Cornish Diet

Aims:

Cornish Diet is the name of a campaign to source 85% or as much as possible of food from Cornwall.

Inspiration:

The Fife Diet

Outcomes so far:

Creation of Local Food Directory: http://www.transitionnc.org/node/45

Unexpected outcomes:

Lack of funding

Further information:

The reasons for attempting to adopt a Cornwall diet are:

· Reduction in food miles resulting in reduction in CO2 emissions and energy consumption
· Better for the local economy - money spent in local shops on local produce creates about twice as much wealth in the local economy as money spent in supermarkets
· Increase in food security - Cornwall will be more prepared for decrease in available energy
· Better animal welfare
· Increased awareness of where food comes from
· Better social cohesiveness - shopping in local shops and Farmers' Markets is more interactive, decreases social isolation
· Better value for money
· Better deal for farmers, fishermen and all local producers
· Reskilling in traditional food preparation, including food preserving techniques
· Better quality, fresher food - higher in nutrients, lower in saturated fats and additives

There are also number of challenges:

· Can Cornwall become 85% self sufficient in food?
Is there enough land to grow food for over half a million people, not to mention tourists in the summer?
· Is the land sufficiently fertile?
· What about competition for other uses e.g. housing, fuel crops etc?
· Can food grown locally fulfil all our dietary requirements - for protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamins, minerals and other trace elements?
· Can Cornwall afford to give up land presently used for commercial growing to supply supermarkets etc - do we need to trade?
· Can enough food be grown without inputs of petroleum-based technologies?
· Are there sources of advice and support for growers?
· Will the councils and other statutory bodies support the initiative?

Campaign targets

· Individual: and families: Can you keep to the Cornish Diet?
Guide to assessing – by spend (not weight)
· Council: Cornwall Council should behave to the best benefit of the residents of Cornwall. Adopting the Cornwall Diet is one aspect of that.
· Restaurants/ Pubs/ Cafes: The Cornish Diet Award (certificate and window sticker)
· Businesses (with catering establishment) – as restaurants
· Shops (farm shops, local shops, supermarkets, butchers, fishmongers, health food shops) – as restaurants

The Cornish Diet Champions Award

· Logo and Certificates
· Website, incl a list of certified establishments
· Self certification initially
· Email query resolution in case of complaints or anomalies
· Gold, Silver and Bronze levels for say 85%, (70% and 50%) - low start to gain initial wide spread adoption
· Booby price for any establishment with less than (20%) – publicized after verification
· Directory to Cornish Diet Champion establishments

Certification

· Initially self-certification – confirmation of the % level of Cornish food
· Email verification in case of complaints
· In extreme cases actual inspection of books/ written proof
· Website list of all certified establishments – allows confirmation
· Certificate and shop window stickers