Megan Perry

The problem Vivien identified, of people not wanting to be who they are, is reflected throughout many cultures. Even in the UK, there is a disconnect between wider society and traditional farming practices.

From the back streets of Jerusalem to the markets of Nablus we take a journey through some of the most iconic foods, learning how they connect people, offering comfort and community and making tangible years of culture and history.

On this culinary tour with a twist, we travelled the West Bank meeting farmers and food producers, eating in local restaurants and with families in refugee camps and Bedouin villages. Heartening and heart-wrenching in equal measure, the ten days spent exploring Palestinian food culture showed a people with a deep love for the land and the food traditions that come with it.

At this year’s Oxford Real Farming Conference the Sustainable Food Trust will be convening a session delving into one of the most important issues for future farming policy in the UK – how do we measure on-farm sustainability and bring about convergence in the multitude of conflicting and overlapping assessment and certification systems currently being used?

Why do we have such a seemingly illogical food system? This is the question at the heart of Graham Harvey’s recently published book, Grass-Fed Nation, a manifesto for grazing livestock and the extensive benefits of mixed farming.

A recent ‘Open-Gate’ day at Croome Court, organised by RegenAg UK and sponsored by Holistic Management International, showed just how beneficial the holistic management of livestock can be.