Masala mandate: London's green food plan recognizes Indian restos bigger employer than steel industry.
The Relocalization Network, 20th December 2006
Wayne Roberts
The days when "english cuisine" was a contradiction in terms are past, and to make sure the proof's in the pudding, London has launched a 10-year plan for Healthy And Sustainable Food.
The local food drive and its £3.7 million (about $8.4 million) budget were unveiled some months back by Mayor Ken Livingstone, affectionately known as Red Ken, and backed by the powerhouse citizen coalition Sustain.
The group's coordinator, Jeanette Longfield, spoke to food localistas at the Royal Winter Fair November 9 and explained how the org's galaxy of 100 citizen and independent business groups got to be key players in a new red-green multi-purpose collaboration.
This novel alignment pays as much attention to equal access to healthy foods and local jobs as it does to global warming emissions.
The rationale for civic action outlined in the Mayor's Food Strategy isn't much different from the litany of woes in other cities – the well-known negatives that governments everywhere ignore, as if by rote.
About one in five cases of cancer and one in three cases of heart disease in London are related to diet and income, and 40 per cent of the elderly who are admitted to London hospitals arrive malnourished.
About 40 per cent of London's overall environmental impact and 22 per cent of its greenhouse gas emissions come from food handling, much of it easily correctable with a little care and attention to "market failures." For example, 22 per cent of food trucks run empty at any given time, while even those carrying a load are commonly running at 70 per cent capacity.
Some peculiarities of the British situation also led to London's bold strategy. The unforgettable scares associated with mad cow disease and the foot-and-mouth contagion in livestock left the public with a "robust skepticism" about scientific cover-ups and a deep concern about how quickly mayhem spreads in a globalized food system, Longfield told the Royal Winter
crowd.
"Developing food security in a volatile world," she said, is one of five formal objectives of the London food plan.
"Local food is miles better,'' her colleague Ben Reynolds, Sustain's coordinator of London Food Link liked to say when he and I toured South Korea last October. And Londoners increasingly appreciate the fresh taste, authentic culture and upscale ambience of historic and all-but-forgotten (and thereby obscure and exclusive) regional specialties.
The London strategy covers the whole food chain, from "grow it to throw it," says Reynolds. The eight stages (grow, process, transport, sell, buy, eat, cook, toss) identified are comprehensive in a way that conventional food policy usually isn't.
These processes are traditionally walled apart by a host of specialist professions (inspectors, nutritionists and ag researchers, for example), different economic sectors (retail and trucking) and distinct government departments (agriculture, health and waste management).
One of Longfield's favourite speaking tricks is to ask audiences to guess the most commonly eaten meal in England. Is it fish and chips, bacon buttie, beer and boiled egg? No, it's chicken tikka masala, from one of the 60 cuisines featured in London's 12,000 eateries. England's Indian restos now employ more people than the entire steel industry, just to get the economic importance of food in perspective.
Serving local foods from a nearby countryside that has limited space as well as cool, damp and dark winters to a city that's only slightly less cosmopolitan than Toronto in its cultural mix is a big part of London's challenge.
That's probably why the Mayor's Food Strategy is low on specific targets such as the 100-mile diet – though one effort tries to connect eateries along the subway maze to food producers with direct access to the tube.
Much of Sustain's and London Food Link's work is funnelled through an astounding network of neighbourhood and citizens' groups, a reminder that a wealth of community engagement is a precondition of food security. This is in stark contrast to the conventional food system that fosters privatization and commercialization of all food-related functions.
Food Link's mag, the Jellied Eel, revives the memory of an old favourite among London's lower orders, and boosts regional cuisine with upbeat reports on allotment, school and community gardens, farmers markets, fish farms, outings of shellfish foragers, and BISTRO (the Biodiesel Initiative for Sustainable Transport from Recycled Oil, from leftover kitchen grease).
Another Sustain publication, A Greener Curry offers sustainability tips to a food sector called BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic). Farmers who revive and raise the rare, hardy breeds pushed toward extinction by industrial food production models since the 1950s are encouraged to sell their meats at a premium.
Sustain also operates what Longfield calls a "dating service" that brings hospitals and other health institutions together to make bulk purchases, then links them to local and organic farmers. Instinctive to food projects and second nature for city governments, the method for driving progress in this area features lots of helpings rather than lots of regulations.
Source: http://www.relocalize.net/blog/lucy_segatti
London’s Guide to the Low-Carbon diet
REDORBIT, 8th November 2006
Bella Blissett
IF YOU think the journey through London to your local Tesco seems like a trek, spare a thought for your kiwi fruit. Not only has it travelled 11,690 miles, but it has produced five times its own weight in carbon-dioxide emissions.
Transporting food across the globe to our plates is responsible for a massive rise in greenhouse gas emissions, costing the UK Pounds 9 billion every year in cleanup costs and NHS healthcare for conditions like asthma. But it also detracts from the advantages of a healthy diet. The further fresh produce such as fruit and vegetables has travelled, the greater the deterioration in vitamin and mineral content, so eating locally is healthiest for us and the planet.
Environment Secretary David Miliband has stressed the dual advantages of eating regionally and seasonally for a greener, healthier future: "We're going to have a higher quality of life Local, seasonal food is tastier.
Smog-free cities are better than smoggy ones." The best way to save the planet, and combat the problem of food miles, is carbon calorie-counting.
Instead of counting traditional calories, health-conscious and eco-friendly Londoners can calculate the miles their food has travelled - aiming to stay within a 100-mile radius of the M25. With the exception of flour and sugar, all ingredients in our guide have been sourced from within the same exclusion zone.
"It's really important that Londoners start asking where their food is grown and how far it has been transported," says Zeenat Anjari of London Food Link, a network that promotes an alternative, eco-friendly food supply chain.
"Retailers and producers are going to have to be transparent and provide answers to these questions. Food transportation contributes about 20 per cent of London's ecological footprint and the 100-mile- radius rule is a way of reducing this."
So forget your carbon-calorie-laden kiwis, here's how to get everything you should need within the zone.
FISH
THE HANDPICKED SHELLFISH COMPANY
Steve Hall, Weymouth Harbour, Dorset, 07785 571023, hpshellfish@hotmail.com Diver-caught scallops, crab and wet fish.
Sold at Ealing, Queens Park, Primrose Hill and Wimbledon farmers' markets Best-buy now: large diver-caught scallops, Pounds 1 each or Pounds 10 for a dozen.
RICHARD HAWARD
West Mersea, Colchester, 01206 383 284, richard@oysters.u- net.com The Haward family have been producing oysters at Mersea for some 200 years. Sold from their own restaurant in West Mersea and at Pimlico Road farmers' market.
Best-buy now: large Colchester natives Pounds 1.90 each, rock oysters 70p each.
FRUIT AND VEGETABLES GOURMET MUSHROOMS
William Matthew Rooney, Great Bromley, Colchester, Essex CO7 7TN, 01206 231660 Sell their own-grown Japanese mushrooms and wild mushrooms in season at farmers' markets, including Marylebone and Notting Hill.
Best-buy now: oyster mushrooms Pounds 18 per kilo, white cloud mushrooms Pounds 4 for 100g.
THE POTATO SHOP
Tenterden, Kent, TN30 7LR, 01580 766 866, http://www.thepotatoshop.com/ Many varieties of organic and nonorganic potatoes. Available from Marylebone and Primrose Hill farmers' markets.
Best-buy now: organic nicola Pounds 1.40 per kilo, rare pink fir apple potato Pounds 4 for 1kg.
A G BROCKMAN CO
Canterbury, Kent, 0800 083 5942, www.perrycourtfarm.com/ Biodynamic organic farm in Kent. Salad leaves, vegetables, flour, beef. Sold from the farm and at farmers' markets, including Primrose Hill, Marylebone and Ealing.
Best-buy now: butternut squash Pounds 1.80 per kilo, home-milled organic and stonebaked flour Pounds 1.30 per kilo.
KINGCUP FARM
Denham, 01895 832 865 A huge variety of vegetables, soft fruit in season and Christmas trees sold at farmers' markets, including Clapham and Finchley Road.
Best-buy now: champagne kale Pounds 2.40 per kilo, Savoy cabbage 80p each, baby leeks Pounds 1.30 a bunch.
POULTRY AND GAME
MANOR FARM GAME Chesham, Bucks http://www.manorfarmgame/. co.uk Sell via their website and through farmers' markets, including Marylebone and Pimlico Road.
Best-buy now: pheasant Pounds 4 each, partridge Pounds 6.50 a brace, rabbit Pounds 3.50 each.
BEEF AND PORK
BACK TO NATURE FARM PRODUCE Chipstead, Surrey, 01737 552744, http://www.shabdenparkfarm.com/ Beef, lamb, mutton and geese for Christmas. Order online or via farmers' markets, including Queen's Park, Pimlico, Primrose Hill and Islington.
Best-buy now: leg of mutton Pounds 8 per kilo, lamb loin chops Pounds 11.50 per kilo.
LEE HOUSE FARM
Billinghurst, Surrey, 01403 753311/ 07973 826189, http://www.leehousefarm.co.uk/ Organic outdoor-reared pork, lamb, mutton, eggs and veg. Order from website or from Twickenham farmers' market.
Best-buy now: pork sausages Pounds 9 per kg, home-cured streaky bacon Pounds 12 per kg.
PLANTS, HERBS, CHILLIES AND FLOWERS LETTUCE AND LOVAGE
Huntingdon, Cambs, 01954 202085 Sell potted and cut herbs, salads, squashes, winter bulbs at Islington and Notting Hill farmers' markets in season.
Best-buy now: squash Pounds 1.50 per kilo, cut parsley, dill, coriander and sorrel all 60p a bunch.
THE GARLIC FARM
Isle of Wight, 01983 865378, http://www.thegarlicfarm.co.uk/ Sell at farmers' markets, including Blackheath, Marylebone and Pimlico.
Best-buy now: Solent Wight and Albigensian Wight, both Pounds 1.80 per bulb.
EDIBLE ORNAMENTALS
Blunham,Bedfordshire, http://www.edibleornamentals/. co.uk Buy chillies, chilli plants, chilli products online or at farmers' markets, including Peckham in season.
Best-buy now: mild, sweet Anaheim chillis 40p each, Jalapeno chillis, perfect for salsas and tacos, 20p each
GRANGE NURSERIES
Blunham, Bedfordshire, 01767 640 109 Buy cut flowers from the nursery and from farmers' markets, including Notting Hill and Islington.
Best-buy now: alstroemeria Pounds 2.50, lilies Pounds 3, September flowers Pounds 2 per bunch.
DAIRY
WINDRUSH VALLEY GOAT DAIRY FARM
Windrush, Oxfordshire, 01451 844 828, windrushuk@aol.com Sell goat's cheese, drinking yogurt, goat's cheese cheesecake at farmers' markets, including Primrose Hill and Marylebone.
Best-buy now: fresh soft goat's cheese Pounds 2.50 for 125g, probiotic yoghurt drink Pounds 2.50 for 500ml, large cheesecake Pounds 8.
BAKERY
THE OLD POST OFFICE BAKERY 76 Landor Road, Clapham North, SW9, http://www.oldpostofficebakery.co.uk/ Organic breads and cakes, sold from the shop and from farmers' markets, including Marylebone, Clapham.
Best-buy now: apple and almond cake Pounds 15, oat bread loaf Pounds 1.50.
DRINKS OTHER
BEES PLUS
Richmond, 020 8941 8250, http://www.bees.co.uk/ Local apiarist selling honey and wax products. Available at Twickenham farmers' market.
CHEGWORTH VALLEY Chegworth, Kent, http://www.applejuicedirect.com/ Apple and pear juices and fruit in season sold directly and from farmers' markets, including Blackheath, Pimlico and Islington.
Best-buy now: new apple and beetroot juice, Bramley or Russet apple juice all Pounds 3.50 per litre.
BATTERSEA BREWERY "BEERS FROM THE SMOKE" London SW11, 020 7978 7978 or 07764 818 666 A range of additive-free, traditionalstyle beers available from Asda and various farmers' markets.
Best-buy now: old-style London Powerhouse Porter Beer Pounds 24 for a 24-bottle case.
NYETIMBER VINEYARD West Chiltington, Sussex, 01798 813 989 One of England's leading wine growers with 16 acres of vineyards. The Queen serves their champagne at Buckingham Palace. Sold by Waitrose and in offlicences.
Best-buy now: 1992 Premiere Cuvee Pounds 20.89
EATING OUT SUSTAINABLY
KONSTAM 109 King's Cross Road, WC1, 020 7833 2615 A new restaurant sourcing 100 per cent of its ingredients within a 100- mile radius.
ACORN HOUSE RESTAURANT 69 Swinton Street, Clerkenwell, WC1, 020 7812 1842 Opening 14 November, dedicated to sourcing its ingredients sustainably.
PETERSHAM NURSERIES CAFE AND TEAHOUSE Richmond, TW10, 020 8605 3627 Cakes and bakes made in-house, and the onsite restaurant- garden provides seasonal produce including borlotti beans, salad leaves, fennel, herbs, beetroot, quinces, plums and loganberries.
THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE 30 St Peter's Street, Angel, N1, 020 7359 3066 Gastropub renowned for its locally sourced, organic food.
SAUSAGE AND MASH CAFE 4-6 Essex Road, N1, 020 7359 5361 Brushfield Street, E1, 020 7247 2252 268 Portobello Road, W11, 020 8968 8898 Comfort food at its best, with sausages from its own local factory.
(c) 2006 Evening Standard; London (UK). Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
Source: Evening Standard; London (UK)
Source: http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/724321/londons_guide_to_the_lowcarbon_diet/index.html
Multicultural London provides food for thought
Edie News Centre, 14 June 2006
Sam Bond
An event celebrating the capital's ethnic diversity and looking at environmental issues from a multicultural perspective knuckled down to debate food this week.
The fourth annual London Multicultural Environment Fair was held in Hackney on Tuesday, itself home to a vast array of nationalities and ethnic groups.
Speakers considered the wide spectrum of dietary requirements and culinary preferences of the capital's population and how this ties in with environmental concerns.
Nitin Mehta, from the Young Indian Vegetarians, described how the meat-free diet advocated by the Hindu and Buddhist belief systems has now become an environmental issue.
Outlining the standard environmental arguments against meat-eating, Mr Mehta claimed the land used to raise and feed the world's 55bn head of livestock could be put to better use supporting four billion humans, more than half the world's population.
The waste of land and shocking quantities of water used to raise animals was, he said, unacceptable.
"The ecological damage we're doing is fundamental," he said.
"It's a criminal waste in an already thirsty world."
If people truly cared about the environment, he said, they were duty bound to make real changes in their own lifestyles and put their money where their mouths are.
"In the words of Gandhi," he said, "let us be the change we want to see in the world."
The issues of food miles and the energy used to transport exotic crops to British markets were also touched upon.
The London Food Link told edie that it encouraged people to buy locally-sourced food where possible but accepted it would be a long time before you could grow mangoes in Kent.
"We're not talking about stopping people from buying food that can never be grown in England," said a spokesperson.
"But we are asking people to ask more questions about how that food is produced. It's down to sustainability. We would ask how is it grown, who is growing it and how is it transported."
She went on to say, however, that many crops associated with foreign cuisines could in fact be grown in the UK and, as demand grows, agriculture will adapt and we will see fields growing fenugreek and sweet potatoes alongside the more traditional crops.
Kenyasue Smart of the Caribbean Peoples Network said we must be aware that the everyday choices we make in the UK have an impact elsewhere in the world.
This was particularly important for those who could trace their roots back to developing countries, she claimed.
"The industrial revolution was fuelled by the enslavement of my people," she told delegates.
And now, she said, those living in Africa, the Caribbean and other parts of the developing world, are paying the cost of the industrialised world's excesses, as climate change begins to hit them hard.
"You can see the devastation," she said, "And by buying the wrong things and not recycling we're affecting what's happening there."
In London, and other urban centres, children are becoming increasingly detached from the food they eat, she said.
They don't understand agriculture and have little idea of where their food comes from.
We need to educate children about the environment, said Ms Smart, and in the developing world furnish them with practical skills such as farming.
The Muslim community also had its own particular concerns when it came to diet and the environment, said Khalid Sharif, who runs a socially and environmentally responsible halal food company, Ummah, which operates under the slogan going green in Islam.
"The planet has always been important in Islam," he said.
"We're not allowed to waste food, and we're not allowed to waste water.
"But halal has its own environmental issues - you cannot get organic meat that is halal because the certification bodies do not approve of the way the animals are killed and the debate is only just starting about whether GM food can be halal."
It was, however, difficult making inroads into the Muslim community to persuade people to make environmental concerns a priority.
"Unfortunately there's a lot more to worry about than our food at the moment," he said, pointing to statistics that show that, taken as a group, London Muslims are disadvantaged in terms of education, unemployment, poor housing and poverty - all this before taking into account the fact that they are often viewed with suspicion in today's political climate.
"You can't expect a community to deal with environmental problems if they are struggling with their own problems at home," he said.
"It's pure survival."
Source: http://www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp?id=11581&channel=0
Eating Out, Eating Green
Islington Environment Forum, March 2006
London Food Link are working with London’s restaurant sector to offer more sustainable choices to consumers. They are offering London restaurants and eateries free advice on how to reduce costs and improve supplier relation ships through sustainable business practice; for example, purchasing form local suppliers, serving sustainable fish, free range eggs, minimising waste and reducing energy costs.
This gives restaurants a unique advantage by marketing their sustainability and helping them save money.
They are also doing research on London’s restaurant sector about current trends, the problems facing the sector and what can be done to help.
If you know of a restaurant that might be interested in being part of this work, please contact Ben Reynolds on 020 7837 1228 or ben@sustainweb.org
London’s groceries could get greener
The Londoner, March 2006
Plans to build a food hub linking small producers and suppliers to London’s vast food market have been unveiled.
The aim is to build a distribution point in east London, allowing food providers to buy locally grown food.
It would mean these providers – including independent shops, restaurants and public sector caterers – could buy more food grown in or near London.
This would reduce long distance transportation of food, cutting carbon emissions.
Developing this hub is one of a number of proposals announced by Mayor Ken Livingstone in a £22 million package aimed at improving London’s environment and curbing climate change.
Other measures include working with the London Hyrdrogen Partnership to provide 70 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles to Transport for London, the Metropolitan Police and London Fire Brigade by 2010 and building a large scale carbon free development using renewable energy in London. Details for this are yet to be released.
The package includes plans for a low emission zone for Greater London, to improve London’s air quality and reduce respiratory illnesses and deaths.
There will also be more investment in London’s cycle networks and extra cycle parking to encourage more Londoners to cycle as well as initiatives to reduce the amount of cars on the road.
Source: http://www.london.gov.uk/londoner/06mar/p4b.jsp?nav=news
Feeding London
Organic and Natural Business magazine, March 2006
Simon Wright
The statistics quoted by London’s Mayor Ken Livingstone were impressive: London spends £1.6 billion on food every year, 31,000 people earn a living from working with food and 25% of all HGV miles in London are food-related. But as Ken says London “sucks in resources from a vast hinterland – a situation that is by no means sustainable. “ The challenge for this 90 minute workshop was to come up with initiatives that will help the London of the future adopt a more sustainable approach.
Jenny Jones, Chair of London Food explained how the capitals new sustainable food strategy is being developed (download the pdf at http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/health/food/docs/draft_strategy_summary.pdf). Emma Hockridge and Dan Keech of Sustain talked about making London Hospiral food more sustainable. Doug Wanstall of Bank Farm Produce explained his experience of being a supplier to such projects and Kerry Rankine of Growing Communities talked about setting up Londons first organic farmers market, organic box scheme and market gardens in Stoke Newington. The rest of the session involved the 100-odd audience forming into small groups and brainstorming under the guidance of Joy Carey of the Soil Associations Local Food Links department.
Food hubs were identified as having a key role to play. These are local markets where smaller producers can meet up with and supply restaurants, hospitals, schools and colleges, caterers and food manufacturers. Hubs could involve some degree of food processing, which would help producers who wish to supply semi-processed ingredients but don’t have their own processing facilities. Local, Organic and Fairtrade are seen as key elements to these hubs.
Planning was another key theme. Allotments, gardens and parks were all mentioned as key spaces where Londoners can grow their own food, but all are under pressure as the price of land continues to rise. It was felt that only by ringfencing such land in planning procedures could it be safeguarded for future generations.
Finally the need for a ‘brokering’ role was mentioned by several groups. Hospitals and other institutions want to source more sustainable food and small producers want to supply them. However without an agency in the middle who can make the connection these projects have proved hard to get going.
Other ideas included using canals for food distribution, getting London’s schoolkids to visit farms and the importance of restoring food to the National Curriculum. The session could easily have lasted twice as long, but as always at the Soil Association Conference another Workshop beckoned…
Source: http://www.organic-consultancy.com/articles/OGNB/feedinglondon.shtml
Helping London’s Restaurants buy sustainable food
London farmers’ newsletter spring 2006, February 3rd 2006
Mayor plans healthier food for Londoners
The Guardian, January 7th 2006
Felicity Lawrence
The mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, yesterday promised a greener and more healthy capital by imposing prohibitively high charges on polluting lorries and improving access to more local and organic food.
Calling it the most radical overhaul of Londoners' diet and health since the establishment of the welfare state, Mr Livingstone said he wanted his food strategy for London to become a blueprint for other cities around Britain and the world, just as the congestion charge had done.
Addressing the Soil Association's conference on food and farming he said: "The energy and emissions involved in producing food account for 22% of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions.
"I want London to set a standard for other cities around the world to follow in reducing its own contribution to climate change. How we deal with food will play an important role in this."
His food strategy for London included:
- Cutting food miles with the help of "prohibitively high" charges for polluting lorries. By 2008 he hopes to introduce a low emission zone in London with very high charges for vehicles producing high greenhouse gas emissions, and punitive fines for those failing to pay;
- Encouraging schools and hospitals to buy more local and organic food. Five London NHS hospitals are experimenting with sustainable procurement. "The power of public procurement will be used to transform food markets and drive sustainability," he said;
- Using planning policies to end food deserts in poor areas, such as Hackney, where there are whole wards "where you cannot buy a single piece of fresh food". Death rates from heart disease are twice as high in the east end of London as in the west. Improving food access was vital to tackling "health inequalities", he added.
Overall, the mayor said he was setting a target to cut London's greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2050. He predicted a fight over the low emission zones.
On Thursday evening, Conservative leader David Cameron chose the organic farmers' conference in London to declare himself in favour of organic production, and to identify himself with consumers' concerns over GM foods anddiet.
He added sustainable food and farming to his blitz on key policy areas in speeches this week. Establishing his credentials by saying he had won prizes for his home-grown organic vegetables in his local village competition this year, Mr Cameron went on to identify with consumers' worries about "what we eat, how it's grown and what it does to our children".
He also promised that his party would look at food in a "holistic way", rather than thinking about farming, health and the environment in separate boxes as in the past.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/food/Story/0,,1681199,00.html#article_continue
Food strategy contributes to public health
EHN, January 2006
London mayor Ken Livingstone is keen to press ahead with radical plans to make the capital a model of sustainable food production and consumption.
Launched last year, the London food strategy proposes cutting food miles by penalising polluting lorries, encouraging schools and hospitals to source more local and organic food and using planning policies to end so called “food deserts” in poor areas.
Mr. Livingstone told the annual Soil Association conference that he wanted his food strategy to become the blueprint fro other cities around the world, like the congestion charge. He said it would amount to the most radical overhaul of public health since the creation of the welfare state. “I want London to set a standard for other cities around the world to follow by reducing its own contribution to climate change. How we deal with food will play an important role in this” he told delgates.
The final strategy is due to be published this spring. It is expected to be implemented as part of the government’s wider sustainable food and farming strategy.
“London is never going to be self-sufficient in food, but by encouraging a greater supply of local, regional and organic food and a diversity of outlets, from markets to local shops, we also safeguard our food supply in the event of a crisis” Mr Livingstone said.
At the same conference, the Conservative leader David Cameron expressed support for organic production and doubts about genetically modified food.
He said: “I want to see sustainable agriculture and good a environment. I know this means success not just for organic farming, but for conventional farming as well.”
Source: EHN magazine
Mayor Ken speaks with others hungry for change
Organic & Natural Business magazine, January 2006
London Mayor Ken Livingstone is one of the speakers at the 2006 Soil Association conference.
Another highlight will be a school lunch made form local, seasonal and organic foods, as promoted by the Food for Life campaign.
The theme of the event at The Brewery Conference Centre in the City of London on January 6 and 7 is feeding our cities in the 21st century.
The scene-setter for the debate is the sobering prognosis that cities the worlds over face real and present challenges to their food supplies from climate change and rising energy costs as oil becomes scarcer.
But the programme offers solutions and examples of what is already being achieved.
Mayor Ken will explain how London is developing a sustainable food strategy - at present the capital requires more than 120 times its area (roughly equivalent to the entire productive land area of the UK) to supply with food.
Film maker Herbert Girardet, a world authority on sustainable cities, will give an insight into what is being achieved around the world to make city dwellers more self reliant (Berlin has 80,000 urban gardens for instance). American nutrition expert Sally Fallon will talk about how networks all over the United States enable some urban Americans to buy organic food from local family farms.
Among other speakers are the Chair of the Sustainable Development Commission, Jonathan Porritt, gardener and broadcaster Monty Don and broadcaster John Humphrys, who is chairing a Question Time.
There as 18 workshops on subjects including organic health and beauty and improving food catering.
Source: Organic & Natural Business magazine December/January
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