Balint Bodroghy writes: We’ve just had a true Ambridge-by-Sea moment: the annual Brunswick in Bloom inspection of Palmeira and Adelaide. Cheerful ladies in big hats, clipboard at the ready, scrutinising lawns and trees and flowers and of course our compost boxes. We can be proud of our work. It’s amazing what a few days sunshine can do for all things biological – me included. Once more we have the most wonderfully fragrant compost, ready for delivery; orderly queues please form from the left! Preparing for this I looked a few numbers. Some 50 have now registered an interest in composting in Palmeira Square: alas not all are active – a few have moved and some are frail or unwell and cannot participate but still they ask to be kept informed so they can be part of a caring community – and that’s what it’s all about, as I see it: building communities – of worms, of fruit flies and lovely people.
I had all the numbers but alas, what do you do, nobody asked me! So I am sending it to you instead. And in my next newsletter I plan to write about the contribution that fruit flies have made to science these past 100 years. In the meantime, here are a few notes that might be of interest:
Council’s food-growing scheme wins award
The council’s scheme to encourage food-growing on new developments has received a highly commended award in the “Innovation” category at the Constructing Excellence in London and the South East Awards. Our Food Planning Advice Note – the first in the UK – has resulted in an increase in applications including food growing from one per cent to about a third. More info
HisBe ethical supermarket – coming soon
Crowdfunding has raised enough for the store re-fit to begin next week. HisBe seeks to be a supermarket that’s affordable, fair, sustainable, and puts people before profit. For more info or to contribute, contact hello@hisbe.co.uk or follow their progress via twitter and facebook.
Community Composting tops 20!
The city’s 20th community compost scheme launched this month, taking the total number of households involved to 600. That’s 3.7 double decker buses’ worth of waste converted into a valuable usable resource every year. Community composting also benefits local growing projects with extra compost. Join a scheme near you.
reCYCLE comes to a food fest near you
reCYCLE is a bike-powered food scrap collection project by the Brighton Paper Round that also promotes business and household food waste reduction. If you have a food market or event and want the reCYCLE to pay a visit, or if you want to volunteer as a foodie recyclist, get in touch.