Expressions of Support

Conroy Williams - www.hsse.org.uk
Would be interested in exhibiting at show. On a personal note would like to explore eco holiday accommodation in conjunction with the pilot in hampshire, have working group in progress. Please make contact if interested.

Pamela Eastwood
I have an academic background in food and consumer studies and would be very interested in getting involved with the project.

Andrew Charlton, King's Lynn, Norfolk
In twenty years time the way in which we grow, distribute and consume food will have changed out of all recognition. We need the Food and More Project to help us all understand how to improve.

Alan Stevens, Chairman Sustainable Business Partnership (SBP) for Hants & the IOW - www.the-sbp.co.uk
"The SBP are pleased to offer their support for the Food and More project as it sets out to address the essential need for building all aspects of more locally sourced sustainable food production."

Lisa Tracey, Bournemouth - www.trickytreats.co.uk
"Well done for taking the lead! I'm excited to support a project that encourages a chain of understanding from production to ingestion! As a trader at farmers' markets I see the importance of food and trade within a community. Food is so much (and!) more than just buying and selling, it also creates an environment in which people can communicate and understand each other on many different levels".

Linda Elliot, Hampshire
"What a great concept. Even better, you're really going to make this happen. Brilliant! Certainly get's my vote."

Chris Pratt from Pratts - www.prattsfood.co.uk
Sounds like a great plan

The Southern Co-operative - thesouthernco-operative.co.uk
As an ethical, responsible local retailer, we at The Southern Co-operative cannot fail to take note of the increasing importance in supporting local food producers- by stocking locally grown and produced food in our stores, we can put something back into the communities in which we live and work. The Southern Co-operative fully supports The Food and More Project's goal to substantially strengthen local food sustainability, and is committed to becoming more deeply involved with our county's excellent producers to play our part in this exciting initiative.

JK from Cheltenham
This is a very important initiative and needs to be promoted and supported robustly. Well done!

PD from Shouldham
I totally support the aims of the food and more project. Keep up the good work.

Mike Hall
"I Chair the SCI Horticulture Technical Interest Group. I am a Director of East Anglia Food Link I am an Examiner for the RHS and at Askham Bryan College"

Daughne Taylor, NHS
HAPPY TO ASSIST WITH TRAINING,KNOWLEDGE,TIME,EFFORT AND ENTHUSIASM

Brigitte Verdiere
"The Food and More Project has strength,and clear objectives. It can only move forward. You have my support."

Rebecca Goodland
I support your vision for the future of food. Sustainability, locally grown food on organic lines is essential for the survival of proper growing conditions and a viable rural life.

Ben Dalby - www.brdalby.co.uk/
IT project consultancy, including system analysis and architecture of food supply chain applications. Nice to meet you Ian, and happy to pitch in. Best wishes, Ben

Catherine Teeling, CURe, University of Portsmouth
CURe is the Creative Urban Regeneration group within the University of Portsmouth, we have set up urban lots for staff and students and are working to establish urban lots within communities and would be interested in getting involved with and supporting your Food & More project.

Francoise Murat - www.francoisemurat.com
Extremely important to suppport local and seasonal food producers. Well done for pushing the message out and if we can help - just call us.

Emma Caulton
Once again Sunnyfields are in the vanguard, How we grow, produce, present, package and prepare our food has never been more important in terms of our health, environment and economy. The Food & More project is about cooperation and community on so many different levels. I wish you all the best in this venture.

Chloe Fox Lambert
A wonderful vision of a brighter and positive future for the world - projects of this nature are borne out of a deep comittment to our planet and honouring all that exist thereon. If I can help in any way, let me know and I'm there.

Rik Razza, BaxterStorey - www.baxterstorey.com
"Ian it was good meeting you at the regional food supplier fair the other day. As a company Baxterstorey support and endorse the use of local, sustainable and seasonal food and suppliers. I look forward to working with you in the future."

Brendan Howard - www.ptcontractors.co.uk
"Fantastic project. A project of this type is badly needed. I wish you all the best"

Denise John-Phillip - The Royal Marsden Hospital
This is a very exciting and very important project. As a part of the NHS it is necessary part of our future in supplying sustainable food to our patients, staff and visitors.

Nick Leach - Portsmouth University Catering
The Catering trade needs to get behind this 101%

Dominic Gunn - Royal Marsden Hospital
The right planning and enough support then why not?

Liam Kelly - The Royal Marsden NHS
I am delighted to be taking part in schemes related to the sustain projects, they are a crucial part of change for our future in the food industry and a lot of fun.

Nikki McCann - www.walthamplace.com/welcome.php?section=education
"As the farm's education officer I applaud this projects committment to educating children and families about the food they eat. In a sea of pre packaged food it is easy to lose sight of the process our food goes through to reach the plate. Globally we will face many challenges in the years to come and developing a sustainable food network is one of the most important important steps we need to take."

Evelyn Cook - Hampshire County Council School Meals - www3.hants.gov.uk/caterers
As the Counties school meals provider we work with Hampshire Fare to provide food of the best quality from where possible local sources. Anything that helps us do this can only be good for us all.

Colin Phillips - www.colin-phillips.co.uk
Brilliant Project - I cannot wait

Todd Bulmer, Kenyon Hall Farm, Cheshire - www.northernharvest.co.uk
We have been retailers of 'real' food for many years & believe that this project will bring that concept to many more people.www.kenyonhall.co.uk

Christine Watkins - www.environmentcentre.com
This joined up action is what is needed if we are going to move the agenda forward and make a real difference

Stuart Nisbet
Ater hearing about this today i think it is very important that we sort the distribution network out to make it easier to source and use local and seasonal products

Greg Sheridan - www.milknosugar.com
I'm right behind this.

Daniel Spicer - www.nomorenoodles.co.uk
I think The Food and More Project is a superb idea, I am a real advocate of eating healthy with fresh and organic foods and I will be offering all the support I can!

Angus Whitehead - www.mr-whiteheads-cider.co.uk
I'm supportive of anything that will encourage people to utilise and make the best of their local resources. We ALL know it makes sense!

William Wolmer, Blackmoor Estate, Hampshire. - www.blackmoorestate.co.uk
Great to hear of a project that attempts to move beyond the increasingly well worn rhetoric about sustainable food and farming to map a concrete plan of action. Good luck!

Sarah Metcalfe
I would like to offer my time as a volunteer for any local projects - especially to do with food production(crops and animals.

Penny Beauchamp, Public Procurement Manager, South East Food and Drink Partnership - www.southeastenglandfoodanddrink.co.uk
This project is needed more now than ever.

Mark Houghton Brown, Nelson, New Zealand
Fantastic Project which deserves to realise its goals

Tim Jackson, Principal, Sparsholt College, Hampshire - www.sparsholt.ac.uk
Sparsholt College Hampshire is very supportive of the 'Food and More' project and for the emphasis of the project on a recognition of the provenance of food the crucial issue of food miles. We believe that the project is going to be particularly important for the new 14/19 Environment and Land Based Diploma which will be available to school age children throughout Hampshire very shortly

William White NFU SE Regional Director - farmingfutures.co.uk/
I’ll be encouraging the regions’ farmers and growers to look further into the future than they’ve ever done before in order to assess what they’ll be growing, who’ll they’ll be supplying and who or what will have the real power in the supply chain. I’d like farmers and growers to think about how the Food and More project might help their businesses survive into the future. A project that offers fresh thinking on some of the greatest environmental conundrums of the day, offers potential new routes to market and a ready supply of consumers eager to learn more about good food and good farming deserves nothing less than our support.

Chris Whitlock, NFU Group Secretary, New Forest
This a most exciting project and I fully endorse the ideas for taking local food and involvement forward. With the world food supply needing to double in the next 40 years, feeding the populace will be what it is all about in the very near future and we all need to gear up to meet that challenge before it is too late. This project aspires to help meet that need and I wish the organisers well with it.

Simon Gibbons - www.expressfm.com
Great stuff - it really is the next logical step and is something that I wholeheartedly agree with. I'm very excited at what this will do for food in this country and hopefully will set an example abroad as well.

Tim Hamilton - www.hamiltons-london.com
I fully support The Food and More Project as it is a positive effort to address the question of climate change. This initiative provides a focus for all of us to play a part in making the world more sustainable.

Chandeep Nijhar - www.wave105.com

Jim Brown - www.bakerbrown.co.uk
This is a highly ambitious project addressing some of the most challenging issues we face as a society. The success of the project will depend on its ability to engage communities in practical actions and intiatives that are sustainable, not only in an environmental sense, but also as financially viable social enterprises.

Alistair Gibson
An important idea with an underlying sense of passion. 'A sense of place' is what makes food interesting to me and this seems to fit in quite happily here.

Eka Morgan, Director of The Children's Food Festival - www.childrensfoodfestival.co.uk
Producing and eating healthy food is the crux of the matter - it's also a recipe for happiness.

Dr Charles Merfield - www.merfield.com
The Food and More Project is a truly innovative idea and one that is needed with ever-growing urgency. Too many people are now disconnected from agriculture and the land, even though these are the foundations on which all civilisations are based. However, top down solutions can only go so far, it is vital to have a bottom up groundswell of involvement by citizens and communities. This is what marks The Food and More Project at being truly unique and giving it the ultimate power to succeed.

Phil Stocker, Director of Farmer and Grower Relations, The Soil Association - www.soilassociation.org
Phil Stocker Soil Association - I would like to add our support for the Food and More project. Increasing understanding of food production, encouraging more people to get involved in growing and farming, improving access to good quality and locally produced organic food - all these things are crucial if we are to achieve a food secure planet while improving environments and communities.

Cheryl Cohen, London Farmers' Markets - www.lfm.org.uk
It's so important to help people to connect with the whole cycle of food from farm to farmers markets; to increase knowledge of food production and show that locally produced & raised produce is the best available

Christopher Clarke
"This is a fantastic idea. The Importance of food security and the effects of food production on the environment are often overlooked and misunderstood.
It is incredibly important to reconnect people with their local environment their food and the land, This scheme is a brilliant way to achieve that. The shortening of supply chains and the increased consumer uptake of local seasonal and organic produce will offer real environmental and health benefits to the UK population. I wish this scheme the best of the success and believe it could offer real benefits to the entire country and futher afield."

Helen Merfield
I believe that the The Food and More Project is one of the most ambitious, exciting and important food projects ever conceived - and one that will be important for the generations to come. We must be more concious of what we eat and how it is made and this amazing project will bring this awarenes to the masses - in a way that is fun and inspirational - it is a must have in this time !!!

Hilary Chittock
Having followed the Food and More Project from its early beginnings I am very excited that this ambitious first phase could start in Hampshire in 2009 - that would be fantastic so good luck with the business plan - you can do it!

David Harrison, Hampshire County Councillor and Member for Totton South and Marchwood - www.dharrison.org.uk
"I am very pleaed to express my full support for this exciting project. Ian deserves the backing of everyone. This venture represents just the sort of forward looking thinking, translated into action, that has the potential to change lives for the better for thousands of people. County Councillor David Harrison, Member for Totton South & Marchwood 8th December 2008 "

Festival Place, Jane Stewart - www.festivalplace.co.uk
I am supportive of this great project

Lulu Bowerman
An excellent 'movement' that will bring food production back to the people and encourage sustainability and social involvement

Sophie Boxall
This great project will do much to ensure the sustainability of British food and farming, which I fully support. As the saying goes 'We are what we eat'. Britain should be proud of its fantastic produce and food heritage.

Tim Finney - www.helenbrowningorganics.co.uk
ALL THE WAY, BEEN A GREAT ENTHUSIAST FOR THIS. It's time is never more right. Food and its production will become centremost in people's minds as we move thro the next 10-20 years or more as technologies prove disappointing, and energy and climate needs force people to sort their priorities

Peter Etter
I believe strongly in sustainably produced and, where possible, locally sourced food. In particular I favour the smaller producer who has a commitment to quality and individuality.

Charlotte Hollins - www.fordhallfarm.com
It looks to be a fantastic project and well needed - we wish you the best of luck.

Connie, Southampton
Best of luck with your project.

Zac Goldsmith
We need to reduce the distance between producers and consumers - not only to minimise 'food miles', but to support our farmers and boost the country's food security. This type of sustainable food 'hub' will be key.

Tom Beeston - www.eatengland.org
There's some great people doing some great work, and now it is good to see work like this which is trying to do more than just scrape the surface of the issues. 80% GHG reductions, and rebuilding our crumbling communities are big tasks and need deliverable big ideas, this is the first I've seen. Many thanks, Tom Beeston

Andy Mackenzie, Executive Chef, Lainston House Hotel, Winchester - www.exclusivehotels.co.uk
"Looking forward to a new level of local food. Again something Hampshire can be very proud of and it has my full support, I hope soon to be rolling up my sleeves and getting stuck in with anything to do with Food and More"

Susie Carter - www.susieskitchen.co.uk
The Food and More Project might just save our country from starvation and ruin in the future. Right now, it is the single most exciting development in food and farming of today, and people in the know are waiting eagerly for each new step. This is something we all have a duty to support and something which future generations will thank us for.

Howard Sharman - www.themanorpartnership.co.uk
A great project

Ben Goldsmith - www.whebventures.com
Good luck with this vital project.

Sarah Green
Great project to be involved with and looking forward to supporting everything

Malcolm Crabtree, Leckford Estate
This is a great initiative.

Ben Lewis - www.pulsin.co.uk
Implementing a shift towards sustainable local food production in the face of a potential global food crisis is one of the most important challenges currently facing humanity. This project is urgently needed to address food security in the UK, and will succeed due to its consideration and understanding of the wider environmental, social and economic issues.

Rick Manley - www.nfbg.co.uk
Ian whatever you are up to you get my support !!!

Ben Raskin, The Soil Association
This is a very exciting project that reflects many of the aims of the Soil Association. Congratulations for getting this far and we look forward to working with you to make it a success.

Jason Gregg - www.watersuppliers.co.uk
As a small producer with environmental aspirations it is great to see a BIG idea. This is a great cause, with great ideals. We need this.

Sam Martin - www.wallopswooddairy.co.uk
This sounds like an amazing project, building on the success of all the current food initiatives, to bring food, and the way in which it is produced, back to the core of our society - and not only on a local level but engaging the philosophy across a nation. This is not just about loving food and being passionate about it but realising its importance in a culture again.

Mark Hill - www.markhill.dj
I think this is a truly fabulous and inspiring project and I am eager to see it develop and gain momentum, all the best

Gavin Hooper
I am sure support for this exciting project will be massive.

Sam Dovey
I would like to express my support for the Food & More Project. It is an innovative and exciting project which will help boost our local rural economy and play a major interactive role in educating the wider population about food and sustainable production; whilst setting an example for such like schemes across the UK.

Tim Smit - chief executive and co-founder of The Eden Project
I am delighted to learn that the The Food and More Project is now moving from idea to reality. A founding principle of the Eden Project is to show humanity’s interdependency with the plant life on earth. The Food and More Project will tell the same story in a different way, namely through the food that we eat everyday. The combination of a working farming and food business, overlaid with the proposed educational activities, is a timely new approach, and I feel confident that it will provide a friendly and fun setting for learning about “food”. Reconnecting people from all walks of life to the food-cycle, by getting them down to the farm and the project facilities, will lift their spirits, expand their knowledge, and quite likely improve their health - as without a doubt the best food is that just picked and prepared. At the same time, the food industry is a major component of our everyday economic activity, and thus a material and unavoidable element of addressing the climate change problem. We have also recently seen how the oil and food markets interact and the associated implications for our food security, so “going local” is a very current and important issue for us to address as a nation. Showing us all where our food comes from, how it arrives at the plate, what happens to the waste, and the environmental implications of the end-to-end process, will help us all to make the small but inevitable changes in our daily food lives to address the challenges above. The project’s aims are exemplary. Environmental guardianship will ensure that the land is managed in permanence as a provider of sustenance, and as a place of beauty to treasure. Social ownership can bring farmers, producers, and consumers closer together and empower them to reconfigure current food models. Simply visiting to shop, learn, or relax, will of course support these aims too. The concept has the great potential to show us just how delicious, nutritious, and enjoyable our own local seasonal food can be, and the benefits therein. With generous helpings of support, advice, and commitment from all, I foresee a very tasty hotpot of a project being cooked up !

Oliver Dowding, Shepton Farms, Somerset
Ian and Louise, this is a fantasitc initiative, as I said to you at the Soil Association Conference last week. Very ambitious, but something has to get people back on a realistic track with regard diet, health and worldly expectation. If you can make this venture work, it will have a major impact for the better.

Keith Bales, Perth, Australia
VERY impressed with your efforts and wish to help in anyway I can. Please keep me updated. Many thanks and best regards Keith

Hugh Jeffery, aged 13
I think this is a great idea and I am fully behind it as it is a reality if we dont do something now in further generations they will not have enough food to go around with the ever growing population.

Andy Jeffery - www.farringtons.co.uk
We agree with the project's aims, and agree that this is a much-needed facility throughout the UK.

Roger Sherrin and Family
I am pleased to confirm my support for the Food and More Project. I have known Ian & Loiuse for over 15 years as a friend and regular customer and have every confidence that the project will be a great success. Their hard work, dedication and enthusiasm will I am sure develop their visions into reality.

Underwood Barron Chartered Accountants - www.underwoodbarron.co.uk
We are delighted to express our support for the Food & More Project which is an exciting and important project.

Grant Lang from Mozzo
Food and More is a project that has to succeed. There is no compromise when it comes to something as fundamentally as food... for that it should always be supported both now and when it becomes reality!

Tim Brock
Innovative, unique, sustainable, much needed and way overdue! I fully support the project and the great team behind it. It will positively change the way consumers view and value the food they eat and offer real long term sustainability not just to British food and farming, but the wider community in so many beneficial ways.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall - www.rivercottage.net
The Food and More Project is a genuinely exciting vision. I would urge anyone who cares about how their food is produced to take a look at the project website and see how they can get involved.

Totton and Eling Friends of The Earth
This is great!! hope to host an event on it soon.

Keith Bird
Sounds great ... lets make it happen

Rachel Owen
Sounds really interesting - I am keen to know more the project.

Claire Wyatt
This is exactly the kind of joined up initiative the UK has been waiting for: Raising the profile of farmers and growers, making buying locally easy and desirable, building communities and education and creating a sustainable future.

Claire Skinner @ Forum for the Future
On behalf of Forum for the Future I'd like to express our strong support for the Food and More project. A strong, sustainable food economy needs this type of producer network and physical support at its heart. We're keen to help link up existing initiatives and see the project rolled out widely. www.forumforthefuture.org

Adam Judd - www.apollo-media.com
The concept of utilising local produce as well as local businesses, is not only common sense but is vital to the economic growth of the country. We are backing this project with total support and encourage people and business alike to get involved. With Ian's enthusiasm I'm sure the project will succeed.

Shaun Leavey OBE (Independent Chairman Defra Sustainable Farming & Food Board for the SE region)
"This project is seeking to bring about the sort of re-connection between farmers/growers and the wider community that the South East region's Sustainable Farming & Food Strategy is intended to achieve. There is far more to food production than just food - crucially important though that is to all of us. Landscapes, biodiversity, access, health, and education should all be regarded as integral components of good quality agricultural and horticultural production. Ian Nelson and Sunnyfields have recognised this in a way that others within the industry need to understand and emulate."

Rikki Hughes
An amazing idea-you guys should be congratulated on what your aiming to achieve. Good luck!!

Di Nightingale, Headteacher Hounsdown School
The Food & More project will have significant benefits to the school in terms of pupils being able to engage with the educational programme both as part of their curricular (Geography, Science, technology & Business) and extra curricular opportunities. Sunnyfields and Ian Nelson are already established partners for many of the school’s programmes in so much as it is able to bring a real world business dimension to lessons. The school will also benefit from the Food & More project in terms of being able to provide pupils with opportunities for enrichment by being able to undertake visits and by representing the school and the various events that the project will provide. We very much look forward to be an integral part of the project in a role as local Secondary school.

David Cousins
Currently being a member of the Sunnyfields Team, and having known Ian, Louise and the family for many years, news of this project fills me with excitement. Ian has the tenacious spirit and business acumen to carry this off, it promises to be something really spectacular not only for the food industry, but for many other areas. On a personal note, as I work for Sunnyfields I am looking forward to the future in the hope that there will be something for me in the new project. Good luck to you all not that there is much left to luck, it has and will be a lot of hard work for all those involved.

Caroline
So great to meet you and love the food and more project. A positive story indeed. Would love to find a time to come and interview you and to do a report on your important social venture. We shall put a link on our website and would welcome a link from us to your friends section. www.positivetv.tv still not officially launched but over the coming weeks will be producing a weekly show called solutions that will be broadcasting.