Patrick Holden is one of the pioneers of the modern sustainable food movement who, during his period as Director of the Soil Association, between 1995 and 2010, played a leadership role in developing the UK organic market. Closely involved with standards development, producer cooperation, Patrick’s extensive engagement with the public through successive media campaigns, played a key role in winning public trust in the products from sustainable agriculture. In 2010 he stepped down from the Soil Association to address a newly emerging challenge - the need to develop strategies for sustainable food systems which have wider application, for the whole of agriculture. The mission of the resulting organisation, The Sustainable Food Trust, is to promote international cooperation between all those involved in sustainable food production.
Land Sharing and Land Sparing: We Need Food in Harmony with Nature
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
I am firmly of the land sharing community. I take the view that if we are to reverse the relentless decline of biodiversity and natural ecosystems, which I was fortunate enough to witness in abundance as a child before major agricultural intensification took place, we need to change the way we farm.
A Light at the End of the Covid Tunnel?
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
So, will the apparition at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel actually represent an oncoming train that heralds the re-establishment of the globalised industrial model? Or might it be the beginnings of a renaissance of food systems which truly serve the public interest?
The Coronavirus Pandemic and Future Food Security
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
The key point is this: at a time when there is an unparalleled threat to the future health and wellbeing of citizens throughout the world, we must turn this potential catastrophe into an opportunity manifesting as a renaissance in the production, distribution and consumption of healthy, seasonal and local food.
Patrick Holden’s Thoughts on a Better Food and Farming System
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
We are causing irreparable damage to the planet: we need to use our food buying power to support producers who are not causing it. It’s an incredibly empowering thing to do as a citizen; to use your money to support a more sustainable food future.
The Secret Life of Cows: Review
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
The charming and insightful manifesto recognises that cows, as well as other animals, have far more awareness and know-how than they are given credit for. At a time in which intensive, factory farming predominates and most cows are now recognised by an electronic number not a name, Rosamund’s insights are of even greater significance.
Is Eating No Meat Actually Doing More Harm than Good?
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
If we are to move to a genuinely sustainable food system, then I think we all need to become much better informed about the sustainability or otherwise of different food systems.
The True Cost of Food
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
For true cost accounting to work, we must share knowledge and data, and adopt a more systemic way of thinking.
Six Steps Back to the Land
By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust
I am a great fan of Colin Tudge, not least because he is an original thinker, as amply demonstrated in his latest book, Six Steps Back to the Land.