News Archive

Making Local Food Work partners Sustain have been busy creating a series of food co-op and buying group fact sheets in partnership with the Soil Association, which will be available to download from their website very soon and also in printed format. These are focussing on different settings for food co-ops including universities, schools, workplaces, children's centres and more. If you are interested in getting a copy of any of these please let us know foodcoops@sustainweb.org We have also been updating the food co-ops finder database to make it easier for you to add a new food co-op or update your entry....

Community food enterprises can play a role in helping to tackle the challenge of climate change through empowering local people and communities to take action.  This is the main message from a new report launched this week [Wednesday 5th May] at a major national conference in Manchester.The report ‘Local food and climate change – the role of community food enterprises’ identified the potential for communities on a local level across England to take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in every part of the food chain, including transport.Peter Couchman, Director of Making Local Food Work and Chief Executive of the...

BOOKINGS NOW OPEN!! DOWNLOAD BOOKING FORM (pdf) (Word doc)5th May 2010Friends Meeting House, ManchesterOverviewMaking Local Food Work for People and Planet is the essential national conference for all those interested in community food enterprises.  This event, held in Manchester for the first time, will explore how community food enterprises benefit both people and planet.Community food enterprises come in many different forms from farmers’ markets to community-owned shops and Community Supported Agriculture enterprises.  What is the role and potential for such enterprises in making local food work for people and planet?The event is the third in a series of conference hosted...

HOLD THE DATE! 5th May 2010Friends Meeting House, ManchesterOverviewMaking Local Food Work for People and Planet is the essential national conference for all those interested in community food enterprises.  This event, held in Manchester for the first time, will explore how community food enterprises benefit both people and planet.Community food enterprises come in many different forms from farmers’ markets to community-owned shops and Community Supported Agriculture enterprises.  What is the role and potential for such enterprises in making local food work for people and planet?The event is the third in a series of conference hosted by Making Local Food Work, a...

The Government’s Food 2030 report needs to go a step further by engaging communities in food production and food security according to Making Local Food Work, a partnership of organisations which help communities to take ownership of their food and where it comes from.Peter Couchman, Chief Executive of the Plunkett Foundation which leads the Making Local Food Work partnership said; “While we welcome this as the first major food report in sixty years, we feel that the vision set out in the report does not reflect the change in the relationships that consumers increasingly want to have with the food...

The Enterprise Support project are pleased to announce support for the exciting  'Peoples Supermarket' based in London. Led by charismatic chef and restaurant owner Arthur Potts Dawson, The Peoples Supermarket, currently in planning, aims to change the way we shop and buy food. This is a supermarket that is run by the people, for the people, selling the best food at the lowest possible prices.Based on a tried and tested model from The United States, this community owned supermarket will be staffed largely by volunteer members, who will enjoy discounted shopping in return for a few hours work each month. Enterprise Support consultant...

The Enteprise Support project have produced a financial management training manual for community shop workers. A very comprehensive document that can stand alone as a tutorial or be used in conjunction with an associated training course. The manual can downloaded free from the Social Business Toolbox.If someone from your shop is interested in taking part in a training course, then please get in touch with Nicole Hamilton at Plunkett. nicole.hamilton@plunkett.co.uk Tel 01993 814383.   

Today (16th October) is World Food Day organised by the Food and Agriculture Orgaization of the United Nations (FAO).Below is some information from the FAO website.Achieving Food Security in Times of CrisisAt a time when the global economic crisis dominates the news, the world needs to be reminded that not everyone works in offices and factories. The crisis is stalking the small-scale farms and rural areas of the world, where 70 percent of the world's hungry live and work. With an estimated increase of 105 million hungry people in 2009, there are now 1.02 billion malnourished people in the world, meaning that...

The Walton Lea Project, a social enterprise which has been supported by the Enterprise Support project of Making Local Food Work received a visit from the Secret Millionaire a few weeks ago.  On the programme broadcast today (14th October), the Walton Lea Project received £20,000 from the Secret Millionaire to help develop their work.The Walton Lea Project (WLP) was established in 1998 to provide supported employment, training and life chance for adults with learning difficulties. The project is based near Warrington within the setting of a Victorian walled garden where plants and fruit and vegetables are grown and sold to...

Sustain's Local Action on Food Network and The Women's Environmental Network (WEN) are jointly organising this event for community food groups and individuals from across the country that are facing challenges in obtaining land for sustainable food production. This event will allow attendees to share skills and experience on how, through policy and practice, access to land can be improved across the UK.Sustain are a partner of Making Local Food Work. The day will include:Talks from experts and keynote speaker Rosie Boycott, chair of the London Food Board.Lunch and an exclusive tour of the RISC edible roof gardenAn afternoon programme of issue...