GM Foundational Innovation Fund

Our Phase 1 project demonstrated that, not only is Probation a key service of the Foundational Economy and also that people on probation can be key workers themselves.  This is achieved by increasing the innovation capacity and sustainability of organisations working in and with the Foundational Economy, specifically those in the ‘Austerity Food Retail’ sector.

‘Austerity Food Retail’(AFR) refers to local pantries, social supermarkets and other forms of cooperative and community shops offering highly discounted products to people in food poverty. They usually make use of donated and surplus/rejected foods which would otherwise be thrown away.

Our Phase 1 project in 2023/4 successfully provided Stockport Homes’ austerity retailer ‘Your Local Pantry’ https://www.yourlocalpantry.co.uk/  with proof of this concept. It created a means of retailing more locally produced non-surplus healthy food to its members to supplement the dwindling supplies of often poor-quality surplus and donated food available to them, without having to raise their weekly membership fees to pay for it.  Phase 1 did this by working with people on probation who are subject to an Unpaid Work requirement of a Community Order (‘Community Payback’) to:

•      grow fresh seasonal fruit, vegetables, and salads on unused/under-used public land in Stockport for onward donation to the Pantries.

•      assess the feasibility of manufacturing value-added food products from the produce grown for onward donation to the Pantries.

Our new Phase 2 project (April 2024 to June 2025) builds directly on Phase 1 aims and deliverables by

• Our model/business plan, of using CP to grow fresh produce for donation to the pantries to generate new income streams from commercial production will continue and develop. This will enable them to continue to bulk-buy their own supplies of locally produced non-surplus healthy food.
• Rolling out the Model of at a further 3 sites in Stockport, Manchester and Trafford, thus supplying AFR in Greater Manchester with locally produced healthy non-surplus fresh food free of charge.
• Enhancing the model with the commercial production of mushrooms. Facilitating the manufacture of value-added food products from the produce grown in the form of:

1. Frozen healthy ready meal production at each hub, also for onward donation to AFR.
2. Using mushrooms as a meat substitute from freshly grown mushrooms at each hub for use in the ready meals.

• developing training and progression routes into employment in the food and retail sectors of the Foundational Economy for people successfully completing their Community Payback on the project - helping plug the ‘skills gap’ in the food and retail sectors of the Foundational Economy.

Payback Pathways to Healthy Eating and Food Security

 Food poverty exacerbated by the cost-of-living-crisis is a growing problem across the UK. New initiatives are therefore needed to bridge the resulting food gap. In 2022 we used Awards for All funding to do this by enlisting Probation Services Community Payback Teams (CP) to set up and run community growing spaces. This provided a model of good practice for combating food poverty by growing fresh food for donation to pantries https://www.yourlocalpantry.co.uk

This was a great success but one of the key lessons learnt was that just growing fresh food is not enough. Often people in food poverty are not equipped to use fresh foods to create healthy meals and are thrown back onto reliance on cheap unhealthy ready meals eg surplus potatoes  swapped for tins of beans and other ultra processed foods. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/02/uk-families-eating-less-healthily-due-to-cost-of-living crisis#:~:text=Overall%2C%2061%25%20said%20the%20cost;due%20to%20stress%20(15%25)

 This reliance on cheap unhealthy foods has negative impacts. 1) it increases obesity rates in the UK https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/dec/25/england-obesity-report-analysis 2) The production of the cheap meats that are often used is contributing to the problem of climate change. https://www.gfi.org/resource/a-global-protein-transition-is-necessary-to-keep-warming-below-1-5c/

So we will now  build a model of good practice that not only continues CP-supported healthy fresh food production, but also processes it into healthy ready meals prepared by CP teams and distributed through Pantries. CP teams will also be trained in mushroom cultivation to replace the use of cheap meat in the ready meals. Mushrooms provide all the same necessary proteins as meat, but don’t have the same carbon footprint associated with production of cheap meat. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/oyster-mushroom-benefits#4.-May-promote-blood-sugar-regulation During Covid ready meals were produced by community kitchens but this stopped at the end of lockdown due to lack of volunteers and supplies. The cost-of-living-crisis means they are needed again to combat food poverty, so we’ll reopen these facilities and begin by producing 100 meals per week over 3 sites.

Awards For All Logo

 Food poverty exacerbated by the cost-of-living-crisis is a growing problem across the UK. New initiatives are therefore needed to bridge the resulting food gap. In 2022 we used Awards for All funding to do this by enlisting Probation Services Community Payback Teams (CP) to set up and run community growing spaces. This provided a model of good practice for combating food poverty by growing fresh food for donation to pantries https://www.yourlocalpantry.co.uk

This was a great success but one of the key lessons learnt was that just growing fresh food is not enough. Often people in food poverty are not equipped to use fresh foods to create healthy meals and are thrown back onto reliance on cheap unhealthy ready meals eg surplus potatoes  swapped for tins of beans and other ultra processed foods. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/02/uk-families-eating-less-healthily-due-to-cost-of-living crisis#:~:text=Overall%2C%2061%25%20said%20the%20cost;due%20to%20stress%20(15%25)

 This reliance on cheap unhealthy foods has negative impacts. 1) it increases obesity rates in the UK https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/dec/25/england-obesity-report-analysis 2) The production of the cheap meats that are often used is contributing to the problem of climate change. https://www.gfi.org/resource/a-global-protein-transition-is-necessary-to-keep-warming-below-1-5c/

So we will now  build a model of good practice that not only continues CP-supported healthy fresh food production, but also processes it into healthy ready meals prepared by CP teams and distributed through Pantries. CP teams will also be trained in mushroom cultivation to replace the use of cheap meat in the ready meals. Mushrooms provide all the same necessary proteins as meat, but don’t have the same carbon footprint associated with production of cheap meat. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/oyster-mushroom-benefits#4.-May-promote-blood-sugar-regulation During Covid ready meals were produced by community kitchens but this stopped at the end of lockdown due to lack of volunteers and supplies. The cost-of-living-crisis means they are needed again to combat food poverty, so we’ll reopen these facilities and begin by producing 100 meals per week over 3 sites.

Leeks growing for the food banks

In 2022 Nornir helped to set up a new Social Enterprise called Egino Emerging. Egino works in HMPPS Accredited Premises in North Wales supporting the prisoners with their adjustments to being released.

Volunteers who are ex prisoners them selves have established gardens at the AP and have grown food for themselves and donated the surpluses to local Food Pantries.

Part of the work has involved setting up organic fertiliser production called vermiculture through the building of wormeries. This uses worms to eat waste products and turn it into fertiliser that can then be used back in the gardens.

Training books on how to set up a wormery has been written and can be read on the Egino web site at: https://www.eginoemerging.org/post/how-to-start-worm-farming-in-wales-community-gardens

Or you can download the book for free from the link below.

https://books2read.com/u/bWYP5D

There is also a Welsh Language version of the book at:

https://books2read.com/u/bp1KXJ

Presentations from attendees

We attended a Stockport Food Partnership Event at the Masonic Hall Stockport on 14 November 2023.

A short presentation was made to about 20 local community food growing organisations and a range of healthcare/community staff as well as regeneration officers from the Council. Officer from Manchester City Council were also present with an aim to swap good practice.

We explained about the GMCV funding and how the model we are trying to roll out the model we have developed in Marple. Community Payback people are currently working not only at our site in Marple but also in Brinnington where they work 6 days a week.