A warm and open welcome

Around 60 adults and 20 children joined in the fun at Camel Community Supported Agriculture’s first Open Day and were rewarded with glorious sunshine and not a hint of rain . 

Visitors ignored the threatening storm clouds and came out in their droves on Open Farm Sunday to see our vegetable growing project in north Cornwall.

They built bee nests, joined guided tours, planted lettuces and nasturtiums, made scarecrows,  watched a sheep shearing demonstration, sat chatting in the sun and played on hay and straw bales.

Assorted individuals, couples and families travelled from a 30-mile radius to give us some constructive feedback on our efforts to make local food work: -

Fantastic project.  Amazing!  Brilliant!

An excellent idea – keep it going

Great for the whole family.  Liked the things for children to do

Lovely, interesting day – will come again

Loved the tour – very inspiring

Learned a lot about not needing to dig.  Hurrah – compost!

Need to encourage more people to learn where food comes from and to eat seasonally

Excellent initiative – more farm events would be great

We provided a barbeque, home-made-cakes and cold drinks.  Hot drinks and cream teas were available at the farm shop.

 In scenes reminiscent of Eric Carle’s children’s classic The Very Hungry Caterpillar, our guests and helpers munched their way through a  shoulder of organic moorland mutton, a mound of sausages, beefburgers, veggie burgers and vegetable kebabs, several bowls of homegrown salad leaves, radishes and spring onions, 8 slices of rhubarb loaf,  10 rhubarb muffins,  12 slices of coconut sponge, 16 chocolate buns, 24 pieces of lemon drizzle cake, 30 iced cupcakes, 40 flapjacks…

And the verdict among Camel CSA members? 

A job very well done! We are so lucky to have a group of such enthusiastic, committed, capable, lovely people

I think we have all pulled together really well

We have managed to spread the word to so many people and explain what we’re doing and why we’re doing it

It was so lovely to see it all coming together and the atmosphere it created

Most of all we have been able to show that we are a “community” working together

We can’t wait to be part of this again!

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We’re in the news – again

Camel Community Supported Agriculture members succeeded in spreading the word far and wide at the Royal Cornwall Show and the open day on Open Farm Sunday. 

Hundreds more people in the south west now know what Camel CSA is doing to help make local food work and how we’re going about it.

Our efforts also resulted in plenty of media coverage in the past week or so  - on BBC Radio Cornwall, in the Cornish Guardian and in the Western Morning News (three times!)

Discover food glorious food at the Royal Cornwall - Western Morning News May 26 09

Open day to feature county’s first community food growing group - Cornish Guardian June 2 09

Cornish food at its best – South West Farmer June 1 09

Food from Cornwall News - June 6 09

Other groups keen to set up their own community agriculture project should contact the Soil Association’s south west CSA co-ordinator Traci Lewis at tlewis@soilassociation.org or on 0787 0268654.

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We’re open for business

We have a hectic week ahead of us as Camel Community Supported Agriculture members prepare for the Royal Cornwall Show and our first Open Day.

Visitors to the show and the Open Day will be able to talk to our enthusiastic volunteers, find out what we’re growing, and discover the benefits of getting involved in our community food growing venture. 

You will find our stand in the show’s popular Cornwall Food and Farming Pavilion from Thursday 4 June to Saturday 6 June.  Make sure you come and visit us there.

We will be selling freshly-picked salad packs and signing up new members to our local food project - the first of its kind in Cornwall. 

We are sharing the stand with the  Soil Association, which has just helped to set up the new West Penwith Community Supported Agriculture project.  We are also there thanks to the Plunkett Foundation, which manages the  Making Local Food Work campaign.

The next day, on Sunday 7  June, we are holding a series of Open Farm Sunday events between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. including guided tours of the site at St Kew Highway near Wadebridge.

There will be family activities and all-day refreshments including homemade cakes and cold drinks, with a barbeque from 12 noon – 2 p.m.  You are welcome to bring your own picnic.

Schedule of events: -
11:30    Guided tour
12:00    Making bee nests, planting lettuces
12:30    Sheep shearing demonstration
13:00    Scarecrow making
13:30    Guided tour
14:00    Making bee nests, planting lettuces
14:30    Sheep shearing demonstration
15:00    Scarecrow making
15:30    Guided tour

 If you are a member and are able to help out, please get in touch.

Click here for directions to Camel Community Supported Agriculture’s site at St Kew Highway.

Click here to view our entry on the Open Farm Sunday website and details of LEAF (Linking Environment And Farming), the national charity that helps bring farmers and consumers together.

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We’re holding an Open Day on June 7

Camel Community Supported Agriculture is opening its site to the public on Sunday 7 June - Open Farm Sunday.

We want people to come and find out  what we’re doing to promote local food, see what we’re growing, talk to our enthusiastic volunteers and discover the benefits of joining our community group in north Cornwall.

Click here to see our details on the Open Farm Sunday website. 

Camel CSA - why we got involved

 
Watch our latest video to find out what has inspired people to join Camel Community Supported Agriculture and get involved in growing their own food.

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Camel CSA – Why we got involved

There are lots of reasons why members of Cornwall’s first community-led agriculture project decided to get involved.  

Camel Community Supported Agriculture’s latest video features different people explaining what inspired them to join in.

Camel CSA - first volunteer day

 

 

Click here to watch an earlier video about our first volunteer day in March.

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