Discussion Groups at the Food Assembly

 So, the question we were considering, in our groups around the tables, was this:

"How might we support Hay-on-Wye, as a community, to become as self-sufficient as possible in sustainably-grown local food?  Eventually producing enough to feed the town and its environs, much as in the 1950s and 1960s?"

Around our table, the farmer (Richard, I think?) had recently joined a group of farmers called the Hay-on-Wye Cluster - he farms near Painscastle.  The group mostly produce meat, but they are applying for a loan to buy a grain mill for locally produced grain to make local bread, which would also include something called the Social Loaf.  They don't have any members that grow much in the way of vegetables yet.  I asked if Primrose Farm was involved, but they haven't been approached yet.  There was some discussion of the possibility of Keiran at the greengrocers being able to co-ordinate vegetable growers, since he sources as much as he can locally, so knows who is doing what.

It was felt, around the table that it was important to involve the small shops in Hay like the greengrocers and Small Farms butchers - building on a framework that already exists.  Geraint Powell had said in his short speech that he sold meat direct to the public - but none of us around the table knew how to find out who was doing that or how to get involved as customers.

Allotments and market gardens were also felt to be very important.  John the retired farmer was very keen on the idea of getting as many local people as possible to grow their own food, whether on an allotment or as volunteers in a CSA or other model of market garden.  One thing that nobody wanted was for some outside group to come in and start a market garden - this was something that had to come from the grassroots of Hay as a community.  Someone mentioned that there are around 300 market gardens across Wales at the moment, but to have a good chance of feeding the majority of the population, something like 1,000 are needed.  Allotments and market gardens can produce much more food per acre than conventional fields with single crops.

We talked about the HADSCAL plans for the community hub around the doctors' surgery, and how their plans for allotments could start right away, without waiting for any of the other parts of their plan.

After about half an hour of discussion, each table was asked to provide three main points to the assembly.

Table 1 had been talking about vegetable boxes and Incredible Edible.

Table 2 suggested vending machines around Hay for fresh produce, and stressed the need for co-ordination between everyone who wanted to get involved.

Table 3 wanted more CSAs, but access to land is a problem, so their next point was to communicate with landowners to identify land that could be used.  They also wanted to see more education around food and cooking.

Table 4 wanted to map the assets that already exist, and find out what the demand is locally, as well as the needs of local people.  They were also keen on education in cooking and growing food.

Table 5 mentioned sourcing land, and education.

Table 6 wanted to see a co-ordination of information - networking, as well as upscaling from any small initiatives, and mentioned access to land, especially for allotments.  Planning law is also a problem for market gardens, because of the difficulty of getting permission for growers to live on their land while they are working it.

Table 7 also liked the idea of vending machines, finding ways to create more demand for local food, and support to growers.

Table 8 wanted to see children involved in cooking, which they said was no longer part of the National Curriculum, and to see more communal eating opportunities, like Bethesda Chapel's communal meals.

and Table 9 wanted information sharing and investment in infrastructure.

After that, we all filled in forms.  One was to indicate what we could do to help practically, and one was for the Welsh government as a requirement for them releasing the second half of their funding. The other sponsors of the event were Extinction Rebellion.

 I always have problems thinking about what to say to open ended questions, but for the question about getting more involved I mentioned that we needed a more frequent bus service, and for the question about what was stopping people from getting more involved, I said that people need enough time and energy to commit to something like this, and getting a Universal Basic Income scheme off the ground would help a lot!

Then there was time for a few questions from the floor, and Michael mapped out what would be happening next.  The points recorded by all the note-takers were going to be taken away and analysed, and they would be looking through the forms for practical help which would give an indication of what it was possible to do, given the people who were available to do it.

One lady from the audience invited people to contact her so that she could get something started about a vending machine.

So that's what the state of play is at the moment.