As the solstice passed her sunbaked fields on to July, thousands of growers gathered on the grasses of Lannock Farm in Hertfordshire for a weekend of collective future-forming at Groundswell Agricultural Festival.
For the past ten years, Groundswell has been a meeting place for ancient knowledge holders and system rethinkers to share their wisdom with the open minds of farmers, food producers, land workers, chefs, researchers, and all those hoping for a just and resilient alternative to corporate food production.
As is so often the case, seed has struggled to hold its rightful place as the humble yet mighty heart of these discussions (this year only appearing on the lineup in a panel discussing the “tensions and opportunities” of precision-bred organisms (PBOs)). So, for the second year running, the Seed Sovereignty Programme joined many of our allies – including Soil Association, Landworkers’ Alliance, and Nature Friendly Farming Network – in becoming festival exhibitors.
In prime position, opposite the famed Earthworm Arms, we welcomed the eager faces of the movement into our tent, overflowing with delights for passers-by. With our walls lined with seed-inspired artist illustrations, we shared free open-pollinated seeds in colourful collectable packets, tales of Welsh seed lore, cups of herbal tea, all accompanied by a glimpse of the seed sovereign future we are forging together.
Among the seeds we shared was the first publicly available batch of the Crowd Breeding Network‘s lovingly stewarded Broad Bean Flock. This colourful party mix of beans is the fruit of a new kind of participatory plant breeding, creating emergent populations of crops with the diversity of traits needed for resilience and deliciousness.
Another seed in attendance was the carlin pea. However, these were not being packed into totes and tents; the Pea World Cup took place at the entrance to our stall, inviting visitors to put their lungs, reactions, and laugh-stifling abilities to the test against competitors.
Adding a beautiful showcase of diverse grains to our stand were Barleybird and the East Anglian Grain Alliance. As fellow members of the UK Grain Lab, sharing the stall enriched our respective offerings, providing some context, grounding, and real-life examples of the work we were sharing with visitors. This collaboration also allowed our stall to once again become a hub for existing members of our networks to gather and connect over a cuppa, sharing their energised thoughts from the sessions they had attended.
As a regionally spread team, Groundswell is a wonderful opportunity to spend time together in person, and to meet and connect seed guardians beyond our local networks. We look forward to seeing the insights and joys next year’s festival will bring.
