Farmerama

As we bring this episode to you, we know that the Coronavirus pandemic is putting many of the farmers and growers out there are under more pressure than ever to provide food for your local communities and to rapidly find new markets for your produce – all whilst being concerned with the health of those around you. So we wanted to take a moment to say as ever we and so many others are grateful for all the work you do: thank you - Farmerama is made for you!

This month, we go back to the Oxford Real Farming Conference (ORFC) one last time, this time to focus on the economic system and ask the question: what form does our economy need to take if we want to support a regenerative farming future? To start helping us answer this question, we hear from biologist, author and co-founder of the ORFC Colin Tudge, who helps us understand today’s dominant economic paradigm, and shares his vision for an economy that supports regenerative farming.

Next, we speak to Tony Greenham, a finance professional, economist, sustainability consultant and Executive Director at South West Mutual, who explains how, in his view, the economy has failed us and what he thinks a more sustainable economy might look like. We share some of the final episode of CEREAL, the 6-part series we released at the end of last year, to illustrate how everything Colin and Tony spoke about is embedded in our food systems, including in our bread.

Two of the key characters in CEREAL were baker and regenerative retailer at Small Food Bakery, Kimberly Bell, and Fred Price, farmer at Gothelney Farm. They both run regenerative businesses that produce food to nourish people, bring joy, promote healthy lifestyles and build communities. We hear from them about what shifting towards regenerative business and a regenerative economy means to them.

This episode of Farmerama was made by Abby Rose, Louis Hudson and Hanna Soderlund. With me Jo Barratt and Katie Revell. We’re extremely grateful to our Patreon supporters, who help us make the show. If you'd like to support Farmerama, visit patreon.com/Farmerama. Community support is provided by Hanna Soderlund, Fran Bailey, Annie Landless, Eliza Jenkins and Olivia Oldham. Our theme music is by Owen Barratt.

This month’s episode brings more inspiring stories from the Oxford Real Farming Conference. We hear from a former MEP about UK land reform, learn about land stewardship in Scotland, talk to a community owned family farm, and chat about land justice and the future of land ownership in the UK. We also share an exciting new opportunity for you to get involved in a shared land-ownership model.

This month, we bring you the first of 3 special episodes focusing for the most part on stories from the Oxford Real Farming Conference, or ORFC. This year, we were delighted to be the ORFC’s official media partner. So, fresh from the conference, we hear about the role of myth-making and storytelling in building the regenerative farming movement and we learn about a new initiative to put nutrient density at the heart of good food and farming. Then, we hear from a young fashion designer about her innovative accessory collections re-awakening our connections between fashion and farming. And we have an urgent call for councils across the UK to recognise the value of real farming.

At ORFC in 2020, Georgia shared a story called ‘The Herdsman’, a true story which shows what cheap food is doing to the land, the animals and the people involved in its production. Georgia shares the story here for Farmerama

Georgia talks about the role of myth-making and storytelling in building the regenerative farming movement in Episode 53 of Farmerama

https://georgiawingfieldhayes.org/

https://twitter.com/georgiawingers?lang=en-gb

https://www.theethicaldairy.co.uk

https://www.instagram.com/theethicaldairy/?hl=en

Photo used is from the ethical dairy's instagram feed.

As the new decade dawns we bring you stories of hope and diversity from the Oxford Real Farming Conference. We hear from black farmers and growers who are working with the land to bring social justice and connection to their communities. We also hear from a long time landowner in the UK about building new ownership structures to bring the land back into community. Throughout the episode there are songs and themes that weave the conference together.

Regular contributor Joel Rodker continues to share his experiences working at Norwich Farmshare. This week he’s talking reflecting on the experiences of contributing to the CSA with other volunteers and members.

Reporting: Joel Rodker

Editing: Louis Hudson

https://www.instagram.com/norwich_farmshare/

https://www.norwichfarmshare.co.uk/

We are the bread system. If you eat bread – or any grains – you are part of it.

So how can we all get involved, and what can we do to usher in the new grains movement to build joy, nutrition and resilience in all of our communities?

In this final episode, we explore what a more efficient, nutritious, regenerative and joyful bread system might look like. We hear some of the ways people are coming together and building networks to strengthen the movement in the UK and further afield.

It’s clear that in this beautifully complex, entangled system, even just a conversation can spark much wider change. This is a story of hope and a blueprint that has the potential to cause reverberations far beyond bread. It turns out that bread is political – and you, too, can take a stand for the world you want to live in.

This might be our final episode of Cereal, but it isn’t the end – it’s just the beginning! Join the new grains movement. Talk to your local bakers, seek out local millers, thank your farmers, be open-minded, be curious.

A huge thank you to everyone who’s contributed to Cereal. As well as the voices you hear in this episode, many more conversations have helped to shape the series.

Thanks to Andrew Whitley (Scotland the Bread), Kim Bell (Small Food Bakery and UK Grain Lab), Mark Lea (Greenacres Farm), Fred Price (Gothelney Farmer), Steven Jacobs (Organic Farmers & Growers), Ben MacKinnon (E5 Bakehouse), Anne Parry (Felin Ganol), Rupert Dunn (Torth y Tir), Josiah Meldrum (Hodmedods), Tomaso Ferrando (University of Antwerp) and Fintan Keenan. Thanks also to the Lost Revellers and everyone who came to the Nottingham Cereal launch harvest party and lent their voices to make the Flour Ambassador's Pledge.

This series was made possible thanks to the generosity of the Roddick Foundation. Please listen, share, review and subscribe, and support the farmers instigating change. All six episodes can be found on Soundcloud and all podcasting platforms. And if you’d like to support Farmerama, visit patreon.com/farmerama.

Cereal is produced and edited by Katie Revell, with support from Abby Rose and Jo Barratt. Suzie MacCarthy and Hanna Söderlund also worked on the series. Our theme music is by Owen Barratt.

Voices:

Andrew Whitley, co-founder of the Real Bread Campaign, and Scotland the Bread

Kimberley Bell, founder Small Food Bakery, Nottingham

Steven Jacobs, Business Development Manager, Organic Farmers and Growers

Ben MacKinnon, founder E5 Bakehouse, London

Anne Parry, Felin Ganol Watermill, Wales, and Welsh Grain Forum

Rupert Dunn, Torth y Tir Community-Supported Peasant Bakery, Wales

Josiah Meldrum, co-founder Hodmedods

Mark Lea, Greenacres Farm, Shropshire

Fred Price, Gothelney Farm, Somerset

Tomaso Ferrando, Bread as a Commons

Fintan Keenan, farmer, miller and engineer, Denmark/Ireland

The UK is the fifth largest economy and has some of the cheapest bread in the world - is that something to be proud of, or is it a convenient outcome of a system that prioritises shareholder profit, fobs off economically deprived people with poor quality food, and throws away a third of what it produces?

It’s so ingrained in us that cheap food is better for everyone, but in this episode we ask you to stop and really think - are we supporting a system that is efficient for lining the pockets of a few, whilst impoverishing everyone else?

What if the real cost is our collective health, and the health of the planet?

Bread is not just money, bread is nourishment, deliciousness, companionship, connectedness, pride, politics.

In this episode we hear from bakers up and down the UK who are redefining the value of bread. Bakers who are making a stand for their communities and the planet.

Bakers from some of the most economically deprived areas who are bringing meaning, intention and joy to their baking. Bakers who are being recognised for their craft and sharing the benefits with their local communities.

This is about food networks, not food chains -- this is about reaching true efficiency that takes into account the whole system (health, environment, waste, community, joy), not just the financial balance sheet.

The radical changes that bread has undergone are revealing of much wider truths about our relationships with food, to farmers, with the land, the environment, and with each other. If you eat food, you have a stake in this story.

Voices:

Chris MacCormack, Govanhill bread man

Theo Laffargue, Riverside Bakery, Stirling, Scotland

Ben MacKinnon, E5 Bakehouse, London

Catriona Milligan, High Rise Bakers,The Gorbals, Glasgow

Rupert Dunn, Torth y Tir, Wales

Kimberley Bell, Small Food Bakery, Nottingham

Last year the majority of wheat grown in the UK went to feed animals. And of the wheat that did become flour in our homes and bakeries, most of that flour had to have nutrients added back into it - by law - because it was almost nutritionless by the time it came out of the mill.

In episode 4 we ask how did the milling process lead us to producing flour with almost no nutritional value? And why would the majority of the wheat grown in the UK go to animal feed?

We meet millers around the UK who are doing things differently, providing flour with terroir, flour that is fresh and filled with nutrition, using locally grown heritage varieties that are benefiting people and planet.

The radical changes that bread has undergone are revealing of much wider truths about our relationships with food, to farmers, with the land, the environment, and with each other. If you eat food, you have a stake in this story.

Intensive chemical (or conventional) farming systems can be incredibly efficient in perfect conditions, but in a global climate emergency this method of farming is out of date. We hear how soil health, biodiversity and regenerative farming are enabling farmers to move to a new system of farming that is nutritious for humans and the land. What is the experience of farmers growing the wheat, that’s ground to flour, that makes our bread? We explore why farmers are moving away from intensive chemical systems to more ecological approaches, why farmers are reclaiming their autonomy, detaching themselves from exploitative commodity markets, re-building connections with seed breeders, millers, bakers, and consumers – and once again finding reasons to celebrate diversity and distinctiveness.

The radical changes that bread has undergone are revealing of much wider truths about our relationships with food, to farmers, with the land, the environment, and with each other. If you eat food, you have a stake in this story.