Local food has the power to reinvigorate communities, strengthen local economies, as well as provide fresher, healthy food to our cities, towns and villages in more climate and nature friendly ways. It can also help us become more resilient at a time where climate and politics have a significant impact on our access to food. However, there are challenges standing in the way to increasing the amount of food we produce and consume locally, and we want to explore how to overcome some of these obstacles.
As part of a national project to grow the local, sustainable food sector across the UK and building on existing work from the Greater Brighton Economic Board, Good Food East Sussex and the Hampshire Food Alliance, the Arun & Chichester Food Partnership are bringing together relevant stakeholders to pilot a regional approach working towards a plan to scale-up the local food sector and maximise its positive impacts across the wider Sussex and Hampshire South Downs region.
The Arun & Chichester Food Partnership are holding an event for people and organisations involved in and interested in the food system focussing on the challenges and obstacles to increasing the market for local agroecological food, and how we can work together to address this on a regional level. This event will be of particular interest for farmers, producers, buyers, retailers and local government.
We are pleased to be able to confirm our five expert speakers for the day who will be:
- Sophie Robinson, Land Use Plus Project Manager, Brighton & Hove Food Partnership: Sussex Grazed and local meat.
- Angela Blair – Food Policy Coordinator, Brighton & Hove City Council: Food economy resilience and the Greater Brighton Food Plan.
- Garry Mortimer-Cook – Enterprise Manager, Horsham District Council: How the council supports local food enterprise with Sussex Six.
- Jools Lawton – Brighton CSA – Fork and Dig It CIC: Growing with and for the local community.
- Fred Duncannon – Owner of Stansted Park Farm Shop and co-founder of The South Downs Food Festival.
