Local MP Daniel Zeichner and city councillor Alex Collis praised CoFarm’s contribution to tackling food insecurity in the city throughout the pandemic during a visit to the urban market garden at the end of August.
Zeichner’s role as Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Collis’ position as Cambridge City Council’s Executive Councillor for Open Spaces, Sustainable Food and Community Wellbeing put them in good stead to assess CoFarm’s work in transforming food production so nature and communities can thrive.
Collis and Zeichner were given a tour of the farm by horticultural leads Peter Wrapson and Dominic Walsh; volunteer co-farmer Jessica Rowbury and CoFarm’s Founder, Gavin Shelton. They saw 55 types of vegetables being grown in garden rows, polytunnels and on climbing structures. They heard about the nature-friendly techniques used to encourage insects and improve soil health - such as planting cover crops, sowing four acres of wildflower meadows, and using natural methods to control pests and manage weeds in place of pesticides and herbicides.
Left to right: City councillor Neil Shailer, Alex Collis, Daniel Zeichner, and CoFarm’s horticultural leads Dominic Walsh and Peter Wrapson
CoFarm’s hugely positive impact on the local community was commended by Collis and Zeichner. As well as weekly donations to nine local food hubs across the city - almost ten tonnes of vegetables have been donated since June 2020 - the farm has also welcomed hundreds of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds that have helped create and maintain it. The community farm has become a vibrant space to make new friends, learn about growing food, and get some gentle exercise while being surrounded by nature - creating an ideal environment for improving physical and mental wellbeing.
Collis and Zeichner discussed the need for fairer, more inclusive food systems - whereby healthy, nutritious food is accessible to everybody, and the importance of working with nature to produce food, not against it.
CoFarm Cambridge’s approach is based on agroecological farming principles, which, unlike industrial farming methods, uses ecological concepts and principles to create greater benefits to people and nature. CoFarm is the third charity in the UK to have included agroecology in its charitable objects and the first to promote co-farming.
Mr Zeichner said: ‘What the CoFarm Cambridge team are doing is truly remarkable. From once again committing to donate all their produce to emergency food hubs across the city, to pioneering new ways to reduce health inequalities, boost biodiversity and create fairer, more inclusive local food systems, I commend them for their work. I was pleased to meet and offer my congratulations to Gavin, and everyone involved with this initiative, on demonstrating such altruism and innovation, and look forward to visiting again in the not-too-distant future.’
To follow the story in the Cambridge Independent: “Cambridge MP Daniel Zeichner praises ‘truly remarkable’ CoFarm”.
CoFarm Cambridge is fundraising to cover its core costs (around £58,000 per year) and is at 73% of its target. Please help us reach 80% this month: www.justgiving.com/campaign/cofarmcambridge
