The Food and Work network (FAWN) brings together academics, trade unionists and community campaigners seeking to understand the connections between structural food inequalities and working conditions in the UK.
The Food and Work Network, supported by the Experimental Humanities Collaborative Network at Birkbeck, University of London, held a day of discussion at the Organiclea Workers’ Cooperative in Chingford in May. Rowan Lubbock reports on the political debates between degrowth and productivist socialism, focusing on tensions between industrial and agroecological food production models.
The voluntary sector is crucial for UK food support due to limited government action. A study with 51 volunteers found high empathy but concerns about support abuse and ethical issues. Volunteers' motivations included the perceived value of the work and personal alignment with project goals. They also felt their involvement allowed the government to shirk responsibility.
FAWN member and agricultural labour expert Dr Lydia Medland explores in this guest blog the implications of a radically different demographic working on UK farms post-Brexit. This blog was originally published on the Migration Mobilities Bristol website.