As FoodWise Leeds, we work with people from across the city to deliver the Leeds Food Strategy. In 2019, Leeds was awarded a Bronze Award from Sustainable Food Places (SFP). More about these awards here. Our aim is for Leeds to achieve the Silver Award and eventually the Gold. 

But we can’t do it without you.

The next step in achieving these aims, is to reach our target of 500 Individual Good Food Actions.

Will you help us do that?

By telling us about the good food actions you are taking, we can know the impact we are making collectively as a city. Whether you are reducing food waste, eating healthier food or learning how to grow your own veg, every action matters. 

And we want to know about your actions.

Every Action Counts and gets us one step closer to our goal.

As an example of how simple it is to get started, I thought I’d share my own food story. 

I stumbled upon FoodWise Leeds about a year back during an event at Leftbank Leeds. At the time, I was intrigued and perhaps a little daunted by the idea of growing my own veggies, and so I decided to attend a workshop organized by Feed Leeds. At that point, I had just about been able to keep all my indoor plants alive for a whole year (and I was pretty excited about that!)

 The workshop turned out to be a game-changer for me. I was really inspired by Feed Leeds. It was such a large network of growers across the city and they introduced to us some brilliant ideas: like ‘Little Veg Libraries’ and #SowaRowXtra – simple schemes that I thought had the potential to really help new growers like me get growing. I left that session with two free tomato plants and enough growing ‘know how’ to get me started. And that was just the beginning of my food journey.

Now I grow my own salad veg, and herbs, as well as climbing roses that the bees absolutely adore. This all grows in pots and old tyres in what was an ugly unused area in a communal concrete yard. A real transformation with very little effort – now the space is peaceful, pretty and a nice place to sit and watch nature.

I‘ve taken many more actions since that first tomato plant: like eating more fresh and locally sourced veg, wasting less food by using it up in home-made soups; and switching to locally made compost. I’m now beginning my own bokashi composting system and am considering community composting to turn my food waste into nutrient-rich soil for the local area. I could never have predicted a year ago where one free workshop would lead.

You can help us reach our target of 500 by telling us about the actions you are taking and encouraging others to take action. We’d also love for any organisations or food businesses to join us in taking action too! For more examples of what we’re looking for, take a look at our Take Action pages for individuals, organisations and food businesses.

Together we can create a healthy, sustainable and fairer food system for everyone in Leeds.