Bridgend Sustainable Food Partnership
Bridgend Sustainable Food Partnership launched in January 2024. It is hosted by Bridgend County Borough Council, employing a full time Sustainable Food Coordinator.
The partnership is made up of a network of people from a range of organisations coming together with a shared desire to make change. It wants to benefit everyone in Bridgend County Borough by ensuring sustainable and healthy food is accessible to all and focuses on a collaborative coordinated approach across the whole food system.
The Bridgend Sustainable Food Partnership steering group includes representatives from:
- Awen Cultural Trust
- Baobab Bach
- BAVO
- BCBC – Catering, procurement, carbon
- Bridgend College
- CTM UHB Healthy Wales Healthy Weight
- Valleys 2 Coast – Growth for good growing projects
Mission
To create a sustainable and healthier Bridgend for all levels of society across the county borough including all towns and valleys. We will engage communities and collaborate cross sector to create a more equal and nourishing food system involving grass roots organisations to influence strategy, taking in account all aspects of the food system from growing, distributing, cooking, educating, influencing demand, the public plate, governance, food businesses and considering food waste.
The initial 12 months of the partnership has focused on:
- Engagement & vision
- Food Systems assessment
- Food System consultation
- Food System development
This process has enabled the partnership to co-produce a Sustainable Food Strategy for Bridgend for 2025-2028 which will be available in early 2025.
Here are some of the actions achieved during the partnership’s first year:
- Mapped food systems across Bridgend
- Hosted Stakeholder Workshop
- Hosted the Bridgend Food Summit
- Worked with Food & Fun to introduce Bridgend grown veg to the scheme
- Distributed community food grants via BAVO
- Hosted drop-in community engagement sessions
- Launched a county wide food survey
- Initial draft of the Bridgend Sustainable Food Strategy
- Engaged & regular steering group meetings
- Relaunched the Collaborative food network with BAVO
Bridgend Sustainable Food Partnership is currently:
- Involved with the Welsh Veg in School Pilot, introducing Welsh grown organic broccoli to primary schools in Bridgend
- Working with The Wellbeing Planner to launch a Sustainable Food Business Network. This commission is currently engaging with local food businesses to launch the new network
- Planning a food hub for community food supply with the Bridgend Community Food Network
- Collaborating with enterprise and economic teams within Bridgend County Borough Council
- Carrying out a public awareness campaign on the impact of food on the environment
- Working with the RCT Food Partnership to collaborate on a Cwm Taf Morgannwg Food sub group
Read more about the partnership’s achievements during 2024
For further information on the work happening across Bridgend, please contact Lauren Saunders, Bridgend’s Sustainable Food Coordinator: Lauren.Saunders@bridgend.gov.uk
