Cultivate Urban Food Growing Festival
‘Cultivate’ will be Waltham Forest Council’s first urban food growing festival, aiming to turn Waltham Forest into the garden of London.
The 9-day event will kick off with a one day conference where established and new local food growers will come together to talk about how to help put in place initiatives for sustainable food growing in the borough.
The conference will also include activities, stalls and information showing the whole food cycle. It will aim to establish a Waltham Forest Food Co-operative, create new community food growing plots and spaces, and promote food growing for personal use and sale.
“We want to make the most of all the opportunities there are in the borough to grow food and encourage local people to get involved,” explained Councillor Clyde Loakes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment for Waltham Forest Council.
“The week that will follow the conference will see a programme of events that will demonstrate the broad range of approaches to urban food growing,” said Cllr Loakes.
“We want to ensure there is something on offer for everyone working in the food sector, from community projects to local businesses and interested residents. We’re also keen to see practical workshops and demonstrations take place and to organise cycle and walking tours and a food fair market place.”
“At the moment we are looking for expressions of interest to participate in Cultivate. We want to showcase all that is already on offer in the borough, support new initiatives and highlight established networks.”
Waltham Forest Council is also interested in people and organisations that provide teaching and training on growing your own food and want to create a forum for further collaboration and projects.
Anyone with proposals for workshops, talks, demonstrations, dinners, walks or anything else that celebrates local food growing initiatives should submit an expression of interest to events@artillery.org.uk by 7 February.
Cultivate Urban Food Growing Festival Waltham Forest, 21-30 March 2014
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