News Archive

Tim Lang, Professor of Food Policy at City University has added his name to a roll call of top names at a landmark event that will debate the future of the community food sector.Professor Tim Lang, the UK’s leading expert on Food Policy, will join experts at Making Local Food Our Future, a free to attend landmark conference where 500 people are expected to debate and discuss the future of the community food movement. He joins Peter Couchman, Chief Executive of Plunkett Foundation, Ed Mayo, Secretary General of Co-operatives UK and Peter Wanless, Big Lottery Fund’s Chief Executive at what...

Jennifer Smith, Head of Programme Management for Making Local Food Work, wishes you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!“2011 has been yet another fantastic year for Making Local Food Work.  I’d like to say a massive thank you to all staff, consultants, mentors and associates who have shared their energy and expertise to support so many community food enterprises.  Through our joint work we have now supported 1,312 groups---this is double our original target.  “For me, I’m daily amazed at the accomplishments of so many of the local community enterprises we’ve had the opportunity to support.  In the...

A new guide for anyone involved in the creation of an enterprise that will be owned by, run by, and supported by the community in which it operates has been published.The guide – Simply Start Up – was written by Co-operatives UK and Plunkett Foundation as part of the Making Local Food Work programme and uses community food enterprises as examples of what is possible through co-operation, although the guidance applies to a vast range of community enterprises, from taking over a local shop, starting a community-owned and run newspaper or cinema, to building a community-owned windfarm. Providing an easy...

Two initiatives to have been supported by Making Local Food Work have been crowned winners in top national food awards, and three others receiving recognition. Brockweir and Hewelsfied Village Shop and The True Food Co-operative in Berkshire have been named Best Local Food Retailer and Best Retail Initiative respectively in BBC Radio 4’s Food and Farming Awards. The Awards, which took place yesterday at a private ceremony and will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 tomorrow, Friday 25th November, celebrate the people and organisations behind the best of British food, and all entries are nominated by BBC audiences. The winners...

A new West Cornwall local food directory has been launched that will boost sales for local food producers across the region.The directory was launched at a special event organised by Transition Helston and Penwith Food Groups. It saw around 50 local food producers and businesses in attendance to join the directory and add their voice to how it should be promoted to the wider community. The directory is available free online  – www.westcornwallfood.org.uk – and is designed to be a brand new marketing tool that will help local producers better connect with their community and potential customers. Speaking at the...

As students across the country descend on university campuses this week, Making Local Food Work has launched a campaign to increase students’ access to local, healthy food. The campaign, launched last week, sees information packs being rolled out to universities across the country to inspire and encourage students to take advantage of the enterprising projects already happening in their student communities. Consisting of a mini-guide to getting involved in a growing project, pre-loaded USB sticks with factsheets, useful tips, resources, websites and marketing materials, the campaign hopes to increase awareness of the benefits of local food among the student community.The...

Westminster event highlights vital contribution of Community Food Enterprises (CFEs) in delivering and shaping government agendasAn event was held last week to highlight the key role community food enterprises play in delivering and shaping government policy.The event, organised by rural communities charity Plunkett Foundation and held at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), brought together community food enterprises from the South West to showcase the vital contribution they make to the food sector to Defra ministers and employees. June and Robin Small of Taunton Farmers' Market. Also present at the event were Plunkett Foundation’s partner organisations Social Enterprise UK, Co-operatives...

Event takes Colne Valley a step closer to self-sufficiency On Monday 12th September, an event was held that saw business, community and public sector organisations in the Colne Valley declare independence from global and industrial foods.The event, organised by a group of four local organisations, invited local enterprises to join with them in signing a manifesto of independence from the corporate and global food system. Taking place during Colne Valley Food Festival, it will see representatives of key businesses, shops, community organisations, restaurants, schools, politicians and the local authority all in attendance.Attendees at the event. The last nine months has...

A national series of free events has been launched for already trading community food enterprises to give them access to expert financial and marketing training to help ensure they are sustainable and successful businesses. As part of the specialist enterprise support offered by the Plunkett Foundation through its Making Local Food Work programme, the series of 8 events will take place across the country to encourage the maximum number of enterprises to take advantage of the free support.Written and presented by Simon Michaels of F3 and Maurice McCartney of Fresh Management Solutions, the day-long workshops are split into two sessions:Morning...

Village SOS Active campaign will see national advice line & expert support rolled out to rural communitiesA new campaign is set to be launched to help people in rural areas reverse the trend of decline by helping them set up and run community enterprises. Village SOS Active is a campaign by the Big Lottery Fund (www.biglotteryfund.org.uk) which is being delivered with rural communities charity the Plunkett Foundation, in partnership with Co-operatives UK, Locality, and Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE). It will be launched on 10th August 2011 as part of the BBC’s new six-part series, Village SOS. The...