the Herefoodshire challenge has started
Can someone eat exclusively Herefordshire & Fairtrade food
& drink for a year? We'll soon find out!
Herefoodshire will be spearheaded by at least one individual
challenging themselves to eat and drink entirely Herefordshire food
and drink, plus Fairtrade marked products, for a whole year from
February 2008.
Is Leominster the tops for local & Fairtrade
shopping? (PDF 19kb)
We'd love more people to volunteer to give it a go! So the
challenge will be actively promoted to individuals, families,
organisations and groups who'd like to take part by joining the
challenge for a week, a special occasion or a set day a week -
whatever suits them. What are your views on this challenge? Why not
get involved and try this for yourself for a period of time? Share
your pledge with us - visit the
contribute
page, send us your comments and we may include them.
Herefoodshire aims to encourage greater;
- Pride in the county and its produce
- Visibility of Herefordshire producers
- Local spend - helping viability of local food and drink
businesses
- Understanding of the realities of food production (links to
Year of Food & Farming)
- Awareness of what's in season, where it can be bought &
what can be done with it
- And a chance to radically cut down food miles as a
bonus
Watch the
introductory film about Herefoodshire
Agriculture is vital to Herefordshire so it is important for us
to better understand the importance of local food and its producers
to our landscape and lives - and to enjoy and celebrate it
more.
"Herefordshire is the most rural county in the West Midland
region, with a working population of under 80,000 of which 8.4% are
employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing, and 21.3% employed
in agriculture, food and tourism. The county grows every crop
capable of production in the UK, with cereals, potatoes and
horticulture, and also beef, sheep and poultry being the most
important sectors. Traditional crops such as hops and cider apple
production remain significant. The 3530 farm businesses produce an
output of £206m per annum, despite the fact that 68% of all
businesses are under 50 ha in size." DEFRA report
A small shift in our spending would help support local jobs and
really boost the vitality and viability of the large number of
small businesses in the food and drink sector.
For instance if just 5% of Herefordshire's 74,000 households switch
£10 of their weekly spend to Herefordshire produce (the price of a
small vegetable box) the extra cash injected into the local economy
would be nudging £2 million a year. That's a useful sum!
We reckon it will be a stimulating & enjoyable adventure! We
hope you'll join in!
Find out more about local food at;
The challenge is being co-ordinated by Celebrating Creation, a
community arts organisation in North Herefordshire that has
organised many local celebrations over the past 15 years.
Email
herefoodshire@hotmail.co.uk
for more information or view the
press release (PDF).
See other
related initiatives across the world
Choose products with the FAIRTRADE Mark and
visit
http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/
for more information