In March, Kindling’s co-founder and co-ordinator Helen was lucky enough to join groups from all over Europe on a fact-finding mission to a number of French 'incubator farms' in the southern region of Montpelier.
Latest news
...testing the effectiveness of prescribing more than just medicine.
We were delighted to get news that James Powell, who participated in our Commercial Growers Course last autumn, has completed his land purchase near his home in Milton Keynes. After 15 years of allotment-eering and providing a seasonal veg box to 28 local families, he's ready to scale up production to a more commercial scale, and hopes to eventually transition from his day job...
It's kickstarted community projects all over the world already...what will you do after seeing it?!
Wednesday 26th April, 6.30pm at the International Anthony Burgesss Foundation, M1 5BY
The mission of the Ecological Land Co-operative (ELC) is the creation of residential smallholdings aimed at new entrants to horticulture and mixed farming, protected for ecological agricultural use in perpetuity. A dream for many, but one for which the barriers are high. Leading a land-based livelihood can be a tough path, which we know all too well about.
Our latest FeedingManchester event brought together over 100 groups from the sector to shape a new sustainable food strategy for Greater Manchester.
Join us this Spring in preparation for the new growing season.
It's always very tempting to write an article about the hugely inspiring Oxford Real Farming Conference the second we get on the train home. Each year, we return to report on the exciting talks we heard, the inspiring people we meet, the workshops we spoke at and the fringe sessions we organised.
Not this time.
Veg Box People workers co-operative is part of the Kindling family, one of the enterprises we’ve incubated and supported in our quest to transform Manchester's food system. From tiny beginnings just 18 months ago, the co-op now provides organic veg bags to 125 customers each week, and is seeking a highly motivated new co-op member to join its committed, multi-tasking team.
Our FarmStart programme is the UK’s very first incubator initiative for organic farmers, providing training, affordable access to land, infrastructure, shared equipment and a ready market. This year we’ve got three new FarmStarters spread over two sites who are about to get stuck into their first ever season of organic veg production on a commercial scale. They'll be documenting their unique experiences over the growing season as they get to grips with creating new land-based livelihoods, so watch this space...