Flour by Horsepower
Earlier this year we had a call from incomparable Devon farmer and horseman Jonathan Waterer. He was coming to Suffolk to look at a new horse-drawn seed drill, did we want him to deliver some flour? We did.
East Anglian Agroforestry Open Farm Weekend (1st & 2nd May)
We know there are no quick fixes, no simple solutions, no one-size-fits all answers to the complex, existential challenges facing us. But agroforestry, a system of farming that combines agriculture with trees, is as close to a perfect answer as we've seen. And now you can see too!
A view from the Bean Store: Ashia
Ashia Trevor-Massey started working at the Bean Store at the end of last year, here she reflects on why she chose to work for Hodmedod and what she likes about our shared vision for change.
A Food Revolution Starts With Seed
Access to seed, to the varieties we know should be being grown - because they taste great, have fantastic nutritional properties or are well suited to specific climates or geographies - is often incredibly difficult. One way or another that has to change.
Morsels: Seed Saving, Climate Costs, Ingredients of the Year, Roman Snacks, Farming Places
Food for thought we've been chewing on.
Looking Forward
2020 was a difficult year in many ways and for many people. At the Bean Store we struggled with long hours, uncertainty and anxiety. But we were also incredibly lucky. We continued to trade and had our health where others were less fortunate, and we had time to reflect, re-group and make new plans. We’re really looking forward to 2021.
Trees at the Bean Store
This National Tree Week a wood was planted at the back of the Bean Store. We believe there should be more space for trees on farms - in the form of woods and also more formal agroforestry systems. But also (especially) scrubby ‘untidy’ areas.
Morsels: Botanical Diversity, Local Food, Soil Superpowers, Food Revolution, Scale & Ethics, Living Wages
A few things we've been reading.
Bundles & Boxes
There is no better gift than pulses, grains and seeds (right?!), so we’ve put together some bundles and boxes of products from across our range.
Morsels: Harvest Special, Magic Beans, Pedal Power, Wrinkled Peas, Food Standards
Nourishing nuggets form recent weeks.
There is No Silver Bullet
This evening, along with Henry our chickpea grower, we’ll be featured on BBC Countryfile. It’s a harvest episode and the section we’re in sees Adam reflecting on a poor oil seed rape (OSR) harvest then traveling out to find alternatives. Who knows quite how it’ll come out in the edit, but our aim was to explain that there is no alternative. No single crop that can be dropped into a rotation to solve the problems that come with a reductive, commodity focused system of supply.
Milling Offal - let’s eat more of it!
We only sell stoneground whole grain flours, these are made by milling the whole cereal seed and not sifting the flour. We do this because we know that wholegrain flours taste better and are better for us. But we've started selling bran and semolina, the by-products of white flour production - Josiah explains why.