Brioche and baguettes, patisseries, pâté and croissants – how could we possibly get by without our old friends the French?

France and her fabulous market fare was the theme of a Bonhill Primary School project with a truly international flavour, and as parents and relatives were the customers the goods on offer were going to have to be up to scratch.

While researching their venture the pupils probably reflected that many goods that are now standard in Scottish supermarkets are wholly French in inspiration – even if not necessarily made there – and that from saucissons to Champagne and fine cognac (for the grown-ups) our Auld Alliance friends have possibly the most enticing range of food and drink products anywhere in the world.

The pupils will have learned that France is largely responsible for the surge in enthusiasm for bottled mineral water – everyone knows the most famous brands – and for ingredients which may once have seemed alien and even unpleasant that are now standard in so many dishes … like garlic.

French bread is a subject all on its own, from the humble but essential “baton” to all sorts of savoury and sweet specials.

The Bonhill youngsters may not have got around to producing everything you could possibly hope to find in a French market, but – laid out below the French tricoleur – they certainly managed to assemble a tasty selection of the items no Gallic home could possibly do without.

Discovering this aspect of French culture at primary school has probably literally whetted young appetites for much more of the same – Vive La France!