Join Myco Manchester and Bristol
Fungarium for a discussion of what it
is like to cultivate and scale fungi for
food, medicine and community. Myco
is a small scale urban mushroom
farm based in a market garden which
focuses on community development
and is currently working on creating a
"genetics library" of local mushroom
strains inspired by the seed sharing
movement. Bristol Fungarium grows
two tonnes a month of medicinal
mushrooms, which they extract and
bottle on site. They are working with
RHS Wisley and Natural England to
reintroduce native fungi strains to UK
Forests. Hear the stories of these two
fungi projects, and the lessons learned
along the way.

ORFC 2024 Mushroom Farming- Experiences Of Growing And Working With Fungi

Speakers: Mathias Van Steenbergen, Walter Pirri, Esther Hoedemakers 

Chair: Cid Van Veerdegem

The Food Hub is a Belgian cooperative wholesaler that works with small-scale, organic producers from Southern Europe. They are a multi-stakeholder coop, so both suppliers (farmers) and customers (shops) are shareholders. In a traditional model, those two have conflicting interests, but The Food Hub have facilitated a model to divide profits by working with a ristorno policy: this shares profits based on the associate’s transactions with the cooperative. But how do you create a fair division between the different shareholders? This promises to be an interesting discussion!

ORFC2025 How To Divide Profit In A MultiStakeholder Cooperative

Speakers: John Seed, Rhodri LloydWilliams, Rachel Phillips,  Hannah Blitzer

Chair: David McKay

Across the UK, farmers, growers and crofters are navigating an increasingly challenging environment, with complex and often conflicting demands on land use - from food production to wildlife restoration, climate adaptation, and more. A ‘whole farm approach’ is often recommended to help maximise the multifunctionality of agricultural land, but what does that look like on-farm, and how can it be better supported by agricultural policy? In this session, we identify key characteristics of whole farm planning, hear from farmers who have started putting this approach into practice, and explore how policymakers across the devolved nations could support more farms to follow suit.

ORFC2025 Systems Thinking: Exploring The Benefits And Barriers To Whole Farm Approaches

Speakers: Julia Kirby-Smith, Holly Purdey, Jimmy Woodrow

Chair: Sarah Wakefield

In order to achieve our multiple health, environmental and animal welfare goals we need to think differently about the amount of meat and dairy that we consume and produce. But there are many real and perceived barriers to achieving this, and many questions about how we can overcome them. Join the Eating Better alliance for a stimulating discussion answering your questions on what ‘less and better’ means for farming. We’ll explore how to make dietary change possible, and discuss the pivotal role that ‘less and better’ meat production, alongside increased plant consumption and production, has in reshaping the food system.

ORFC2025 Better Meat, More Plants: Opportunities For Farmers

Facilitators: Vicki Hird, Tammy Smalley, Lucia Monje-Jelfs, Laura Stratford, Julien Etienne, Robert Caudwell

Lowland carbon peat soils are precious — from storing vast amounts of carbon to being a key wildlife, food and hydrological resource. Yet they are severely degraded, leading to soil and nature loss and greenhouse gas emissions. This is partly due to major horticulture, arable and livestock production which needs to change or move elsewhere. This session is led by the Wildlife Trusts, Soil Association, and Greater Lincolnshire Food Partnership. A panel of practitioners and experts who work with local growers will initiate a group discussion on key issues, and on how local dialogues, issues of place, and livelihoods matter. Small groups will then work on lowland peat production and solutions to discuss in a final wrap-up.

ORFC2025 WORKSHOP Creating Solutions For Farming On Lowland Peat

Speakers: Mark Walton, Henri Greig, Charlotte Molyneux

Chair: Sarah Williams

The session will look at local powers and levers driving the adoption of agroecological practices and the role of food partnerships in this context. The session will offer participants an overview of the role that local authorities can play to support the agricultural sector including examples from Devon County Council, farmers, policy experts and food partnerships. This is a workshop-style session where there will be opportunities to exchange ideas, ask questions and contribute to a discussion as to how local powers could further support the sector.

ORFC2025 WORKSHOP Local Powers And Levers Driving Agroecology

Facilitators: Boglárka Bozsogi, Giacomo Ranalli

This workshop facilitated by Emergent Generation aims to connect food and farming youth movements in the UK and Europe promoting agroecology. We invite youth under 35 engaged in food and farming action to map our activities, identify synergies, pinpoint gaps, and find opportunities to collaborate — turning ideas into action, setting plans in motion. Whether you are a representative of an organisation or simply curious, this is a space for young people to discuss the challenges and rewards of network building, explore ways to achieve greater impact and reach, voice our needs, and connect with others on a regenerative journey.

ORFC2025 WORKSHOP Agroecological Youth Movements — Let's Connect!

Hosted by Sustain, Emergent Generation, Soil Association and Roots to Work

This session aims to provide an informal, inclusive, and engaging networking opportunity for anyone who is passionate about — or curious about — the politics and practice of food and farming. The event is aimed at fostering intergenerational cohesion by welcoming those newer to the movement and those established in it. Come along to meet new people, share ideas and opportunities, and build new connections. Please note that this event is in the café on the second floor of the Cheng Building, you will need to take the lift or stairs up.

ORFC2025 WORKSHOP Intergenerational Learning And Campaigning On Genetic Modification

Speakers: Shinya Imahashi, Matthew Adams, Jana Rock

Chair: Ben Raskin

This panel will explore how we can recognize and nurture the innate life force in seed, soil and plants to advance human and planetary health. Panellists will provide perspectives on how growing practices and the consciousness of the farmer can lead to greater resilience, nutrition, and flavour in food. The panel will discuss ways to assess nutrient density, the importance of food vitality and community engagement, and how our relationship with nature nurtures mind, body and spirit.

ORFC2025 Nurturing The Life Force In Seed, Soil And Plants

Speakers: George Bennett, Steven Sidhu

Building a retail offer around customer choice needn’t be at the expense of farmer’s time, effort and leftover stock. George Bennett shares his experience at Sandy Lane Farm of switching from fixed contents to customer-controlled customisations of veg boxes using lean principles to increase sales while reducing admin, customer support, packing and delivering time and leftover stock. Steven Sidhu, Founder and CEO of Growing Good Technology shares how they are helping unlock the full potential of local veg box retail with a deep dive into the data.

ORFC2025 A New Horizon For The Humble Veg Box

NB Recording incomplete

Facilitators: Ali Taherzadeh, Christabel Buchanan

This is the second part of this movement strategy series which will bring together those working and organising in the movement for land and food justice in the UK, to explore how we can work better together to achieve the changes we want to see. We will look at practical ways that we can work more effectively together as a movement; develop a shared understanding of power and representation within the movement; find strength in diversity, and overcome barriers to working together by developing a plan for a shared strategy.

ORFC 2024 Mushroom Farming- Experiences Of Growing And Working With Fungi

Oxford Real Farming Conference