Do Young People Care About Farming?

This article was originally published on the Wicked Leeks blog here.

It’s August and the land around me is a chlorophyll-hungry yellow. Our seeds are struggling to germinate and many of our young winter cabbage plants have already died in the unrelenting heat. As I’m sure many reading this will agree, I believe that regenerative farming is part of the solution to mitigating climate change. However, there is the looming question of who will carry UK food production forward into an uncertain future; is farming a desirable career for younger generations?

In 2020, I left a full-time job in London to work in farming at the age of 26. I don’t come from a farming background and didn’t grow up in the rural countryside. After volunteering on food growing projects around London since 2016, I left the city during the pandemic to pursue my passion for food growing and completed an agroecological farming traineeship with The Landworkers’ Alliance in 2021.

I love this work – there are few experiences quite like bringing in the hay at sunset, seeing lambs being born or growing food on biodiverse land alongside others that understand the importance. Over the last two years I’ve seen a growing movement emerging of people who want to work in farming, and many of them are between the ages of 20 and 40.

The idea that most young people want city jobs and bags of cash isn’t true – many of us want simpler livelihoods where we can connect to nature and play an active role in reshaping the future of food and its impact.

However, there are still socioeconomic barriers that make a career in farming inaccessible for many. Additionally, until we have land of our own many of us rely on seasonal work that usually dries up in the winter because many farms can’t afford to pay us (or themselves) a proper income.

Getting access to even small parcels of land in the UK is difficult, and making a liveable income from food growing in a world where cheap food is seen as the norm makes it hard for all farmers, but especially for new entrants.

The idea that most young people want city jobs and bags of cash isn’t true – many of us want simpler livelihoods where we can connect to nature and play an active role in reshaping the future of food and its impact.

It is not due to a fear of hard work that young people are struggling to get into or continue farming, it’s these systematic issues and a broken food system that has not served farmers well for some time.

Despite this, a growing number of people under the age of 55 (the average age of UK farmers) want to help create a food system that reflects our values and want to work on farms that align with them, too.

However, while experienced farmers want workers and new entrant farmers want work, there is sometimes still a disconnect between these two groups – we need to work together to close this generational gap. Across all areas of agroecological farming in the UK, we need to focus more on what unites us than what separate us – if we are to make farming a more inclusive, appealing sector for future generations then we need to collaborate better to do so.

Through more interaction, knowledge sharing and support we can understand one another better and lessen the loneliness that plagues many farmers. From large family farms to newly established one-acre market gardens, we are all connected through our passion to create a prosperous future for both people and the planet through food. System change can often be a long and hard road but working together will only get us there faster.

Get into farming

Jobs are often posted on The Landworkers’ Alliance and Organic Grower’s Alliance website, The Soil Association Marketplace and Roots to Work.

Useful resources can be found through The Landworkers’ Alliance, Ecological Land Co-operative, The CSA Network, The Organic Growers’ Alliance and similar organisations – please feel free to add any projects or organisations that might connect us all better in the comments below.

British Flowers Week: Why Buy Local, Organic Blooms?

I recently took the Eurostar train on a trip to visit family in Holland. Beyond the beautiful windmills, a prominent feature of the Dutch countryside is the miles and miles of glasshouses. Throughout much of the year, these large greenhouses radiate with blocks of bright colours that are hard to fully process when whizzing by in a high-speed train. Many of them are filled with flowers that make up the 90% of blooms imported to and sold in the UK. When we pick up a quick bunch from the supermarket, it most likely contains flowers grown in monoculture greenhouses that have been sprayed with numerous chemicals to keep them looking fresh on their long journey from Europe (and sometimes as far as Africa and South America).

 So, what’s the big deal with buying flowers from far-flung places? Is local really better?

The Global Flower Industry

 While many of us are aware of the reasons to buy local, organic food, there’s not as much information out there on organic flowers. I have often thought that because we don’t eat flowers, surely any chemicals sprayed on them can do us no harm. However, as I’ve become more aware of the flower industry, I’ve started doing a lot more research into its impact and have realised that the picture is far from rosy.
In non-organic farming, it is legal for growers to use around 300 different pesticides. Most of the global flower industry is not organic and recent research has found that frequent exposure to the chemicals sprayed on flowers can be damaging to human health [1]. The beautiful flowers sitting on your kitchen table - unless they were grown locally, organically, or by you - will have an average of 10 different chemicals on them. Additionally, to reach the supermarket they can travel up to 3,000 miles. Along the way they will need to be refrigerated, protected and covered in sprays to ensure seeming freshness when they reach their final destination – however, they are far from fresh. If you’ve bought any roses recently, they will have been dipped in a ‘toxic, fungicidal soup’ [2] to prevent rotting during transit before being packaged in plastic and flown across the globe. Additionally, those who work directly in the greenhouses and fields where non-organic flowers are grown are put at risk by the vast amount of chemicals used on flowers. As mentioned above, these chemicals have been shown to be damaging to human health and that is most worrying for those who handle and breathe them in on a frequent basis. Many of the chemicals used in global flower production have been banned in Europe and the United States [3] due to ill-health among workers from frequent exposure.
While these flowers may seemingly cost little, the environment pays the price. Buying these flowers supports an industry that profits from soil degradation and environmental destruction. The vast nature of the cut flower industry means that it has a huge impact on soil health, biodiversity, and the environment. While it may seem like a small thing to quickly purchase a cheap bunch from Tesco, in doing so we are supporting an industry that profits from all the practices mentioned above. However, there is an alternative industry that we can support – local, organic flower farms are growing in number and popularity in the UK and there are many reasons to support them instead.

 The Benefits of Organic Flowers

As awareness of the importance of protecting our local environments has grown, so has the conversation around farming practices. 70% of land in England is used for farming and industrial farming is one of the biggest drivers of biodiversity loss, greenhouse gas emissions, and water pollution in our country [4]. In contrast, farms that choose organic practices are working to rebuild soil health, build biodiversity and greatly limit or eradicate greenhouse gas emissions and water pollution. British flower farms are a big part of this movement.

The number of flower farms in the UK growing organically has been gradually rising as greater awareness of the unsustainable global flower industry has come to light. In organic and regenerative farming systems the entire farm is seen as an ecosystem just like a healthy human body. Just like us, a sustainable farm needs nutrition (compost, plant feeds, etc.), clean water, no chemicals, sunlight, clean air, and biodiversity to function well. Growing flowers adds nutrition to the soil, and provides food for vital pollinators and spaces for humans to enjoy too. Without the need to ship flowers across countries in elaborate freight systems, locally grown flower farms produce far fewer emissions and are far better for the environment, both locally and globally. Additionally, they strengthen our local economies by supporting local businesses and bringing people together to volunteer on the land and meet the farmers who grew their flowers. While locally grown, organic flowers may cost more, we can know that our money is being spent on a sustainable, ethical system that is benefiting our local communities, rather than an industry that is doing the exact opposite.

Finding and Supporting Local Flower Farms

Flowers from the farm is a great place to find UK flower farms and how to support them directly. Additionally, do a quick google search for an organic flower farm near you (many deliver across the UK). If you’re looking for floral inspiration, then I’d recommend looking up flower farms on social media – especially on Instagram. There are tons of incredible small organic flower farms across the world that are growing amazing blooms and selling them to local folks – wholesome content indeed. Finally, the reason that the global flower industry still dominates is because we support it. Think about the impact of your purchase before buying a cheap bunch. Flowers are meant to be special and there’s nothing more special than knowing where your flowers come from, supporting local growers, and sharing their blooms with your favourite people.

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[1] https://www.cumberlandflowerfarm.co.uk/blog/chemicals-on-flowers

[2] https://www.heirloomsoul.com/blog/why-local-organically-grown-flowers-are-so-important

[3] https://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/13/us/behind-roses-beauty-poor-and-ill-workers.html

[4] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/nov/30/environment-to-benefit-from-biggest-farming-shake-up-in-50-years

What Is Food Diversity And Why Does It Matter?

I remember the first time I went blackberry picking. With an empty bag, I set off on a quest to trawl the hedgerows for these mysterious, juicy gems. Sometimes the fruit would pop between my fingers and the molasses-coloured juice would trickle down my palm. The richness of the taste, scent and colour of these foraged berries made me feel nourished each time I popped one in my mouth on the way home. There is an inherent knowledge in humans that generally associates colourful food with health. Whether it’s the deep green of cavolo nero, the crimson blush of tomatoes or the stain that’s left on your fingertips by fresh beetroot – research shows that there are plenty of positive implications for our health, food system, and global food security from growing and eating a diverse spread of wild and cultivated foods.
Our current experience of food is one of seeming diversity. We can eat any manner of cuisine from far-flung places across the globe without even leaving the house – from coconut milk, lemongrass, and Brazil nuts to mango, chia seeds, and Himalayan pink salt. However, while we have greater access to a global food supply, we have lost 75% of genetic plant diversity in modern agriculture since 1900 [1].  What humans eat has changed more in the last 150 years (around six generations) than it has over the course of the last one million (40,000 generations) [2]. According to a report from WWF, over 70% of the food we eat comes from only 12 plant sources and five animal sources [3]. While our hunter-gatherer ancestors were eating 6,000 different plant species, we currently only eat around nine. Three of which – rice, wheat, and maize – make up 50% of all calories [4].

 Why does this matter?

Food Security and Food Diversity

 Imagine if you owned a forest filled with ash trees. One day you notice a change in your trees and come to realise that ash dieback – a fungal disease that kills European ash trees – is spreading through your woodland. By simply relying on one species of tree, that is now under serious threat, your forest is less resilient when disease spreads. However, if your forest were filled with oak, beech, birch, ash, hawthorn, Scots pine, and alder – a diverse range of tree species – when the ash dieback threatens your ash trees, you’d have other healthy trees in your forest to keep it strong. The same applies to food. Eating a diverse range of foods is one of the ways that we humans have been able to sustain ourselves on this planet for as long as we have. However, over the last 150 years or so our food system has depended more and more on monocultures – the farming of a single crop in a given area [6] – and in turn, the diversity and food security within our food system has rapidly declined.

While our access to food seems abundant, many of the foods we eat come from only a small handful of sources, as Dan Saladino explains in his book, Eating to Extinction:

 ‘Half of all the world’s cheeses are produced with bacteria or enzymes manufactured by a single company; one in four beers drunk around the world is a product of one brewer; from the USA to China, most global pork production is based around the genetics of a single breed of pig; and […] although there are more than 1,500 varieties of banana, global trade is dominated by just one, the Cavendish, a cloned fruit grown in monocultures so vast their scale can only be comprehended from the view of an airplane or by satellite [7].’

 
We cannot realistically sustain ourselves as a global community by relying on monoculture crops. Facing the unpredictability of climate change without diverse food sources won’t be sustainable when we are dealing with extreme conditions. Additionally, global food security has recently been shaken by the impact that the war in Ukraine has had on our global food supply. Ukraine exports 10% of the world’s wheat, 14% of corn, 17% of barley, and 51% of the world’s sunflower seed oils [8]. In May 2022 the Russian Navy closed a number of vital Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea, disrupting global trade networks. Our current food system is dependent on general global stability to function; however, we need a food system that is resilient in the face of imbalance. By being more locally-focused and less dependent on global trade networks, we can strengthen our food systems from the local level outwards.

Additionally, when Covid-19 hit there was a huge increase in people buying from their local food producers directly – supermarkets couldn’t handle the strain of demand (during the first wave in the UK, especially). Small businesses run by local people flexibly and quickly responded to the needs of their communities, with many producers changing their business models overnight to supply homes instead of restaurants. As both the pandemic and the current war in Ukraine demonstrate, increasing the diversity of food sources in supply chains is growing ever more important.

 
Human Health and Food Diversity

As stated previously, our ancestors were eating around 6,000 different plant species. Nowadays, consuming a variety of 20+ plant-based foods each week is generally seen as having a diverse diet. The rapid shift to our current modern way of eating – over the last 150 or so years – has had a significant impact on our overall health. An examination of fossils of cavemen before and after the introduction of agriculture into our societies showed that malnutrition (shown through dental carries, short stature, and infant mortality) greatly increased with agricultural developments [9]. As we farmed more we foraged less and the diversity of our diets decreased greatly leading to greater malnutrition. This decline has been made a lot worse by our dependence on monoculture foods.

There are still modern-day groups such as the Hadza in Northern Tanzania, who consume a hunter-gatherer diet consisting largely of food from the earth and wild animals. The Hadza, and similar groups, have been shown to have greater overall health and few of the diseases that are now common in modern-day societies [10]. Additionally, societies that rely on our modern food and farming systems can learn from the practices of Indigenous societies across the globe that still farm as their ancestors did. Agroecology and regenerative farming methods are not new – they come from the wisdom and practices of indigenous groups and their ancestral food systems. Research from the Food and Agriculture Organization for The United Nations (FAO) has shown that Indigenous food systems are rich in biodiversity and nutrition and are climate-resilient and low carbon [11]. With a focus on growing a mix of locally adapted indigenous and traditional crops with wild foods, they have access to a diverse array of foods that are locally grown with a focus on land stewardship. Equally important to the diversity of foods grown is how they are grown – not in vast monocultures, but on small-scale, community-focused farms without the use of additional chemicals that deplete the soil.

Additionally, recent research around food diversity has also focused on gut health. Our guts have become much more of a concern in recent years, with the gut being labeled as ‘the second brain’. Recent research has shown that the more diverse our diet, the healthier our gut microbiome is. Tim Spector, an epidemiologist and professor at King’s College London, has done numerous studies into gut health. He states that having a diversity of plant foods in your diet increases the diversity of your gut microbes that lead to “a healthier immune system and a better metabolism [12].” His recent ZOE Covid Symptom Study, in which people logged their covid symptoms in order to track how Covid spreads, found that those who consumed a more diverse diet of plant-based foods pre-pandemic were less susceptible to catching covid-19 [13].

Furthermore, studies suggest that there is a link between the health of our guts and our mental health. What is now called ‘the gut-brain connection’ is the link between our central nervous system (the brain) and our enteric nervous system (the gut). This connection is the reason our mouths water when we’re hungry and we might get stomach cramps when anxious. A 2018 study investigated whether people’s mental health improved when given specific probiotics to target certain strains of bacteria that were lacking in their gut microbiome. The study found that “probiotic consumption improved psychological or biological measures of depression, anxiety, or stress in individuals predisposed to a mood disorder. Probiotics suppressed biological markers of stress in healthy individuals in a strain-dependent manner [14].” It can be assumed then that introducing fermented foods – with natural probiotics – into our diets is one way in which diversifying our diet could lead to better mental health. If our gut health is improved by eating a diverse array of foods, and this could lead to greater happiness and health, then that is a great reason to support a food system that doesn’t depend on only a handful of monoculture crops to feed the world, but grows a diverse range of plant foods that could positively impact our health and happiness.

What can we do?

 Widespread food system change is largely in the hands of consumers. While we have grown quite used to eating a small variety of foods and seeing miles of fields growing the same crops, this shouldn’t be the norm. The resilience of our food systems, communities, bodies, and minds would be greatly impacted by a shift to growing and eating more diversely. Regenerative farming offers a solution as it encourages farming a diverse range of crops without the use of chemicals. As eating food grown regeneratively becomes more normalised, prices will be pushed down and this way of growing and eating will become more accessible to those who can’t currently afford it.

Agroecology – a term often used interchangeably with ‘regenerative’ – is defined as ‘the application of ecological concepts and principles in farming’. If our global farming systems put ecological health at the forefront of their agenda, it would benefit us all greatly. Recent studies suggest that organic food production is up to the task of feeding our growing populations [15] and regenerative/agroecological farms across the world are showing that food system change can start locally and have a global impact. Supporting regenerative farms as a consumer is a way that we can make our food systems more resilient while supporting local producers and strengthening communities. Additionally, educating ourselves on wild foods in our local environment is also a great way to diversify our diets - John Wright’s Book ‘The Foragers Calendar’ is a great resource for beginner foragers in the UK. Whether our desire is to improve our health, strengthen our communities or create more resilience in the face of climate change, increased diversity in what we grow and eat is key.

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[1] https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2021/10/26/Crop-diversity-underpins-food-security-Scientists-flag-enormous-diversity-loss

[2] Eating to Extinction, Dan Saladino, pg. 2

[3] https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2021/10/26/Crop-diversity-underpins-food-security-Scientists-flag-enormous-diversity-loss

[4] Eating to Extinction, Dan Saladino, pg. 8

[5] https://www.theguardian.com/food/ng-interactive/2022/apr/14/climate-crisis-food-systems-not-ready-biodiversity

[6] Google dictionary

[7] Eating to Extinction, Dan Saladino, pg. 2

[8] https://www.algebris.com/market-views/war-and-grains-impact-of-ukraine-russia-conflict-on-food-security-and-prices/

[9] https://www.nature.com/articles/1601646

[10] https://globalhealth.duke.edu/news/what-can-hunter-gatherers-teach-us-about-staying-healthy

[11] https://www.iied.org/indigenous-peoples-food-systems-hold-key-feeding-humanity

[12] https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/may/15/go-with-your-gut-tim-spector-power-of-microbiome

[13] https://gut.bmj.com/content/70/11/2096

[14] https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1028415X.2018.1493808

[15] https://rodaleinstitute.org/blog/can-organic-feed-the-world/

What's the Hungry Gap?

What’s the Hungry Gap?

You may associate Spring with growth, abundance, and fields bursting to life, but the reality is that when it comes to growing food in Spring, it’s quite the opposite. While supermarkets have given us a false sense of Spring seasonality, what actually grows in the UK during March till June makes for slim pickings - with April being the leanest month of the year. This period is called the Hungry Gap - a gap in the season where farmers have harvested their winter crops and used up the onions, potatoes, and roots they’ve stored over winter and are waiting on the spring/summer crops to be ready in May and June. Thus, we’re left with a gap in our season.  

How can I support British farmers during this time? 

If you mainly shop in supermarkets or don’t eat seasonally then it’s pretty easy to ignore the Hungry Gap - we have an abundance of produce flown in from all over the world that enables us to eat whatever we want, whenever we want it. However, there are ways to eat imported food more mindfully and still support UK producers during the Hungry Gap, and all year round.

Many UK farmers who run veg box schemes or farm shops import food from other countries, especially during this time in the season. The difference between supporting them vs. buying imported produce from the supermarket is that organic, small-scale farms will partner with other organic growers in Europe to source imported produce that maintains the standards they set for themselves. In a larger supply chain (i.e. through a supermarket) it is a lot harder to know exactly where your food is coming from and to know that the farmers who grew it are treated right and paid fairly. Farmers will also import foods that are actually in season in those other countries (i.e. Spanish blood oranges) - ensuring that you are eating foods that are naturally at their best and supporting small, local growers in those countries. 

Buying your food from local UK farms through a farm shop, farmers’ market or veg box scheme also enables you to understand more about the UK growing season. While you may be getting a bit more imported produce in your box during the Hungry Gap, you will still be supporting a local business that will offer you honest, transparent food throughout the entire year. This is especially wonderful when the abundance of summer vegetables hits and you can try lots of new things you wouldn’t find in the supermarket. 

What UK veg can I enjoy during the Hungry Gap?

While the Hungry Gap means less variety, there’s still some delicious UK-grown produce to enjoy. From January to April look out for Purple Sprouting Broccoli, it’s delicious in a stir-fry or curry. Wild Garlic comes out in abundance around the end of February till April and can be easily foraged - look out for it in nearby woodlands (but make sure not to mistake it for Lily of the Valley - more on that here). Rhubarb, Spring Greens and New Potatoes (Jersey Royals and Cornish ‘earlies’ are delicious) are available from March till June/July. And, of course, the Asparagus season that starts around late April is a great way to support British growers. 

Spring greens growing at Plotgate Community Farm in Glastonbury, UK

The Power of Seed Saving

Every plant has a life cycle - as seen in the diagram below: 

http://theseedsite.co.uk/lifecycle.html

Before the majority of us bought our seeds each year from the garden centre, taking, saving and sharing seeds from our favourite plants would have been the norm. Many indigenous communities continue to do this when their plants go to seed as a way of ensuring that their traditional plant varieties are not lost. So, why isn’t this encouraged anymore?

The State of Seed

In 2021 over 50% of the global seed market is owned by four large companies - Bayer, Corteva, ChemChina and Limagrain [1]. These companies control what, where and how seeds are produced and, in turn, have a lot of control over our food system. This trickles all the way down to what seeds you grow in your veg plot and the impact that has on the local environment, ecology and your localised food system.

To bring it into context, let’s look at ‘F1 Hybrid’ seeds that many people buy each year from their garden centre. ‘F1 hybrid’ seeds are a cross between two varieties that result in a new, more interesting plant - for example a tomato that has stripes and is extra sweet, or a very large dahlia that is a rare colour. The crosses are done under controlled conditions and usually by hand, hence why they are more expensive. The thing with ‘F1 hybrid’s’ is that they do not come from true seed so if you try and save this seed and plant it next year you will end up with a sub-standard plant that looks very different to what you had growing last year. These varieties - and other examples like them, including genetically modified seeds - have been created to ensure that a farmer or gardener cannot save the seed and replant it next year.

While this is a wise business decision on the part of the seed companies as you have to buy from them each year, in the long run, it won’t be so great for us. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, 75% of the world's crop varieties disappeared between 1900 and 2000 [1]. With the constant flow of new seeds in our catalogues, we are made to believe that seed diversity is growing. But as these hybrid seeds grow in popularity they are weakening a centuries-old diverse plant gene pool and replacing natural seeds with varieties that are not genetically strong. As climate change affects how and what we grow, having genetically strong seeds and a diverse range that can withstand different conditions is critical.

Why Should We Save Seed?

Within our globalised world we have forgotten the importance of local knowledge. If I grow tomatoes on my plot in Hampshire, they will be in very different conditions to my mum’s tomatoes in Somerset. As with most things, we have tried to create a one-size-fits-all for seed, which will never be as strong as a localised approach. 

So let’s imagine another scenario. Imagine if each year you and ten friends local to you all tried out different varieties and then saved the seed from the plants that grew well and tasted amazing. You then all got together and shared out your seed or stored it in a collective seed bank for next year. Over ten, 50 or 100 years, that seed bank would be a collective hub of knowledge and resilience against a changing climate that future generations could tap into and build upon - pretty cool. 

This is called Seed Sovereignty and it’s how many small-scale farmers, growers and home gardeners are coming together to rebuild our plant diversity. The Lexicon of Food defines seed sovereignty as “the farmer's right to breed and exchange diverse open source seeds which can be saved and which are not patented, genetically modified, owned or controlled by emerging seed giants” [2].

Seed is very important when it comes to climate change. If we don’t have a seed supply that is diverse and resilient then ultimately our food system will be vulnerable. 

Hopefully, this post has given you more understanding as to why this is important. If you want to start seed saving, learn more or support ethical seed companies then I’d recommend checking out these resources: 

https://www.seedsovereignty.info/ 

https://www.gaiafoundation.org/

https://sustainablefoodtrust.org/?s=seed

https://vitalseeds.co.uk/

https://seedcooperative.org.uk/

[1] https://www.dw.com/en/agriculture-seeds-seed-laws-agribusinesses-climate-change-food-security-seed-sovereignty-bayer/a-57118595
[2] http://daughterofthesoil.blogspot.com/2006/07/f1-hybrids-what-every-gardener-should.html
[3] https://www.seedsovereignty.info/

Thoughts On Seaspiracy: Should We All Stop Eating Fish?

Seaspiracy - a documentary that was recently released on Netflix - explores many aspects of the global fishing industry including large-scale commercial fishing, plastic pollution and whether eating fish can ever really be ‘sustainable’. While the documentary has had some criticism for taking quotes out of context, it has shone a spotlight on the fishing industry and caused many to think more about their food choices. One theme that this documentary and others like it tend to have in common is that they expose the problems within our globalised food system. We have access to food from all over the world - and while this luxury of choice has some benefits - it will always come with its problems. When our food is traveling across oceans to reach us, it can be pretty difficult to know where it’s come from and how it was grown, raised, or caught. So, can we still enjoy these foods without feeling caught in a system that we don’t fully trust?

One issue raised in Seaspiracy is around food labels - can we trust them? As consumers, we use food labels to ease our conscience around whether our food reaches a certain standard that doesn’t harm the natural environment or wildlife. The distance between the food at the supermarket and those who actually produce it can be far and wide, which is why we need labels and certification bodies. While there are some certification bodies and organisations doing good work to ensure that we can eat food from further afield and still know it’s come from a ‘trustworthy’ source, these labels and certifications aren’t always watertight or a guarantee. This will always be a problem within a global food system where our food is measured in air miles and we often don’t even know where it was produced. I cannot speak to every issue raised in Seaspiracy, but this issue of globalisation in food is a big reason why we are left with a feeling of hopelessness after watching these documentaries - how can we ever change a system that’s so big and, clearly, not transparent?

Our global food system has skewed our understanding of sustainability - to quote Guy Singh-Watson, Founder of Riverford, ‘anyone offering you a continuous range of fresh, day boat-landed fish is lying’ [1]. The reality is that sourcing enough fish out of the ocean to feed the number of people on this planet that want to eat ‘sustainable’ fish will never be a sustainable endeavour that benefits our oceans. To quote Guy again, ‘we need marine reserves where all commercial fishing is banned. Disturbance of the sea bottom should be illegal. Quotas need to be redistributed to smaller, local boats. The plundering of fish stock in the developing world by large foreign boats must stop, and fossil fuels must be taxed. If that is politically undoable, then yes, we should stop eating fish.’ 

However, in reality, a lot of people will never give up fish. So, is there another solution? The reason why so many people, after watching Seaspiracy, declared that they would never eat fish again is due to a lack of trust in our food system - so how can we repair it? We need to accept that certain foods will never be sustainably sourced in a global supply chain and question whether that means we should be eating them at all. We need a mental shift when it comes to our view of ‘sustainable food’ - if we cannot play an active role in, or even observe directly, where the food we’re eating came from then we will always be relying on someone else (usually with their own interests) to tell us that it’s sustainable. If you aren’t willing to investigate further how or where your food comes from then maybe you shouldn’t be eating it. The same goes for vegetables and meat - we need to support systems that are actually slow, work with nature, and are light on the planet. It means that if you choose to eat fish or meat, you eat it on occasion and from a traceable - and preferably local - source that is transparent and non-intensive.

Support small-scale farmers, fishermen, growers etc. who are producing food for their local communities, as they cut out the middlemen that stop us from fully understanding what we are eating. We don’t need a label to tell us whether something is produced in the right way if we have a direct relationship with our local producer. We all have power when it comes to the choices we are making every day with the food that we buy and consume. There are plenty of people producing food in a sustainable, honest way and if we want to change the system then we need to support them, rather than a system that we don’t trust. Food is political - as long as we choose to put our money into a system, that system will keep on growing and thriving. So, if we choose to put our money into a more transparent and (legitimately) sustainable food system then that is the system that will thrive.

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[1] https://wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk/opinion/news-farm-fish-environment-ethics/uncomfortable-truth-about-fishing

Who Controls The Seed Market?

Wednesday 14th September 2016 was a pretty big day for me. I had spent the previous four or so months writing, researching, and editing a 10,000-word thesis on the implementation of Genetic Modification (GM) in Africa for my Master’s degree dissertation - this was the day I finally stopped researching and handed in my paper. This research (and my degree in general) was where my passion for seed sovereignty, food politics, and farming began - with genetically modified seeds.

In its simplest form, GM is the altering of the genetic make-up of an organism. In agriculture, the aim of implementing GM crops is to increase the crop’s resistance to drought and insects, while also enhancing the speed and size of the crop’s growth. You may be wondering why advancements in agricultural biotechnology are relevant to your life, stick with me and we’ll get to that.

You may have heard scare stories about GMO’s (genetically modified organisms). Such stories often revolve around Monsanto, pesticides or the belief that GMO’s cause cancer. While the negative connotations surrounding GM are important and relevant, they will not be the focal point of this piece. Instead, I am going to talk about seeds.

Another reason why Wednesday 14th September 2016 was a pretty big day for me is due to seeds. On this day Monsanto, one of the world’s largest agrochemical companies, was bought out by Bayer, a German pharmaceutical and chemical giant, in a $66 billion merger. Why is this relevant? Well, this merger led to Bayer owning Monsanto and, in turn, owning nearly 30% of the seed market worldwide. Among a host of mergers and acquisitions between major agrochemical companies in the last few years, we are heading for a future in which the ‘big three’ largest companies will have control over our entire food system. This is relevant to you because it will result in them making the decisions regarding what is in your food, how much it costs and whether it is pesticide-laden and genetically modified [1].

For the last 12,000 or so years, farmers would save seeds, clean them, and re-plant them the following year. Nowadays, mostly in countries like the U.S. where GM production is legal and widespread, the saving of seed is illegal if a farmer is using GM seed. This means that farmers have to spend far more money each year buying new seeds and can be sued if they attempt to save their seeds. Now, don’t get me wrong here, these companies have to protect themselves, understandably, and have a right to put laws in place regarding their product. Yet, my issue here is more to do with the fact that nature has become a commodity in and of itself, that a handful of companies have the right to own and patent seeds.

As the future of our food system is continuously questioned regarding new technologies there needs to be a push for further debate regarding the actions of large corporations. If we do not question these actions we are allowing our future to be placed in the hands of the few rather than the many. The realities of the control maintained by these groups are often unseen and unheard, and thus unquestioned. Maybe it is time we start questioning it.

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[1] Although these companies do not control the laws of countries worldwide, their influence is growing. For example, in Europe GM is largely banned, yet Bayer are a German company with huge influence over business in Europe. If Bayer acquire Monsanto then the future may be uncertain regarding the relationship between GM products and the EU.

Cannabis & Hemp: The Wonder Plant

The issues regarding the debate over the legalization of marijuana are well known. What is less known, however, is that both hemp and marijuana are a product of the same species of plant, the Cannabis Sativa. In the U.S. it is currently illegal in many states to grow any form of cannabis (including hemp), yet the U.K. allows the growing of hemp in certain circumstances. Although facts about hemp and its relation to marijuana are often misunderstood, it is produced widely throughout the world; France produces around 70% of the world’s hemp output, China around 24% and over 30 other countries around the world grow and sell industrial hemp. However, the illegality of marijuana in many countries worldwide has obviously affected perceptions of hemp, as they both originate from the same species of the cannabis plant. The bold claims of activists suggesting the world-changing benefits of hemp have left some critical about the actual proven benefits of the product. Hemp however does have some well-documented properties that could make it a very useful product in areas such as health, sustainable industrial materials and agriculture in future.

Hemp and marijuana have some fundamental differences. Historically, cannabis has been grown for centuries to be used in both medical and other commercial circumstances. However, the conditions of growing hemp vs. marijuana differ. While great attention is paid to medical marijuana regarding its temperature, light conditions, CO2 and oxygen levels, hemp is grown outside with far less attention paid to individual plants. Hemp has a wide variety of uses: in textiles, as an oil, to make paper, construction materials and rope. The variety of the cannabis sativa plant that is used for marijuana has also been said to have great medical benefits, including reducing epileptic seizures and relieving vomiting during chemotherapy, however, there is currently a lack of research to support this.

The main difference between hemp and marijuana lies in the levels of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol). THC is psychoactive, i.e. it makes you feel high. In hemp the levels of THC are far lower than in marijuana. Hemp also produces more CBD than THC while marijuana produces more THC than CBD; this is the greatest distinction used to separate the two. The higher levels of CBD also reduce the effects of THC, thus reducing the THC levels further in hemp. This chemical balance shows insight into how closely linked these two products are. A further example is shown through the legalities of hemp and marijuana in Canada. Canadian law specifies that the THC content in hemp cannot exceed 0.3%, any higher than this and the cannabis plant is considered marijuana. To put this in context medical marijuana can have a THC content of between 5-20%, with prize strains at 25-30% [1].

Hemp also has many other uses that separate it from marijuana. Historically hemp has been used to make paper and can be usefully recycled up to four times as much as wood pulp. With the current high rate of deforestation, the use of wood pulp to create 95% of paper is not an environmentally sustainable resource. An additional benefit of hemp is that it does not usually require herbicides or pesticides to grow; it can survive organically pretty much anywhere. However, hemp is said to be highly labour intensive which has led to higher prices, 6 times the cost of wood pulp [2]. According to researchers at Nova Institute, an ecology R&D group based in Germany, hemp’s high shading capacity can keep weeds at bay while limiting the presence of fungi and nematodes (parasites of which there are 1 million species, they make up about 90% of all animals on the ocean floor). A rotation of hemp in wheat fields was seen to increase yields by 10-20% and it is said to grow in even the most hostile soils, such as those contaminated by heavy metals[3].

Hemp is also useful in clothing, seed and oil forms. Compared to cotton, hemp requires half the amount of water to grow; it can be dyed naturally due to the ability to remove fibres from the stem of the hemp plant, and contains a lot more fibre per acre, making the material stronger[4]. Hemp seeds and oil are rich in protein, omega 3, 6 and insoluble fibre; they are also said to increase immunity and improve cardiovascular health and the maintenance of hormonal balance[5].

Despite it’s great qualities, hemp has not always been first choice when it came to industrial materials. Throughout the 20th Century demand for hemp fell as buyers looked for cheaper options, such as artificial fibres. As environmental concerns rise, the eco-friendly and sustainable nature of hemp cannot be overlooked. With laws and understandings of the cannabis plant slowly changing worldwide, the hemp market will no doubt flourish with renewed understandings of the plant’s attributes. Even though hemp remains illegal in the majority of U.S. states, the growing of hemp, primarily for research purposes, is legal in Kentucky, Colorado, Vermont, Oregon and Tennessee. A large number of hemp products are already imported into The U.S., and as hemp advocates in North America continue to fight for outright legalisation we could see a change of laws regarding hemp in the near future. However, the many outspoken supporters of hemp have been known to make bold claims that cannot always be backed up by hard evidence, sometimes having negative effects on understandings of the benefits of hemp. Hemp may not be a miracle plant but there is no doubt that further research and accessibility to this product could have very positive effects in future, especially regarding its eco-friendly, sustainable nature and its many different uses.

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[1] Levity, J. (2014) 5 differences between Hemp and marijuana. Available at: http://www.leafscience.com/2014/09/16/5-differences-hemp-marijuana/ (Accessed: 27 October 2016).

[2] Mitchell, D. (2013) Why legalized Hemp will not be a miracle crop. Available at: http://modernfarmer.com/2013/10/legal-industrial-hemp-wont-matter/ (Accessed: 28 October 2016).

[3] EcoWatch (2015) 4 best reasons to legalize Hemp. Available at: http://www.ecowatch.com/4-best-reasons-to-legalize-hemp-1882033886.html(Accessed: 27 October 2016).

[4] Martino, J. (2016) Hemp vs cotton: The ultimate showdown. Available at: http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/07/17/hemp-vs-cotton-the-ultimate-showdown/ (Accessed: 27 October 2016).

[5] Editors, T.L.Z. (2016) 9 health benefits of Hemp oil that you should know. Available at: https://www.zliving.com/wellness/natural-remedies/9-health-benefits-of-hemp-oil-that-you-should-know (Accessed: 27 October 2016).

The Plastic Binge: How Our Addiction to Plastic is Harming Us All

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean lies an island twice the size of Texas that is made entirely of wasted plastic. You may have heard of the island dubbed as the ‘Great Pacific garbage patch’ or the ‘plastic trash vortex’. At first glance the issues surrounding this island’s existence are quite apparent; underwater footage of the island shows sea creatures wrapped in plastic, their forms morphed by the plastic waste debris. Then comes the wider message that this island portrays, it is a microcosm of a far larger problem that supposedly begins with disregard and a lack of understanding.

In today’s globalised, consumerist culture understandings of environmentalism often lead back to a ‘man vs. nature’ scenario. That in order to find our path back to restoring some hope regarding climate change we must ‘seek nature’ - a narrative that further suggests a good vs. evil tale of the city competing with the great wilderness.

Although I am a great advocate for re-connecting and re-claiming our wildness, this understanding of environmentalism seems to have forgotten that we are nature; we are not an entirely separate entity. Climate change is not a doomsday battle between man and the elements. It is a sheer reminder of how interconnected we are with all that we connect with, and are often totally disconnected from. Progression does not have to mean destruction; it does not have to come at a detrimental cost. Nature is in our cities as it is in our wilderness, it is in the homes we have built and the children we have raised, and we cannot ignore our connected fate.

On New Zealand’s South Island lies a small harbour town called Akaroa. The waters near Akaroa are the home of Hector’s dolphins, the smallest and rarest dolphins in the world. These dolphins resemble mini orca’s and glide through the water in sizeable pods. While not only being the rarest breed of dolphin on the planet, the adult population of this species is estimated at only 8,000; with the rarer breed of hector’s dolphins, Maui Dolphin’s, estimated at only 55.

It is animals like these that are highly at risk of being deformed or poisoned by the toxic chemicals that plastic waste distributes. To simply stand and watch these mammals thriving in their natural habitat is enough to make you realise that the ocean is not our territory to abuse; it is the home of creatures that we may never even lay our eyes upon and many that we are yet to discover. Yet, marine species’ are not the only ones that will have to live with the consequences of our waste; chemicals from the plastic that we dump in our oceans are also contaminating the food and water that we consume.

The decaying process of plastic takes thousands of years. When plastic gets into the ocean it traps the chemicals that run off from industry, such as fire retardants and pesticides. The island of plastic in the Pacific Ocean is one of five islands formed from plastic waste that have been discovered; other garbage patches have been found in the Indian and Atlantic oceans. 580,000 pieces of plastic waste per square kilometre reside in the Atlantic Ocean.

Due to the vast expanse of the deep blue it is easy to ignore the implications that this waste is having on the underwater eco system, as with much of the implications of human action, the consequences are ‘out there’ in a place that we only see, read or hear about through a medium that we quickly forget. Yet, as animals ingest stray pieces of plastic the toxicity infects their entire body; larger plastic elements can also sit in their stomach until they die or choke to death. The chemicals that are trapped in plastic waste are stored in the bodies of fish as they pollute surrounding waters and make their way into our food system. Fish are not only eaten by humans but are also ground up and fed to cattle, resulting in these polluting chemicals also finding their way into meat products.

As more waste is dumped into the ocean at an alarming rate these issues will only become more apparent, no doubt leading to detrimental consequences for human health. As the narrative around climate change progresses we need to rethink the rhetoric; we as a community on planet earth need to understand that only when we join forces with nature and realise that environmentalism is not man vs. nature, are we truly ready to make real change in the face of global warming. This goes beyond simply appreciating the wild around us; it means building, creating and living in a way that recognises our place in the earth’s natural ecosystem. Modernisation does not need to be at war with the wilderness; as we seek to progress we have the chance to do so in partnership with nature, instead of at the expense of our planet. Plastic waste is just one aspect of the detrimental effect that our negligent choices are having, but it clearly shows that we are not immune to the negative consequences of our actions.

Why All Children Should Learn How To Grow Food

As a child, I would watch each year as my mother planted seeds - she would poke holes into the soil and place them into the earth. I accepted the process without question when vegetables ended up on my plate - it wasn’t until I planted the seeds myself that it clicked. I learnt that food is not meant to be a pre-packaged product that never expires. I saw first-hand how the simple action of planting and nurturing food can inspire and, both physically and mentally, aid us.

When we plant a seed we instantly become part of a cycle of growth and regeneration - we intertwine with the elements to foster the development of foods that have sustained humankind for millennia. In doing so we not only give our time and energy over to this process but equally gain a wealth of knowledge in return. The soil can teach us lessons that we cannot learn anywhere else.

This is why it’s so important that children are exposed to growing food from a young age. Whatever their background, social circumstances or economic status - access to an outdoor growing space should be a basic right, especially for children. Through the act of growing food, children can learn how to take responsibility for a life, nurture a seed from planting to harvest day and actively participate in the food system.

Through this simple action, children are offered a direct connection to a powerful life force in the form of soil. One tablespoon of soil contains more organisms in it than there are people on earth. While it may just seem like a bit of dirt on your shoe, there’s an entire world in a piece of mud. And while there are many types of soil for different uses, if we ran out of soil tomorrow the stability of our world would very quickly collapse [2].

As a child, it was only through experiencing how food ended up on my plate that I came to value the process - by reconnecting with our food in this way we can begin to understand its value. This value not only extends to the quality of our food but also to the actual content. When children have the opportunity to taste, touch and experience the food that they have grown themselves they will start to see all other food in a different way and themselves in a different way too. Children are our future leaders, pioneers and changemakers - showing them the importance of growing food in a way that benefits both people and the planet will empower them with the knowledge to make choices for a better world in the long run.

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[1] http://www.audubon.org/news/10-incredible-facts-about-dirt

[2]http://world.time.com/2012/12/14/what-if-the-worlds-soil-runs-out/

Why I Care About the Future of British Farming (And I Think You Should Too)

Growing up, I never had a great fascination in my own country’s food system. As a British 20-something, I have spent most of my life believing that farming was only reserved for the older generations. Despite working at local farmers’ markets, volunteering on local farms and growing my own vegetables, there was always something about the British farming industry that didn’t interest me much.

Throughout my master’s degree, I wrote countless papers on Genetically Modified food in Africa, the state of the seed market in the U.S. and the treatment of farmers in India. Since my passion for farming has grown I have often thought about moving abroad to meet like-minded young people who are intent on making change happen in the food system. While I believe it is really important to understand and explore cultures that differ from your own, I have invested a lot of time studying foreign food systems while often naively ignoring what’s going on in Britain.

A few years ago, back in 2013, I boarded a plane alone at the age of 19 headed for Southern Africa. As a young writer with a passion for environmentalism, I thought I was going to change the world. At this point in my life food and farming were of very little importance to me; I was unaware of how my food choices affected the world beyond my own plate. I was in Africa working with a South African NGO on the issue of deforestation in Zambia. Beyond all of the things I learnt in Africa, one of the most important was that food matters, and not only what we eat but the many processes that go into bringing that food to us.

Fast-forward 3 years to 2016 and I am in London sat at my kitchen table with one of my best friends, a South African that I met while I was in Zambia. We inevitably got talking about the issues South Africa had been facing socially, economically and politically. Between 2006 and 2016 data showed that 102,793 young people emigrated from South Africa to countries like the U.K. and Australia, the majority of them being between 25 and 29[1]. Yet, when I asked her if she wanted to move away she told me that she didn’t plan to, because if everyone leaves then who will bring the country forward into a promising future?

As Brexit looms in the U.K. the future of British farming has seemed a rather gloomy subject. Uncertainty is all I am met with whenever I ask farmers how they see the future playing out; from the falling rates of seasonal workers coming to work on British farms to the lack of clarity when it comes to future subsidies and support. Yet, I have recently realised that if young people lack any desire to support British food and farming in future then we have little hope. My friend’s desire to remain in South Africa, despite its issues, has always inspired me; we all want to change the world but maybe the biggest step to achieving that is starting at home.

While I am aware that the majority of people reading this may not share my passion for growing food, I believe that our collective interest in our local food system matters. From increasing our support of local farmers, even in small ways, to demanding more transparency from our politicians, local supermarkets and the industry as a whole, we can create a future for British food beyond Brexit that is positive and sustainable.

Farming is a fast-moving, innovative business. From finding solutions to growing food more sustainably to figuring out how we are going to feed our growing world population, farmers are at the forefront of political, social and economic innovation. As a young British person with the desire to enter into this turbulent business, I find myself excited about the possibilities that lie ahead for the future of food. Brexit is one among many fears looming in the British conscience, but with great change comes the possibility to create new, innovative ways to inspire people about the food that they grow and eat. Whether you’re a producer or consumer, I believe that’s a conversation we should all be a part of.

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[1] https://businesstech.co.za/news/government/131802/this-is-who-is-emigrating-from-south-africa-and-where-they-are-going/

How Growing Food Can Improve Your Mental Health

Every Thursday morning I used to walk down a path in the middle of a field. The path was laid out with wood chip and soil. To my left a labyrinth of large courgette and squash leaves sheltered the vegetables hiding beneath them; to my right an array of herbs grew, resembling a mini forest. My mood instantly changed when I set foot on this path. Walking through the wooden gate that led to the path, I felt instantly at ease; at home amongst the compost and non-judgemental eyes of well-watered vegetables.

The path led me to a shed filled with familiar faces, all here seeking the same space that I was seeking. A place where their mind could let go and focus on something entirely different. From just in front of the shed you could see the entire skyline of London, from the Shard to the BT tower. It only took me over an hour to get there from Brixton, but it felt like another world entirely. You would rarely see people using their phones, the air actually felt fresh and instead of high-rise buildings you were surrounded by rows of salad leaves, Polytunnels and a tractor.

What image does the idea of city life evoke for you? Buses, crowds of people, offices maybe. For those of us that live in busy cities like London, it can be very hard to switch off and relax. Our brains are in a constant cycle of deadlines, meetings and general life admin that seems harder to achieve when you live in this cacophony of constant motion. We have little insight into how our lives are ruled by technology; we wonder why we find it hard to sleep at night, even though our brains are constantly stimulated.

Until I discovered a place where my mind could rest I had little understanding of how much it needed to do just that. As a society, we have a habit of downplaying the importance of self-care in favour of a ‘get it done’ attitude - as if there isn’t room to stop for a few hours and allow your mind to switch tack, to focus on something that has nothing to do with your work or reaching a goal set by your superiors.

A recent study published by Preventative Medicine Reports suggested that less time spent in nature “results in a number of health and behavioural problems, which in sum can constitute a ‘nature-deficit disorder.’” We all know that being in nature can boost our mood and offers many medical benefits, including increased vitamin D production from exposure to the sun and the release of serotonin stimulated by physical activity, the ‘happy chemical’. But what growing food on a farm or an allotment has, as opposed to simply walking alone in nature, is being part of a community. Not only can you do an activity that gets you outside, gets your hands dirty and connects you with the earth, but you can also simultaneously be part of a like-minded community while doing it. As a recent study on the health benefits of urban allotment growing concluded, “regular gardening on allotment sites is associated with improved physical, psychological and social health.”

In England, there is increasing awareness of the importance of getting outdoors. The number of urban food-growing projects is steadily rising and people seem more aware of the importance of mental health and self-care, and their relation to nature. But there is still a record-number of young people in Britain taking anti-depressants, and preventative measures like gardening or yoga need to be taken far more seriously. Growing food not only has the power to improve mental health but also has the power to unite communities and empower people to make their own choices when it comes to their food. Choices that, in turn, could have a profound effect on how they feel in mind, body and spirit.