools can register, visit
You can also access free learning resources at and learn more about Australian Beef Athlete Ambassadors at
