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Monday, 15th March 2010

Former farmer sows seeds for the future

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Published Date:
27 March 2009
Being in a recession does not mean forgetting
your health. One local man, who used to be a farmer, explained to Catherine Morris why he wants to see the community pull together to grow fresh fruit and vegetables.
William Hudson is well aware people are worried about their bank balances.

But he is also concerned about what we are doing to the land, our bodies and the local economy by buying food grown all over the country – and indeed the world.

Which is why the former farmer from Bressingham, who is also a director of East Anglia Food Link, wants to see a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project set up in the Diss area.

The system, which has been thriving in Stroud since 2002, involves a group of people finding a local farmer and giving them money to grow a supply of fruit and vegetables.

The fresh produce can then be taken home and enjoyed by those who have invested in the scheme.

"The Stroud model shows you will probably buy your fruit and vegetables cheaper with CSA," said Mr Hudson.

"Bearing in mind the lack of transport and packaging costs, it should be less expensive.

"Raping the earth to put food in the mouths of East Anglians is all very well but it won't last."

He explained that the UK was producing fewer and fewer vegetables and that last year's wet summer and recent cold winter had caused production problems.

"Only a few vegetable farmers still exist farming on a vast scale because of very small margins," said Mr Hudson.

"The supermakets have brought down prices and are doing so even more in the face of the credit crunch."

Setting up a CSA in the Diss area would not only mean locally produced fruit and vegetables but also a community project to be enjoyed by all.

"Often CSA members help in the production of the crops, sometimes with payment in vegetables and sometimes just because they enjoy it," said Mr Hudson.

The initiative would be set up by East Anglia Food Link as part of the Making Local Food Work project, which backed by the Big Lottery Fund.

To succeed, it needs clean, light land in and around Diss from one to five acres.

"We are also looking for keen young farmers who may be interested in starting a fruit and or vegetable enterprise," said Mr Hudson. "And we need a small farm to rent to produce fruit and vegetables to be sold locally."

  • Anyone who wants to get involved in the project should email Mr Hudson at whudson@aspects.net or telephone 07879 666100 or 01379 688374.

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    • Last Updated: 26 March 2009 4:15 PM
    • Source: Diss Express
    • Location: Diss
     
     
     


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