Inspiring

As I am always keen to find out where the food I eat is produced, other than that we grow for ourselves!  I have visited the place where the veg box I have delivered every week is packed up and where some of the contents are grown.  I have been having a box delivered since the beginning of last year, a few months ago the place I visited today took over the delivery of my box.

It is run as a community owned food co-operative and registered as an Industrial and Provident Society.  My last paid job was for a company incorporated in the same way and it is a model that it would be good if more companies adopted especially those who are driven by profit.

We were given a tour of the site, it is not huge but it took nearly two hours to look round as there was so much to see.  The company took over the site, which had been previously used to grow bedding plants, in 2000 and inherited several very large glasshouses.  The whole place felt like one of innovation, of creativity, of experimentation, flourishing.

There are many large, multinational companies who are owned by even fewer global organisations.  They are so big, inpersonal and cannot possibly be in touch with all the countries that they operate in, and most are profit driven.  It is refreshing to find a company who are the complete opposite of this.  Who are actively involved in local food production though such positive means, long may they continue and inspire others.