Soil Association

We'll be at the Marches Real Food & Farming Convergence on 3 & 4 Oct to discuss organic farming🐏

We're excited to explore the food culture of Monmouthshire with a fascinating lineup of talks, as well as meeting our clients and partners!

Will you be there? Come and say hello! www.mrffc.uk
​#MRFFC

HFSS legislation ‘gutted’ by big food lobbyists as BOGOF ban goes live A member of the Food Strategy Advisory Board said HFSS legislation has been watered down

Welcome restrictions on unhealthy food promotions come into force today. But as revealed in our Whole Truth campaign, the UPF lobby has successfully forced the government to dilute its ambitions. The gov must resist the influence of the UPF lobby and make minimally processed food accessible to all 🥦

Join us for a farm walk and explore how to cut costs, boost resilience & improve livestock health

Field Hall, ST14 8SG
Thur 13 Nov, 11:30am-4pm
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1504897722...

🌱 herbal leys, catch crops & low-input grazing
🍲 lunch & networking
🚜 farmers, advisors, agronomists & vets welcome

We’re thrilled to be a partner & exhibitor at LandAlive: The Regen Dairy Show on 1st October.

We’ll be there on stand L4 sharing insights and support on organic conversion and certification – a gold standard of regenerative agriculture.

Book here: www.bathandwest.com/the-dairy-sh...

🌱Growers, smart water use matters more than ever

This webinar looks at how soil moisture probes & weather stations can transform irrigation decisions

John Taylor: Pollybell Farm
Peter White: Moisture Moisture Sense
With our head of hort Carolyn Coxe

15/10, 3pm
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1639854582...

Welsh farmers 📣 this week is your last chance to apply for organic conversion support, with the window closing on Friday, September 12th.

Find out how to apply, rates available, and the financial benefits of #organic 💚🌱🐮 www.soilassociation.org/certificatio...

Whatever part of the journey you’re on, join us & #TheWoodlandTrust on 10 & 11 Sept!🍃

🌳From hands-on farm walks, design clinics & live demos, to inspiring talks & panel discussions – this is where #Agroforestry comes alive!

🥬Buy your ticket now! www.agroforestryshow.com

@wtscotsocial.bsky.social

Livestock farmers, join us & farm manager George Burrell for a day of hands-on whole farm planning

🗓️ Thurs 16 Oct
📍 Broome Park Farms Alnwick NE66 2EQ

🌱 Interpreting soil tests
🪱 Parasite management
🌳 Planning & funding trees
🚜 Farmer-led research in practice

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1544929659...

It's been an incredibly hard summer for farmers, with drought conditions, widespread crop failure and reduced yields.

Join us with #TheWoodlandTrust at @woodoaksfarm.bsky.social for the #AgroforestryShow on 10–11 Sept for sessions on climate resilience and much more🌱

💥 www.agroforestryshow.com

Get fair about farming: Help support British farmers | Sustain Tell your MP to join the call to protect farmers from unfair dealing by supermarkets.

Following the success of #Getfairaboutfarming, @Riverford and Sustain are calling on you again to help support British farmers from unfair dealing by supermarkets.

30 MPs are already in support of supply chain regulation, tell your MP to join the call >
www.sustainweb.org/news/strengt...

The Earthed Summit: Our Future Regenerated Join global experts and practitioners of regeneration as well as public figures, journalists, young people and budding ecosystem restorers and growers at London's Barbican on 11th November.

Through storytelling, workshops, music, and celebration, the Summit inspires practical action, from balconies to forests, gardens to oceans.

See you there!

🎟 Tickets: www.earthed.co/earthed-summit-2025

We’re partnering with Earthed for Earthed Summit 2025: Generation Restoration, on 18 September at EartH Hackney, London

This one-day summit gathers urban growers, scientists, Indigenous voices, artists, youth leaders and citizens ready to regenerate ecosystems and reimagine our role in the world

Participation in our Food for Life programme helped Scotland lead the way: Scotland and Wales are procuring much more local food than other parts of the UK

We know it's possible: we need to replicate this nationally

Our report Homegrown outlines how this can be done 👇
soilassociation.co/4myZ5EN

In fact, Labour promised they would do this in their manifesto. So FOI requests showing a lack of British produce in government catering is disappointing

2.4b is spend on sourcing food for public settings yearly. Spending that on local nature-friendly produce would be a huge boost to UK farming

Report exposes lack of British produce in government catering Most government departments and councils are failing to prioritise British food in public sector catering, despite Labour’s pledge to back local produce.

We grow just 17% of our fruit and under half of our veg in the UK .

More public sector procurement of local produce would be a fantastic way to boost the sector, while ensuring locally grown, sustainable British food gets onto more plates

Come along to this farm walk: Cover Crops for Soil Health

Find out more about
🌱 Boosting soil health
🐂 Winter grazing mixes
🚜 Min till & direct drilling
🪱 Biostimulants

📍 Tregooden Farm, Bodmin PL30 3PS
📅 Tues 7 Oct, 10.30-2

Free, includes lunch

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1535664175...
#BASIS #NRoSo

Nature knows best: processed food is bad for weight loss Nature knows best: minimally processed foods are better for your health and - surprise, surprise - processed food is bad for your diet, says Rob Percival, head of policy, food and health at Soil Assoc...

Yes, minimally processed foods are better for your health. The UPF lobby should accept the science, and commit to greater transparency on additives, sweeteners and processing techniques.

My @thesoilassociation.bsky.social op-ed in the Grocer. 👇

share.google/WFU1cHtWQeBY...

The full #AgroforestryShow2025 programme is live!
📅10–11 Sept, @woodoaksfarm.bsky.social

Join us for two action-packed days of innovation and insight!

Connect with leading voices shaping resilient and sustainable farming 👇
www.agroforestryshow.com/2025-schedule

#Agroforestry #Agroecology

Things are getting a little wild over at Vintage Roots! Their Wild Thing range has just gotten a makeover, and apart from being organic, every bottle sold also supports the Born Free Foundation! 🍷🐾

Use the code SOIL10 for 10% off first orders 👇 www.vintageroots.co.uk

#ChooseOrganic #OrganicWine

Cultivating soil health A technical event at Godminster Farm, which will focus on cultivation and maintenance of soil health.

🐄 Dairy & livestock farmers in SW England, this one’s for you!

📍 Godminster, Somerset
📅 Wed 24 Sept | 10:30am-2pm

🌱 Min-till machinery
🌿 Non-chemical weed control
🪱 Soil pit exploration
🚜 Practical tips

✅ Free to attend (lunch included)
#CPD / #BASIS points

🔗 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1501904018...

“Plant fifty trees somewhere; plant five trees somewhere!” 🌳

Join us & #TheWoodlandTrust on 10–11 Sept to hear from #Agroforestry experts!

🌱1-2-1 advice on design
🌱Hands-on workshops
🌱Farm walks & demos

Get your tickets & learn more: www.agroforestryshow.com

#Agroecology

Cultivating soil health A technical event at Godminster Farm, which will focus on cultivation and maintenance of soil health.

🐄 Calling all dairy & livestock farmers!
Join us at
📍 Godminster Organic Dairy, Bruton, Somerset
📅 Wed 24 Sept, 10.30am-2pm

for a day of demos on
🌱Min till kit
🌿Weed control without herbicides
🪱Soil pit insights
and more!

Free, inc lunch
#CPD / #BASIS point

🔗 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1501904018...

Easy Vegan Pasta Box Treat yourself or someone else to a box of pasta delights. Perfect for a student who's just arrived at university to see them through the first few weeks.

Pasta night just got ethical 🍝

The Easy Vegan Pasta Box from our friends at The Ethical Shop is dinner solved for weeks. It's 10% off, 25 dinners for about £3.30 a pop - all while supporting ethical and organic producers.

Grab yours before the offer expires 😋

👉 ethicalshop.org/easy-vegan-p...

Thinking of going organic with your beef system? Already certified but have some questions?

Thurs 7 Aug, 12-1.30pm
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/143020910693

🐂 hear directly from an organic beef farmer
🌳 learn how standards work in practice
🌿 get advice on maximising forage
💭 bring your burning questions

Help us make our shiny new website the best it can be!

We're doing some quick user research. It'll only take 10-15 minutes and you'll be helping us to make sure our website is useful and accessible.

Bonus pic of one of nature's most helpful animals - the bee 🐝

Take part here
👉 ows.io/tj/j5yc5trw

Home cooking and minimally processed foods best for weight loss, study finds Dieters in UCL trial lost twice as much weight when avoiding ultra-processed ready meals with as much nutrition

“For decades the UK government’s ‘healthy eating’ guidelines have neglected processing, assuming that whole foods and ultra-processed products might deliver the same health outcomes. We now know that to be false.”

@thesoilassociation.bsky.social spittin truth 👇

www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

That's why we want the government to increase their support for minimally processed foods - the sort of foods that are the backbone of a healthy diet.

Do you agree? Sign our petition here 👇
soilassociation.co/TTHT

Two-minute challenge: Can you spot the ultra-processed foods? Everyone’s talking about UPFs right now – test your knowledge in our quick-fire quiz.

How many UPFs did you get right in the BBC's two minute challenge?

Identifying ultra-processed foods can be tricky, and while there are classification systems - like the NOVA system - to help us to categorise them, it can be tricky to be always get it right when you're in the supermarket.

Do you agree that the government must resist corporate lobbying and make a minimally processed diet available to all? Sign our petition -
soilassociation.co/TTHTB ✍️

#TellTheWholeTruth #UltraProcessedFood #MinimallyProcessedFood #EatRealFood

Big Food. Big Power. Our investigation into the impact of government lobbying by the ultra-processed food industry was profiled in BBC's The Food Programme

It’s convenient for the UPF industry to maintain the status quo where the gov isn't addressing UPF consumption: that’s where big money is made.