Miscellaneous
In this episode, I chat with my friend Ruth Davie, a community nutritionist who runs a food project called Fundamental Foods in Prestonpans, East Lothian. We chat about how she got started in community nutrition after she completed her nutrition degree, and how her work has changed over the past few years, as concerns around food insecurity have increased. This episode is for you whether you’re a parent or professional if you’ve ever been interested in what community food projects do, especially when it comes to addressing the difficulties that so many families are currently facing in simply accessing enough food. It may also be of interest to anyone studying nutrition who wants to know more about the types of projects that are looking for volunteers to help you gain experience. Some of the things we mention are: BBC good food, where Ruth goes for recipe inspiration for her cooking classes: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes Fare Share, and organisation that redistributes surplus food to charities: https://fareshare.org.uk/what-we-do/ Ruth's organisation Fundamental Foods, which is part of the Pennypit Community Development Trust: https://www.thepennypitcommunitydevelopmenttrust.com/community-nutrition I also thought it might be useful to share some details of other organisations working on community food and food insecurity. In Scotland, the Poverty and Inequality Commission are looking at wider actions to address food insecurity, and produced this recent report: https://povertyinequality.scot/publication/local-action-to-tackle-food-insecurity-during-the-coronavirus-crisis/ Other community food projects based in Scotland, along with national work to support community food, can be found through Community Food and Health Scotland: https://www.communityfoodandhealth.org.uk/ At a UK level, the Food Foundation is working hard to realise children's right to food: https://foodfoundation.org.uk/childrens-future-food-inquiry/ And of course, there is much more going on nationally and internationally to support equitable access to nutritious food. You can contact Ruth via the Pennypit at the link above, or find her on twitter: https://twitter.com/fundamentalruth You can contact me at https://www.sarahdempster.co.uk/