CROWDFUNDER TO TURN HARVEST FARM SHOP INTO A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE CO-OPERATIVE

A group of growers and food educators local to Okehampton are asking for pledges to help transform their shop and benefit the community. 

Harvest Farm Shop in Okehampton’s Red Lion Yard, which has been run by local organic growers Martin and Sara for the last 2 years, is becoming a not for profit workers co op with 5 other members – the ‘Harvest Workers’ Co-op’.

As well as continuing to offer affordable, local and organic groceries, the shop will develop new off-site educational activities, helping the local community to engage in the social, environmental and health issues surrounding food and farming. In order to do so, the group need to raise £15,000 through their Crowdfunding campaign.

Martin and Sara have always been keen to run the shop co-operatively. Martin says: “We saw this as an opportunity to increase access to organic food in the local area and to raise awareness about the key role that farming plays in our health, the environment and the local economy”.

The Crowdfunding campaign asks for help to give the shop a much needed makeover, to support costs during transition and expansion into events, and to purchase vital equipment for the co-operative. In return for donations, the group offer a wealth of rewards for their community; weekly bread from the shop, yoga workshops, an introduction to sourdough course, wild food walks, farm-based seasonal cooking and many more local, food-related prizes – all a taster of what’s to come. The campaign will run throughout June in order to start the co-operative in July this year.

With the nation’s reliance on out-of-season, imported produce continuing to escalate, the need for more localised food webs where we can connect with the seasons and nature is becoming more prominent. Talks relating to farming, wildlife, food security and working the land sustainably are on the Harvest Workers’ Co-op’s agenda for their educational programme, which they believe will better secure our food system for the future.

Harvest Worker's Co-op offers a real alternative to supermarket shopping with a focus on small scale, local suppliers growing seasonal food using natural methods.

“We stock local, organic, sustainable and ethically produced food, all sourced with both our customers and producers in mind”; says Sara.

To find out more about Harvest Workers’ Co-op and their Crowdfunding campaign, visit their page at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/harvest-workers-co-op.