Grow Batheaston
Bath and North East Somerset
Oak class plant oak trees: When Grow Batheaston discovered that a number of oak trees were going to go to waste due to the pandemic, we took measures to make sure they could be planted in a suitable place. By liaising with the local school and a local landowner, they were finally planted a couple of weeks ago. Each child from oak class has been tasked with keeping an eye on the tree that they planted, thus ensuring they will be watered and taken care of the Oak trees on New Leaf Farm.
First Seedling Swap of the Year: Grow Batheaston is keen to make gardening and growing food as inclusive and accessible as possible. Our seed swaps and seedling swaps ensure no-one misses out on acquiring plants as they can be swapped, or ‘bought’ with a small donation. This was our first tentative seedling swap of the year; we had no idea what would happen and who would come. It turned into a lovely gentle affair, with folk wandering up to see what was going on and others on a mission with their boxes of plants. It was a time to chat, and make new friends after so many months of isolation.
A sense of belonging: Grow Batheaston has stayed true to its roots and is really working together from the ground up by encouraging the formation of different interest groups within the village. This has ranged from a well-being group to a bee group, from a children’s football club to a ladies netball team! We are looking forward to a community based post-Covid recovery in our area which also sees involvement in a local Art Trail in the autumn. We are now growing into be a charity.
Grace Kitchen at Fountains Church Bradford
Bradford
Holiday hunger food provision: The surplus fruit and vegetables we rescue are used for a number of different projects we supply to. Here we were working with a local Foodbank providing 200 prepared meals a day over Easter holidays.
Lunchtime food service: We collaborate with Bradford Markets and collect fruit and veg from them 5 days a week (17 tons in just over 3 months). We have a team of volunteers - including refugees and asylum seekers from a wide range of ethnicities and we supply hot meals and a fresh food stall four days a week. We usually supply 40-50 meals a session.
Surplus mushrooms: Reducing food waste is one of the key solutions to combatting climate change as it currently generates about 8% of global greenhouse emissions. Our response is not to address food insecurity but to address the environmental issue of food surplus. We make food available to all.
Open veg & fruit garden
Dorset
Gardener Visitors to school garden eating beans: This school Edible Garden is participating, with others, in sharing information on food security. One adaption to Climate Change uses a polytunnel to harvest broad beans.
Lions Gleaning Hub
North West Leicestershire
Visiting previously gleaned orchard: We're currently focusing on finding gleaning opportunities for this year which includes contacting farmers that we have worked with previously. This image shows a fruit tree at Starkey's Fruit Farm in Nottinghamshire where we gleaned fruit from over 300 apple and pear trees last year. The fruit from this farm would normally have fallen and been wasted. Instead over 2 tonnes of fruit went to feed people in need around the country.
Having a "soup-er" time! Gleaning relies on volunteers coming together from all walks of life to reduce unnecessary food waste. At one of our gleans in 2019, volunteers from numerous Lions Clubs gleaned 6 tonnes of pumpkins and squashes from Foxes Farm near Basildon. The group of volunteers enjoyed the fruits of their labour together from the previous week's glean in Peterborough, proving that pumpkins have a use far beyond Halloween. The pumpkin soup was scrumptious!
Making the most of leftovers: Our future focus is to increase awareness of food surplus within our food distribution system, from field to fork. This picture shows celebrity chef Tim Maddams at our Feeding the 5000 event in Leicester in 2018. This aimed to feed 5000 people for free using food that would’ve been wasted. There were also speakers, demonstrations and entertainment. We plan to repeat the event in Colchester later this year serving (you guessed it) pumpkin soup!
The Winmarleigh Carbon Farm
Wyre
Can you farm carbon? The Winmarleigh Carbon Farm is a pioneering project investigating how to restore the vital carbon storage capacity of peatlands. The carbon farm has re-wet a formerly drained drained peatland and planted a permanent cover crop of sphagnum moss to protect existing soil carbon and eventually return the area to being a carbon sink - whilst keeping the land financially viable.
Mike Longden - King of the Moss: Mike is just one member of the carbon farm team. He is working with local farmers and landowners to share the project and encourage them to think about different ways of managing the precious peat in their care. He is also working with Manchester Metropolitan University to measure carbon emissions from the site to evidence the project.
Peatlands rule the world! Peatlands are amazing carbon capturing super habitats that globally store twice as much carbon as our forests! The carbon farm project is hoping to spread the word about how important it is to restore and care for our peatlands. Wet, squelchy and boggy they could help to save the world!
Chyan Cultural Centre
Cornwall
Acrobats in zero emission dome: The Chyan Plen ( Home Space) is a 250 seat community training and performance space run by a wind farm and zero emission minibus transport. The dome is in the centre of Chyan Cultural Centre a community field, environmental centre and organic farm with wild camping.The space is used for a BTEC course in Organic Horticulture, sustainable building and performance arts.
