ellied elL O N D O N F O O D L I N K ’ S

Q U A R T E R L Y N E W S L E T T E R

J ELondon Food Link aims to helpproducers, consumers andretailers make a positive choicefor sustainable, local food. Thismeans better access toaffordable, high quality andseasonal food, shorter supplychains and campaigning forpolicies which promote a thrivinglocal food economy and culture.

London Food Link intends to:establish a local foodnetwork for London promote a sustainable localfood economysupport new and existingfood projectsadvise local and regionalauthorities on supportingthe growth of a local foodsector in Londoncelebrate London’s foodculture

Project Officer: Ben ReynoldsProject Officer: Zeenat AnjariHospital Food Project: Emma HockridgeLondon Food Strategy:Jake Elster-JonesLondon Food Strategy: Alice Rose Elliott

LONDON FOOD LINK

94 WHITE LION STREET, LONDON, N1 9PFTEL: 020 7837 1228 FAX: 020 7837 1141

EMAIL: ben@sustainweb.orgWEB: www.londonfoodlink.org

S u s t a i n : t h e a l l i a n c e f o r b e t t e r f o o d a n d f a r m i n g

Wriggler by

Stephen Turner

The

W I N T E R 2 0 0 6 N O 1 2

The pilot of the hospital food project is drawing to a closeand early indications from the independent evaluations ofthe health and economic effects of the project are verypositive.

No health changes would beexpected from such a shortproject, but there have beenimprovements in knowledgeabout and support for morehealthy and sustainable food.Some sustainable foodsuppliers in London and theSouth East have increased theirbusinesses, and - withoutincreasing hospital food budgets - the project has improved food qualityand variety, service levels, and staff and customer satisfaction.

One hospital exceeded the project target of 10% and now spends over14% of their budget on local and/or organic food. Another hospital metthe target, one is making encouraging progress, and only one failed tomake any changes at all, due to a number of specific difficulties.

The project has drawn on the expertise of a large network and acted as a"dating agency", finding suitable suppliers of sustainable food to match the

particular needs of each hospital, and solving problems (includingtransport, distribution andcontinuity of supply) as and when

they arose. New supplies arranged bythe project included apples, beef, eggs,milk and a range of vegetables.

Importantly, the project also undertooka wide range of training events andpromotional activities - such as farmvisits and celebratory food events - to"sell" the idea to everyone involved,including not only the catering team butalso patients, their visitors, and hospitalstaff. continued on page 7

Getting more sustainable food intoLondon's hospitals - it can be done andit is worth it!

Wriggle inside for...

Food Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Around Town. . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4

Bulletin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6

Hospital Food Project . . . . . . . . 7

Allotment Slot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Multicultural Food Project . . . . 11

Diary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

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So we've taken the plunge and gone for an editorial piece.We, at LFL, felt there is simply too much going on that weneeded some way of bringing it all together. So theMayor's strategy steamrollers ahead, with the consultationhaving finished in December (thanks to Jake and Alice), andsoon we should be seeing action on some of the great ideaswithin it. (see right). Most of you will have met Zeenat bynow, our 'new' member of staff focusing in on issues facingmulticultural food businesses (see p11). She highlighted thefood needs of London’s ethnic communities in a House ofLords seminar discussing the integration of race into theenvironmental agenda. The LFL stall at the LondonDevelopment Agency’s Inspiring Innovation event on the13th December, attracted attention from companies wishingto enter the new niche market of ethnic organic food. We‘llsee a preliminary report on her findings by the next issue.We’re pleased to announce that we have received fundingto take this work forward from the Environmental ActionFund, run by Defra, and Objective 2 funding from theEuropean Union.

We're also reaching the end of our hospital pilot and havejust released an interim report to coincide with a photoexhibition on this work (see p1). The exhibition will be atthe Royal Brompton hospital in early 2006. There's moreinformation on this, plus copies of the report atwww.sustainweb.org. The final report on this project is duein spring 2006.

Despite all these major pieces of work it's the little seedsthat are emerging that are exciting me right now. We'reworking with a restaurant in Kings Cross to get in foodproduced solely within the M25 (see p11). Through thisI've managed to find two good local red wines (admittedlyjust beyond the M25). We're looking for other restaurantsand cafés that are interested in sourcing more local food, soget in touch if you fit this bill. Linking in with this, we seemto be inches, rather than miles, from establishing a linkbetween the community food projects of South and EastLondon and local farmers (their work not ours). Finally,please fill in the member's questionnaire inserted and lookout for an email about an exciting members' social we'reorganising for Spring to talk about what you want us to bedoing this year.

Ben Reynolds

LFL finds fertile ground

The consultation on Better Foodfor London: the Mayor's draftfood strategy has come to aclose. By January, London FoodLink, which has been runningthe consultation, will haveprocessed the responses and begiving recommendations to theLondon Development Agencyand the Mayor's team. Thisrecommendation report will bemade public by Spring 2006 andwill explain what we have beendoing throughout theconsultation period. To find outmore about some of thehighlights, go to page 8.

Mayor's foodstrategy one stepcloser to completion

SOUTH

London's Fourth Potato FairLondon's Charity Potato and SeedExchange Fair will take place for thefourth successive year on Sunday 22ndJanuary at Waverley School in London.The fair offers over 85 differentvarieties of seed potatoes by the tuber,and a seed exchange of flowers, fruit,and vegetables. Expert advice on allaspects of gardening will also beavailable free. All profits from the fairwill go to the Hope and Homes forChildren charity. For more informationcontact Lindsay Wright at 077 623 812or visit the website:www.potatofair05.com

Café Orange and the Skills CenterCarr-Gomm is a national charityoffering support and housing servicesto over 2,000 vulnerable people everyyear. Café Orange, set up as part ofCarr-Gomm, provides food andrefreshments as well as teachingvaluable catering skills. Through CaféOrange, hundreds of Carr-Gommtenants and service users have gainedcertificates and qualifications. The Caférecently received funding fromJobcentre Plus, allowing them to offermore support to people with specialneeds who want to develop their skills.For more information emailIsobel.mdudu@carr-gomm.org.uk orcall tel. 020 7732 8188.

EAST

Green Sprout Café Green Sprout Café is a new communitycafé run by Community Food Enterpriseand located in Grassroots, the second oftwo community resource centresopened by West Ham and PlaistowNew Deal for Communities (NDC).Lord Bach, the Minister for SustainableFarming and Food in the Departmentfor Environment, Food, and RuralAffairs recently spent the day withCommunity Food Enterprise and helpedofficially open the Green Sprout Café.For more information about the Com-munity Food Enterprise, please contactEric Samuel, the Chief Executive Officerat 020 7511 9014 or emaileric@community-food-enterprise.org.uk

5-A-DAY East London -Working with RetailersThe 5-a-day East London programmeofficially ended in August 2005.Hailed a success across East London, anumber of food initiatives andprogrammes were developed andsustained through a strong networkacross the three boroughs of City &Hackney, Newham, and TowerHamlets. As part of the programmefunding was given to Newham FoodAccess Partnership (NFAP) to workwith local retailers looking at foodaccess problems and what retailersmight be able to do to make it easierfor people on low incomes to eatmore fruit and vegetables.

Semi-structured interviews with 20stores selling fruit and vegetables werecarried out in two areas of Newham inJuly. The results showed knowledgewas patchy about the food access worktaking place in the surroundingneighbourhood and, disappointingly,only six stores recognised the 5-a-daylogo. More encouraging was the factthat many retailers showed an interestin selling more fruit and vegetables. Forfurther information on the 5-a-dayproject across East London, contactSima Chaudhury on 0207 6834038,email sima.chaudhury@chpct.nhs.uk.For more on 5-a-day see page 10.

CENTRAL

What's cooking in SW1 this winter?A Moveable Feast (AMF), southWestminster's Healthy Living Centre, isrunning its second Cook & Eatprogramme this winter. AMF is a fiveyear partnership project, funded by theBig Lottery, which aims to improve thequality of life for the local Arabic andBangladeshi communities.

Cook & Eat brings together Arabic andBangladeshi women in a friendly andsupportive environment to learnhealthy cooking techniques. The groupis very practical, with a variety ofhealthy halal meals being prepared bythe participants each week. The groupis led by AMF's Community Dieticianand, as well as teaching healthycooking techniques, information is alsoprovided on nutrition, food hygieneand budgeting.

After the food is prepared, the womensample and discuss all the recipes andplan recipes for the following week.Fatima Choaibi, one of the participants,said "I enjoyed cooking as a group,trying recipes I wouldn't normally havetried." The group also offers thewomen a great way to meet newpeople.

Cook & Eat lasts for six weeks, offersArabic and Bengali interpreters and acrèche, and is free. For moreinformation about contact LouiseBeckingsale - Community Dietican on020 7222 0303.

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Around Town

A Moveable Feast in SW1

London Food Link would liketo thank the following forhelp in the last few months:Charlotte Corke, ClareDavidson, Ida Fabrizio,Atoho Jakhalu, NikkiPackham, Neisha Pulling,Borja Serrador Cespedes,Taryn Taddeo, SusyThompson.

WEST

Allotment21 - Refugee Allotment ProjectAllotment21 provides free allotmentplots for refugees in HillingdonBorough. It is supported byLondon21 Sustainability Network,working with black and minorityethnic groups to improve theenvironment and communitywellbeing. Members of the projectwork on their plots, growing theirproduce with fellow members, withthe help of free allotments, tools andseeds. In the future, it is hoped thatthe refugees will gain in confidenceand will be able to run their allotmentindependently.

The project aims to develop positivesocial recognition of those withrefugee status in this country. It alsoaims to provide peace of mind forrefugees by providing a supportiveand therapeutic environment formeeting fellow refugees. Finally, theproject will also help to regenerate thefallow allotments at Nursery Lane,thereby improving the environment.For more information contact SamuelK. Stanley (Project Coordinator) at07986 563508 or by email:hs03sks@brunel.ac.uk.

Stir Fry DayEaling PCT ran two Stir-Fry Day eventsin their canteen and a local primaryschool on 30th September.Schoolchildren, community groups,cooking classes, Primary Care Trusts,workplaces, supermarkets andcommunities all across England, alltook part in similar events toencourage people to eat more fruitand vegetables. For more informationabout what happened in your area seewww.foodandhealth. gov.uk/stirfrydayor you can contact Sonia Sharma 5-A-Day Co-coordinator on 0208-893-0379 or email sonia.sharma@ealingpct.nhs.uk. For more on 5-A-day see page 10.

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AROUND TOWN

Member Feature: Organiclea

What does Organiclea do?Organiclea is a local food growingproject which aims to promotelocally grown, pesticide free, freshproduce for those who usually don'thave access to such food. With anacre of allotment land in Chingfordand Waltham Forest, we grow arange of organic vegetables, fruit andherbs which is shared amongstvolunteers and sold at affordableprices to local people. We host opendays for those wishing to see theproject and get involved, and runtraining sessions for those wanting togrow their own food.

When was set it up? Set up in 2001, Organiclea wasinspired by the rich food growingheritage of the Lea Valley, onceknown as the bread basket ofLondon.

Who participates in the scheme? The majority of work on site is doneby volunteers, and anyone iswelcome to open days. Organicleahas no full-time paid staff.

What are examples of recent work?One of Organiclea's recent successstories was the 'scrumping scheme'.We realised that a lot of the biggerand older houses in Walthamstowhave fruit trees in the garden but thatthe fruit often ends up rotting on thetree or falling to the ground. Wedecided to try and make better useof this local food by offering tocollect the unwanted fruit anddistribute the surplus locally throughfood and nutrition clubs andcommunity market stalls.

What did the scrumping project teach you?We learnt about storage - appleswere much easier than pears, butthere was a huge difference between

varieties, with some keeping muchlonger than others. At one point wewere certainly in danger of living upto our publicity strapline 'moreapples and pears than you canhandle?'. But borrowing the EastLondon Organic Gardeners' applepress for a local food festival was afantastic way to use lots of applesquickly - it produced great juice andalso provided a lot of compost wastethat could go back into the soil.

What are next steps/projects? We plan to expand the scrumpingproject for a higher yield next year -and we've started to create an applemap documenting all the varietieswhich are growing in the borough.We are also doing more training,both on site and working withcommunity organisations, to shareskills and experiences about growingfood in urban environments.

Register your tree for picking in 2006at organiclea@yahoo.co.uk or tel 020 8374 1609

Trading PlacesLondon Food have released a reportexamining the contribution that streetmarkets and farmers' markets inLondon make to thier local economies,their local communities and to Londonas a whole. The study, done by theNew Economics Foundation, isavailable at http://www.lda.gov.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.1342. Moreinformation on the other reports thatLondon Food have released recentlycan be found on p8.

BBC Radio 4 Food & FarmingAwards 2005At a ceremony in November, in thecentre of Birmingham, the Judges'Special Award in the BBC Radio 4 Foodand Farming Awards was given toSustain: the alliance for better foodand farming. The award celebratedSustain's 20th anniversary, and thejudges wanted to acknowledge ourmany achievements. Judge SheilaDillon said: "It was Sustain's work intofood that made it possible to startthinking about what to do, and whatwas wrong with school dinners."

National Salt Awareness Week 2006Consensus Action on Salt and Healthwill be holding its 7th National Salt

Awareness Week from 29 January - 4February 2006. The main theme forthe week will be ethnic groups whoare particularly sensitive to the effectsof salt. The African Caribbeanpopulation, for example, are morelikely to suffer from high bloodpressure and so are at higher risk ofgetting strokes, heart disease andkidney disease than the general UKpopulation. Health professionalsthroughout the country will beencouraged to put on their owndisplay or event. To order materialsplease go to www.actiononsalt.org.uk.

National Training ProgrammeSemester 2 - February throughMay 2006Establishing this national trainingprogramme was one of the firstobjectives of Community FoodEnterprise Ltd. Consisting of 28sessions comprising of seven unitsspread over four months theprogramme is open to anyone who hasinterest in community food work andthinks the programme will benefitthem. The second semester runs fromFebruary to May 2006 and, whenapplying, people can select fromamong the following units:

Starting and developing acommunity food initiative;

Global, national and local food andhealth initiatives; Food poverty, health andcommunity development; Food and health, food choice andtrends; Working in/managing a food socialenterprise; Growing vegetables and herbs; Healthy, tasty and quick cooking.

All applicants are expected to haveliteracy and numeracy skills equivalentto Entry Level 3 and the prices of unitsrange from £250-£310. Theprogramme is accredited by theNational Open College Network(NOCN) and when a unit is successfullycompleted, the participant will receivea certificate and credit transcript. Formore information about theprogramme contact Kate Lucas,National Training Programme Manager,telephone: 020 7511 9014 or emailher at kate@community-food-enterprise.org.uk

Feeding Young Imaginations:Bridging the nutrition gap forchildren under fiveThursday 26th January 2006, OneBirdcage Walk, London.

This one-day conference aims to bridgethe gap innutritional information andresources for those caring for childrenin early years settings. It will focusspecifically on the provision of healthymeals to children under five. It willhighlight the need to work closely withparents and early years’ professionals,food suppliers and health visitors todemonstrate positive examples ofexisting programmes and initiatives.The conference will also provide thebest tools for parents and early yearsprofessionals aiming to improve mealsat home and in settings. For furtherinformation contact Gemma Suter on020 7324 4363 or e-mail gemma.suter@neilstewartassociates.co.uk

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Bulletin

Jeanette Longfield, co-ordinator of Sustain, collecting the BBC award.

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Funding Opportunities

CIB WebsiteThe Charities Information Bureau (CIB) website has been developed tooffer help and information for people in the voluntary sector seekingfunding. This website has now been revamped to make it easier to useand find what you need. Take a look at www.cibfunding.org.uk for moreinformation.

Lottery to plough £234m into revamping local environmentsThe Big Lottery Fund is calling on organisations to go the extra greenmile and help channel up to £234 million in lottery good cause fundingto groups wanting to improve their local environment. Changing Spacesis the new Big Lottery Fund programme that encourages communitiesacross England to develop their local environment and realise thepotential of community spaces.

Funding from the Changing Spaces scheme will be available next yearand the Big Lottery Fund will ensure that the best projects are identifiedand supported by working with organisations in the public, private andvoluntary sectors. Regularly updated information on the Big LotteryFund's new programmes is available at www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Changing diets, changing mindsFor the past year, Sustain andthe Mental Health Foundationhave been working together ona project about the connectionbetween food and mentalhealth. The first results of thiswork will be two reports, duefor release on 16 January,which explore the evidencelinking what we eat to how we

feel and behave - and how changes to the food systemmay be implicated in rising levels of mental ill health.

In summary, significant changes in the way food isproduced and manufactured, and the way we eat, havenot only reduced the amounts of essential fats, vitaminsand minerals we consume, but have also upset thebalance of nutrients in our food (for example reducingpeople's intake of omega-3 fatty acids and increasingintake of omega-6 fatty acids). At the same time, newsubstances, such as pesticides, additives and trans fatshave been introduced into our diets. These dietarychanges may be leading to increasing mental healthproblems, including depression, schizophrenia, attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder, and Alzheimer's disease.

Both reports will be released 16 January and will beavailable on the Sustain and the Mental HealthFoundation websites. If you have any questions about theproject, contact Courtney Van de Weyer at Sustain on 0207837 1228 or at courtney@sustainweb.org.

Like shooting fish in a barrelA new Sustain report outlines the health pros and cons ofeating fish, summarises the environmental damage causedby both industrial fishing and fish farming, and lays barethe contradictions in government policy at both UK andEU level.

The report concludes with aunique consumer fish guide, basedon seven authoritative sources sothat consumers don’t have tochoose between fish that ishealthy OR sustainable (orneither), but can choose both.Unfortunately, many fish andseafood choices are off the menu,as stocks are dangerously low, arecaught unsustainably, and/or are

contaminated. Visit www.sustainweb.org/publications/downloads/shooting_fish.pdf for the full report.

BULLETIN

Eels! European Commission proposesseasonal closure of eel fishing

A proposal tabled by the EuropeanCommission this week will be the firststep towards the recovery of theEuropean eel stock which is highlydepleted. Under this proposal,member states would set up nationalplans to ensure that 40% of the levelof adult eels would migrate from therivers in their territories, and escapeto the sea to spawn. Until such plansare in place, the Commissionproposes to ban eel fishing from thefirst to the 15th of every month. Visithttp://www.europe.org.uk/info/documents/935.htm for moreinformation.

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News that London will host the 2012 Olympics wasgreeted with joy by Mayor Ken Livingstone and thousandsof Londoners. But adapting the city for such purposescould threaten the very qualities which make Londonunique, unless the development is done sensitively. Underthreat is an historic 100 year old allotment site inHackney run by the Manor Gardening AllotmentAssociation, with a large ethnic community involvement,at the south end of the Lower Lea Valley. Julie Sumner isthe site's excellent representative.

It would be terrific if, as part of the Mayor's Food Strategy,allotments could be involved in feeding the Olympiancompetitors and visitors. Julie's allotments, for example,could "adopt" the Olympic team of one of the countriesrepresented by the communities in Hackney. Some of the

food provided for the Olympic team could come from theallotment, reflecting not only the cuisine of that countrybut also the best in freshness, flavour and quality. What anadvert that would be for the allotment movement!

Once the fanfare is over and the Olympics havehappened, Londoners will still be here. It'svital that our open spaces and allotments arestill here too, and not bulldozed away. TheMayor has said that he wants these OlympicGames to be one of the greenest ever held.Making sure the food is sustainablewould be a fantastic way to show thathe means what he says.

Michael Wale

Allotment Slot

Getting more sustainable food into London's hospitals continued from page 1

The Hospital Food Project - run over two years bySustain's London Food Link project in partnership withthe Soil Association - aimed to increase the proportion ofsustainable food in four London hospitals to 10% of theirroutine catering. The hospitals were:

Ealing GeneralRoyal Bethlem, Beckenham and LambethRoyal Brompton, KensingtonSt. George's, Tooting

They ranged in size (250 to 1100 beds), type (generaland specialist), London location and, of course, type ofcatering operation.

Mike Brompton, Catering Manager of the RoyalBrompton Hospital, spoke of the reason for hisinvolvement in the project, “We want to provide the bestfresh foods that we can for patients - as they get the bestin medicine, so too should they get the best in food. Wewant to show that hospital food can be good.”

What needs to be done?A number of valuable lessons were learned by theproject, which led to the following recommendations toGovernment:

Funding is needed for the kind of practical help thisproject offered. This funding will not be neededindefinitely. Once potential purchasers and suppliershave been "matched" and any practical problemsironed out, the systems should continue to work. Conflicting policy signals need to be tackled. It is nothelpful on the one hand to extol the virtues ofsustainable food in the public sector, and on the otherinsist on budget cuts. While sustainable food is notinevitably more expensive, it will certainly not becheaper.All hospitals should have the equipment and staff tobe able to cook food from scratch. Without thesefacilities there is no flexibility to allow for the changesneeded gradually to increase the proportion ofsustainable food.Investment is needed to ensure that a wide variety ofsustainable food is available everywhere in thecountry, and that the transport and distributioninfrastructure is adequate. Vigorous and imaginative marketing is needed tosupport the efforts of those who are alreadypromoting more sustainable food in hospitals, and toconvince more people to engage in this vital task.

The project was funded by the King’s fund and Defra.Download the interim project report fromwww.sustainweb.org/pdf/hfp_lowres.pdf and contactEmma Hockridge on emma@sustainweb.org for moreinformation.

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Between September and December, theLondon Food Link team has beenfrenetically attending meetings, runningevents and making their presence feltall over London to spread the word(and get feedback) on the Mayor's 10year draft food strategy. One particularhighlight was the conference SchoolFood in London at the end ofNovember. It included high qualitypresentations from Suzi Leather, chair ofthe new School Food Trust, andJeanette Orrey, former dinner ladyturned award winner, and policyadviser to the Soil Association. Thisevent also saw the launch of our reporton school food (see box right).

Other consultation events we organisedincluded Planning London's Food,Tackling food waste in London (wherewe met 'freegan' Tristram, who you canread more about in the box on page 9)and London's Food Infrastructure,which saw heated debate over the ideaof a sustainable food centre or 'hub' for

Consultation update

Sustainable Food for London's Schools

This report is another in the seriescommissioned from London FoodLink by the London DevelopmentAgency and was launched on 25thNovember at the School Food inLondon event. The report:

details the work we did withCamden Council, which wasundergoing a "best valuereview" process to choose theirschool meal provider;provides an overview of schoolmeal provision across London;andmakes a series ofrecommendations that shouldincrease the proportion ofsustainable food in London'sschools.

One recommendation, forexample, is to use Camden'sexperience to help other Londonboroughs in a similar position.Another is to set up a sustainable

food procurement team to help allpublic sector catering in London -hospitals, care homes, prisons andso on - as well as schools, to usemore sustainable food in theirmeals. This report is available athttp://www.sustainweb.org/pdf/Proc_rep_dec05.pdf

London (see the box on page 9). Apreliminary report on this idea has beenproduced, but there is still much to dobefore anything is decided.

Next StepsRepresentatives from the London Foodboard and the London DevelopmentAgency's Food Unit had a very positivemeeting with Sir Don Curry - architectof Government's sustainable food andfarming strategy - on 8th December.Once the Mayor has approved the finalversion of London's own sustainablefood and farming strategy, London Foodwill be very keen to maintain links withexisting partners - and to form newpartnerships - so that the strategy canbe put into practice.

You can find out more by contactingBen Reynolds (ben@sustainweb.org or0207 837 1228).

Freeganism: an insiders guide

Clare Davidson talks to Tristram Stuart, recently seen onGordon Ramsey's The f Word, about what it means to be anavid freegan.

Freeganism: the act and (art) of saving food that would otherwise bethrown away and putting it to good use (i.e. eating it). But you won't findthe definition in the dictionary so I caught up with Tristram at the Mayor'sStrategy consultation event on food waste. The topic is a controversial one.From the outset Tristram dismisses the term freegan, saying it is merelyanother label. But in simple terms it means preventing food from beingneedlessly thrown away. "Four million people suffer from food poverty in theUK and yet a massive quantity of food is being chucked away and put intolandfills," says Tristram.

Venues that regularly throw away food include both supermarkets andspecialist sandwich outlets, such as Pret a Manger, EAT and Starbucks. At4:29pm a pasta salad will cost £4 or so, and at 4:30 it is deemed rubbish.Redistributing that food before it is buried is a way to feed hungry people.

One of the main problems, arguesTristram, is the common British(mis)perception that "because food isthrown away it has no value. Much of thefood we currently throw away could easilybe redistributed before it passes its use-bydate, rather than being allowed to enterthe waste-stream." Others seem to agree.In April this year, for example, LordHaskins said to The Guardian: "We are riskaverse. We're obsessed with sell-by dates,so that we throw away perfectly goodfood which happens to be out of code."

Other food is thrown away at wholesale level (before reaching thesupermarket) because of food storage costs. The food sector now accountsfor over a third of all the waste produced in the UK, according to research byC-Tech Innovation, a manufacturing consultancy, as reported in The Guardian.

Food redistribution can not only help the hungry, but also have anenvironmental benefit. "Apart from being a waste of a usable resource, foodsent to landfill produces polluting effluents and decomposes into methanewhich contributes to global warming" says Tristram. He speculates that, inthe long term, rising costs of using landfills may force companies to seek acheaper alternative. Some attempts are being made to address this issue -Pret a Manger has provided three vans to Fareshare, a food distributioncharity, and "deserve credit for this" says Tristram. But as yet such initiativesrepresent a tiny fraction of all the food waste generated.

Tristram Stuart's book The Bloodless Revolution, a history of vegetarianism,will be published by Harper Collins in September 2006.

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"Apart from being awaste of a usableresource, food sentto landfillproduces pollutingeffluents anddecomposes intomethane whichcontributes toglobal warming"

A Sustainable FoodHub for London?

The London Development Agencyhad commissioned London FoodLink to produce a report exploringthe opportunities for a sustainablefood logistics centre in London.Some of the research for this reportwas done for London Food Link byProfessor John Whitelegg, and oneof the options proposed was a new5,000 square metre building,offering storage, packing,processing, closed organic facilities,marketing and training support,partly publicly financed and self-supporting within three years.

The meeting held in November todiscuss this report generated a greatdeal of heated debate. Participantsdid agree that there is growingconsumer demand for organic andlocal foods, and that current foodsupply chains are too large andinflexible, and are organisednationally, not locally. However,producers, suppliers, existingwholesale markets and others didnot agree on whether there was aneed for a new food centre,whether existing centres werealready adequate, or whetherexisting distributions systems andinfrastructure could be changed tobecome more sustainable.

A good deal morework will need tobe done beforethese issues canbe resolved, andLondon Food Linkis looking forwardto working with

all those involved to make surethat, whatever is agreed, it will helplocal producers of sustainable foodto meet increasing demand.Download a copy of the report atwww.sustainweb.org/pdf/sustain_food_booklet.pdf

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The scheme, funded by the NewOpportunities Fund (now the BigLottery Fund), aimed to encouragehealthier eating habits, specifically byencouraging people to eat at least fiveportions of fruit and vegetables a day.Nine schemes took place around thecapital city, incorporating fourteenLondon boroughs and, since each ofthe nine schemes took on differentforms, assessing the project as a wholeis difficult.

Regional coordinator ElizabethDunsford explained the variety of waysthe scheme was adopted, including:

providing cook and eat sessions toimprove food preparation skills running food co-ops and schoolfruit tuck-shopstraining local community membersto run cook and eat sessions withtheir own community groups.

In Ealing for example, there was a Grab5 initiative (based on Sustain's Grab 5project with schools), healthy cookinglessons, and a dietician undertaking arange of tasks. Natalie Shepping,former health development managerwith Ealing, said "the cooking schemewas one of the most positive aspects ofthe scheme" because it involved localwomen and was practical. While manyof the ingredients in dishes werehealthy, often the preparation methodswere not, for example using too muchfat and salt. In an area with large anddiverse ethnic communities, includingIndian, Somali, Chinese and Hindi,adapting practical methods fordifferent cuisines was crucial. However,Natalie regretted that getting schoolsinvolved in 5-a-day was hard. "Theysimply don't have the spare capacity"she noted.

Getting bigger with 5-a-dayAccording to Elizabeth, 5-a-day hashelped some existing projects to

expand. Greenwich Food Co-op, forexample, has opened new food co-opsin schools. The school meals servicesin Barking & Dagenham and Haveringhave improved, by developing newmenus, buying equipment and trainingstaff to increase fruit and vegetableconsumption across all the schools.Other schools attained the HealthySchools Standard by, for instance,running Grab 5 training for teachersand providing start-up funding for fruittuck-shops. Back in Ealing, peoplewere trained as cookery club leaderswho now run highly successful afterschool cookery clubs with parents andchildren.

However, diversity can be a weaknessas well as a strength. There did notappear to be enough time and moneyto allow 5-a-day schemes acrossLondon to share information and ideaswith each other. As a result, somewheels were reinvented, and someschemes were less effective than theycould have been.

The devil still has the best tunes?Another perennial problem is that"junk" food is cheaper, more readilyavailable and more heavily marketedthan fruit and vegetables. This makesit hard for children to resist peerpressure and opt for healthier productsthat are often more expensive. Severalpeople involved in 5-a-day schemesstressed the importance of education."But it is not just a question of getting

children to have healthier habits. Wealso need to see that they eat well athome," said Natalie.

Talking about the East London Scheme,which covered Tower Hamlets,Newham and City and Hackney, EricSamuel, chief executive of CommunityFood Enterprise in Newham, said thepromotional aspect of the scheme wasthe hardest challenge. He argued thatthere should have been much betterand more effective publicity for thescheme. "If a celebrity - say a highprofile footballer such as DavidBeckham - was shown eating an apple,for example, this would have had abigger impact."

The future?There is speculation that out of nineschemes, at least three will not becontinued into 2006 but the details arenot yet clear. It would seem to be awaste for the experience of many ofthese projects to disappear, neithercontinuing to develop as projects, norbeing integrated into mainstreamservices. More positively, IslingtonPrimary Care Trust says it will runfurther training courses and supportCommunity Food Workers viaCommunity Kitchens. Waltham Forestnutrition and dietetic service have apart-time worker to co-ordinate andsupport their Community NutritionAssistants. But beyond these isolatedexamples, the future for 5-a-daycommunity projects is looking ratherlike the winter weather - foggy orbleak.

For more information contact BenReynolds on 0207 837 1228 orben@sustainweb.org. For informationon the 5-a-day scheme please go towww.5aday.nhs.uk.

Clare Davidson

5-a-day ends - what next?

"If ... David Beckhamwas shown eatingan apple, forexample, this wouldhave a much biggerimpact.”

After 2 years, the Government's 5-a-day community scheme is coming to an end. Hasthe scheme been a success and what happens next? We talk to some of those involvedto get their feedback.

SU S TA I N : T H E A L L I A N C E F O R B E T T E R F O O D A N D FA R M I N G •11•

Shop Window

No other horticultural market in theUK can boast so many wholesaletraders under one roof - and no othermarket in Europe offers a widerchoice of exotic fruit and vegetables,thanks to the tireless efforts of itsspecialist wholesalers in these areas.So says Mike Culverwell,Superintendent of New SpitalfieldsMarket in Leyton. Mike reports thatover 80 % of the produce sold at hismarket services the needs of localethnic community food businesses.

Imran Patel, of M&R Superfresh, isproud of his relationship with loyalcustomers who rely on the superbfreshness and quality of his produce.Growers of exotic produce in Cyprustelephone Imran informing him what

produce is reaching its peak. It's thentransported by road and reachesImran three days later. He says hecan feel the heat of the Cyprus sunwhen he opens the box. Imran feelsthat his supply chain is accountablewhen it comes to fair prices forgrowers and wages for workers butconcedes that he has little demandfor produce that has been grownwithout chemical intervention. "Aslong as the service and quality isgood, I keep my customers happy."

The Fresh Produce Consortium'sreview of wholesale markets showsthat wholesalers still control 44% ofthe total market in the UK. When youvisit Spitalfields and see the range ofproduce on offer and the level of

activity in the market it is clear thatwholesalers, despite thesupermarkets, still play and willcontinue to play a vital role in thedistribution of fresh produce. Markettraders like Imran need compellingcommercial reasons for stockingsustainable food. London Food Link isworking with partners to increasedemand for sustainable food withinethnic communities. Our main focusis small and medium enterpriseslooking to capitalise on the fastgrowing mainstream consumermarkets for organic and fairtradefood. To get involved or find outmore, contact Zeenat Anjari onzeenat@sustainweb.org.

Wholesale Market credits success to ethnic community demand

Oliver Rowe, head chef and owner of Konstam inKing's Cross, is planning to open a restaurant ofthe same name next door in Spring. Whatdistinguishes this restaurant from thousands ofother new restaurants in the capital is that Oliveris trying to ensure that all the food for therestaurant will come from the area covered byLondon's tube network. Oliver explains:

"Buying local food tastes better, itreduces food miles and means lesstraffic on the roads. I want toreconnect Londoners with their food,so they know where their food comesfrom and what's being producednearby."

Sustain's staff were happy to beexperimented on and we held ourChristmas party at Konstam. Deliciouslocal delicacies included lamb fromStockings farm, Amersham, goat’scheese from Latimer, and parsnips andbeetroot from Kingcup Farm, Denham.

Oliver is being followed in his quest by the BBCfor a programme which is scheduled for thisSpring (working title Urban Kitchen). LondonFood Link has been called in to help him withfinding some of these producers. So if you're abeekeeper, brewer or producer of anything ediblein or around London, please contact Ben(ben@sustainweb.org or 020 7837 1228).

Growing Underground

Oliver Rowe out fishing

SU S TA I N : T H E A L L I A N C E F O R B E T T E R F O O D A N D FA R M I N G•12•

Join London Food Link Now!The benefits of membership of London Food Link include:

The Jellied Eel, our quarterly members’ newsletter.A chance to influence policy-making on food issues including contributing to food and nutritionstrategies, government and GLA consultations on food, farming, planning and the economy. Membership of an interactive e-mail group with news, events, jobs and developments aroundfood issues in London. Discounts off London Food Link events, conferences, seminars and publications.Access to an online members’ area with membership directory.A free copy of Growing Food in Cities to new members and 50% off all London Food Linkpublications.

To join London Food Link or for further details contact:Ben Reynolds, LFL Co-ordinatorc/o Sustain, 94 White Lion Street, London N1 9PF. Tel: 020 7837 1228. Fax: 020 7837 1141.ben@sustainweb.orgwww.londonfoodlink.org

London Food Link members and supporters include:Primary Care Trusts, London boroughs, business associations, retailers, farmers, environment andcommunity groups, food access partnerships, allotment groups and food writers. Our work is guided bya working party of key London-wide agencies and groups representing food issues from farm to fork.

T H E V I E W S E X P R E S S E D I N T H I S M A G A Z I N E A R E N O T N E C E S S A R I L Y T H O S E O F L O N D O N F O O D L I N K .

Release of Sustain/ MentalHealth Foundation report,Changing Diets, ChangingMinds. 16th January.

Farmhouse Breakfast week.make time for it! 22ndJanuary-28th January

Potato and Seed ExchangeFair. 22nd January, WaverleySchool, London.

Feeding Young Imaginations;Bridging the nutrition gapfor children under 5. 26thJanuary, One Birdcage Walk,London.

National Salt AwarenessWeek. 29th January - 4thFebruary.

Harvest for Health – aphotographic exhibitioncelebrating local and organicin London hospitals.February 2006, RoyalBrompton Hospital,Kensington, London

London Food Link membersmeeting. Spring TBC

Diary for the New Year