Wholesome Food Association

-THE key to the future of UK farming would seem to be in the growth of small-scale growers, producing food for local markets. PHIL CHANDLER explains the role of the Wholesome Food Association.

E.coli, BSE, salmonella and herbicide-resistant mutants - the consequences of a food production system that puts profit before health and environmental protection - have together done more for the sales of organic produce than 50 years of gentle persuasion by dedicated pioneers.

Organic food has moved from the margins into the mainstream, not because shoppers had a Road to Damascus moment en masse, but because they lost faith in what men in white coats and men in black suits said was good for them. They didn't get religion; they got scared.

The response of the supermarkets to this shift in the nation's buying habits has been to import organic food from countries where it is relatively cheap to produce, either because of government subsidies in most of the rest of Europe, or the availability of cheap labour in Africa and elsewhere. About 80% of organic produce sold in the UK is not grown here, although most of it could be if our growers were not penalised for using environmentally benign farming methods. Not only are conversion grants here less generous than elsewhere in the EC, and ongoing subsidies non-existent, but certification fees of around £500 per annum represent an additional tax on the grower, just to allow them to use the 'organic' label.

The official response to food scares was first to deny the problem existed, then to blame the previous government, and finally to pass yet more Health and Safety laws and close down local abbatoirs - anything but face the fact that much of our farming and food production system is inherently toxic, unsafe and unsustainable.

Why the persistent state of state denial? We need look no further than the massively influential food industry lobby.

More than any other commodity, food is the stuff of marketing executives' dreams: everyone, but everyone, has to consume at least some of the stuff every single day of their lives. In Britain, that's 50-odd million mouths generating profits for supermarkets, seven days a week.

Alongside these developments, there are signs of a popular revolt against corporate control of the food chain. More and more people are saying that they want safe, nutritious, locally-produced food from sources they trust. They don't want to eat chemical residues or genetic mutations and they have a deep distrust of scientists with links to corporate interests and an even deeper distrust of government spin doctors. While nine out of 10 of us shop regularly in supermarkets, a recent informal Radio 4 poll revealed that about 70% of people who called in thought we would be better off without them.

At the forefront of this movement towards localisation is the Wholesome Food Association, a new and growing UK-wide organisation of smallholders, farmers, food manufacturers and restaurants, with a strong belief in the value of high quality, chemical-free, local food. The WFA is making a stand for small-scale, local production and is rebuilding the links between growers and consumers. Vegetables, meat and fruit are all sold under the WFA local symbol scheme, which has a unique, low-cost approach to providing locally-sourced food that benefits everyone involved, including hard-hit rural economies.

WFA producers sign a 'pledge', which describes their production methods. This information is made available to customers, who can also visit the grower's land by appointment to see for themselves how their food is produced - so there is full traceability, which is not possible with even organic food that has been imported or shipped across the country.

WFA growers co-operate with each other in local groups with the aim of providing a wide range of produce to their community through Farmers' Markets, box schemes and farm gate sales. There are also plans under way for co-operatively owned WFA shops.

People can see that it makes no sense to fly food - even organic food - into Britain from thousands of miles away, while our farmers and growers struggle to compete against massive corporations intent on making us dependent on them for our daily bread. There is plenty of evidence to show that we could produce all our basic foodstuffs right here, using genuinely sustainable methods, without toxic chemicals or genetic engineering. Many smallholders and farmers know how to get high yields without poisoning the land, and if they sell direct to the public or through co-operative shops and markets, they don't get squeezed by supermarkets.

The WFA is not proposing a return to a romanticised, pre-industrial age. We suggest that this is a practical possibility, with the potential to solve many of the great environmental challenges now facing us. If we are to make the changes we urgently need in order to reduce energy consumption and pollution, food miles must be dramatically reduced overall. There is no sense in flying beans in from Kenya - even organic beans - that could just as easily be grown domestically. It is absurd to import thousands of tons of apples from New Zealand, while equally good apples lie rotting in English orchards. It is patently ridiculous to export about as much butter as we import, and there is no excuse for inflicting unnecessary cruelty on animals by sending them abroad while simultaneously importing meat from Argentina.

In the Western world, agriculture has become increasingly divorced from the lives of ordinary people. UK farmers are leaving the land at the rate of about 20,000 per year, yet at the same time, there is a growing number of people who operate sustainably-managed smallholdings and small-scale farms with the aim of supplying quality food to their local communities. We believe that they hold the key to the regeneration of our agricultural system and that they deserve our support and encouragement.

You can find out more about the Wholesome Food Association by visiting their web site at www.wholesomefood.org, or by calling Phil Chandler on 01803 840427.