New food enterprise, Micro_Cycle who started off growing mushrooms in their bedroom, have been awarded a small grant towards expanding their business venture, at a food growing careers event held by London food growing network Capital Growth.
The Micro_Cycle team, Emma Stevens and Anthony Manrique, were voted the best of three by a crowd of 65 growers, entrepreneurs and career changers who came together for the Roots to Work event last week. The day, held at Lambeth growing hub Roots and Shoots, was organised to help people developing food growing careers and enterprises. Workshops covered how to start an urban farm and generate income in small plots, and panels of experts included Alice Holden, who helped start Growing Communities’ Dagenham-based farm, and Joris Gunawardena, Farm Director and Production Manager at Sutton Community Farm.
Over lunch the ‘Pitch In / Pitch Off’ competition provided food growing enterprises the chance to pitch their ideas to the crowd, who voted for their favourite. Attendees also ‘pitched in’ a few pounds of their own to help the projects get growing. Micro_Cycle was the resounding winner, getting both the most votes to win the £250 prize and the most cash donated to help their brand new enterprise. They will use the money to grow mushrooms and micro-greens from leftover coffee grounds in Peckham, to sell to restaurants and cafés. Second place went to Audacious Veg, a training project for youth in Redbridge, and third place was won by Brockwell Park Community Greenhouses.
Emma Stevens from Micro-Cycle said: “Yesterday changed a lot for us. We really haven’t had the confidence in our idea previously, and didn’t know how to really get it off the ground, as well as having a lack of funds for some things. But speaking to so many amazing people yesterday and all the encouragement that so many people gave us has really motivated us and given us the knowledge, confidence and now initial funds to get this going.”
Capital Growth also launched a new webpage at the event to act as a hub for training and job opportunities in food growing in London. This is provided as part of their work to support groups growing food to sell in London and others looking to get into food growing careers.
The day was supported by the Mayor of London, the Growing Together project, and a host of other organisations helping people into food growing careers. More information can be found on the website or if you have a job you’d like to see posted here or in our newsletter, email Maddie@sustainweb.org
Notes to editors
- Capital Growth is London’s food growing network, and a part of wider London Food Link, based at Sustain. It was launched in 2008 to provide practical and financial help to Londoners wanting to set up or expand food growing spaces. www.capitalgrowth.org @Capital_Growth
- Capital Growth receives funding from the Mayor of London and is championed by Rosie Boycott, Chair of the London Food Board.
- Capital Growth has awarded funding to 15 other food enterprises through the Urban Food Routes initiative http://www.urbanfoodroutes.org.uk/
- For more information about Micro-Cycle, contact maddie@sustainweb.org
- Growing Communities are a social enterprise base in Hackney. Over the past 10 years they have created two main community-led trading outlets - an organic fruit and vegetable box scheme and the Stoke Newington Farmers' Market. They also run organically certified urban market gardens, where they grow produce for sale through the box scheme, which also provide training for apprentice growers and volunteers, some of whom are now helping to create a Patchwork Farm in Hackney. In 2012, they opened our 4-acre Starter Farm in Dagenham, to grow a wider variety of vegetables on a larger scale. www.growingcommunities.org @growcomm
- Sutton Community Farm is a 7.1 acre community-owned farm. They started in 2010 in response to a community need, with the purpose to increase access to fresh, healthy, sustainable food and provide a shared space for people to cultivate skills, get exercise and make friends. They run a local veg box scheme, sell wholesale to restaurants and incubate other food start-ups, including the new Sutton People’s Kitchen. They offer volunteering opportunities for individuals or groups, and host long-term growing apprentices. http://suttoncommunityfarm.org.uk/ @SuttonFarm
Published Wednesday 2 December 2015
Sustain: Sustain The alliance for better food and farming advocates food and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, enrich society and culture and promote equity.
