Wicked Leeks

Defra needs a “radical reset”, said Minette Batters in June. The department responsible for the environment, food and rural affairs lacks “commercial expertise”, the former President of the National Farmers Union (NFU) told MPs. “At the Cabinet table in the last Parliament, the previous Parliament and in this Parliament, food is not at the heart of Whitehall. It is not repres...

Have you ever wondered where we used to shop before supermarkets came along? Of course we would have had the village stores, greengrocers, butchers, bakeries, and local shops, but there’s another place that most of us would have bought the bulk of our groceries. Markets. Many people talk about markets when they go abroad – to countries where the market is still at the very…

Our squash have met across the rows, stretching their vines to cover the bare soil, their roots spreading below ground in search of water to feed the flowering and swelling fruit. How many they carry to maturity in late September will depend on rain and our management of the soil – a good drink might double the yield but any water we have left must be saved for higher value c...

If you want to see what sustainable and resilient organic agroforestry looks like, head to Wakelyns in Suffolk where 56 acres of trees, orchards, and crops are grown in balance. At just over 30 years old, this is now one of the oldest and most diverse agroforestry systems in existence and one of Europe’s first. This is an antidote to the industrial agriculture that blankets t...

As Head of Sustainability at Riverford, Zac knows more than a thing or two about the simple choices we can all make, that go on to have cumulative, measurable, positive impacts on the planet. He’s also used to making tough, imperfect, but ultimately necessary choices – both at work and at home, as a dad with a young family. That’s the thing with sustainability – there’s no su...