Writing on a stunningly sunny October day which feels like a gift from summer, I’m filled with hope: hope for an autumn and winter less brutal than our last was; hope that we can turn our world around and make it better even as wars flare and the climate threatens; but most importantly, hope for what lies ahead, because we must be hopeful if we want change, and we must keep hope in our minds.
There are many challenges facing us, most obviously climate change. It has arrived alongside a number of other difficulties. Pretty much every farmer I know is struggling to meet their bottom line and it’s hard to keep your head above water. We live in a country with the sixth biggest economy in the world, yet one in five people live in poverty. Interest rates may be coming down but there is still a long way to go before the crisis ends. Thankfully, we’ve had a relatively mild September and October despite the wind and weather and that’s been a relief, but the forecast going forward into late autumn and winter looks like last year – wet, wild and windy. Will everything be late again? Will it rain for another nine months? I so hope not.
However, to remind us how important hope is, this year we have a group of young people who will be coming along to the WRFFC to share their thoughts, ideas and hopes for the future of food and farming in Wales. They are part of a project called Farms for City Children, originally set up by the writer Michael Morpurgo, to bring children and young people on to farms for a residential experience in what it’s like to farm – hands-on harvesting vegetables and handling farm animals, eating produce directly off the farm at the end of the day. It’s an opportunity for them to feed their well-being, as well as reconnecting with nature.
We’re really pleased to have scored some excellent Guest Speakers for the WRFFC this year (though we’ve been very lucky every year!). Derek Walker, the Future Generations Commissioner, will be speaking about his unique position, a first in the world to prioritise the Well-being of Future Generations. His presence at the Conference foregrounds the importance of sustainability in a degraded world and especially in relation to the impact of unsustainable food on us and our planet as a whole.
Following Walker, on the second day of the conference, is Denise Bentley. Denise started the First Love Foundation in 2010 to tackle social injustice, poverty and deprivation through a range of projects, of which the first was to set-up a foodbank in Tower Hamlets, one of the most deprived areas of London. However, she soon realised that foodbanks are mere sticking plasters trying to cover much deeper problems. She is a champion of healthy, fresh, affordable food for all, but sees that UK-wide systemic change is needed to realise this. Both bring their experiences and perspectives on what is needed to make a fair and sustainable food and farming system.
(C) HUW JOHN
Denise Bentley, founder and CEO, First Love
And, of course, the Wales Real Food and Farming Conference will offer what we all need, but can only be got by being together – food for thought, good conversations, a chance to see all those people you haven’t seen since the last conference, a step away from the farm for a day or two days even, an invitation to think deeply about what’s happening in farming, in food and in the world.
Alicia Miller
WRFFC team member
Alicia’s involvement in the WRFFC is supported by the Sustainable Food Trust.
Rowan berries picture: Jane Ricketts Hein
CGFFfC - WRFFC 