I am so passionate about bridging that gap between producer and consumer and reaching out to those who don’t know where their food comes from. A bit like me before I met my farming husband. I had never before seen a combine harvester and had never considered, or given any thought to how my food was made or indeed where it came from.

Seeing the family harvest for the first time in the Summer of 2013 opened my eyes and I’ll never forget the amazement and wonder of the hard work and passion that goes into producing a loaf of bread or a bowl of cereal. Consumers have a thirst for knowledge and there also really needs to be more support for our British food producers. For one to enjoy food, one has to understand how it is produced. 

Retailers such as supermarkets have too much power over both the consumer and the producer and don’t do enough, if anything, to educate the general public about food provenance. They are all too concerned about making profit and revenue at the expense of the farmer, fisherman and customer. For the supply chain to improve, retailers such as supermarkets will have to start listening and stop providing cheap food. There is no such thing, because somewhere along the line, somebody is taken advantage of, it’s just not sustainable. 

There is also so much misinformation out there. Think popular ‘documentaries’ like Dominion, and Seaspiracy; sensational propaganda films that excludes fact and includes unbalanced interviews, sharing only one ‘side’ of the story. This fuels unnecessary confrontation between different food groups such as militant vegans and meat and fish eaters. I believe in the freedom of choice and a well balanced, nutritious diet that includes all food groups in moderation. 

I think generally time is running out for competitive food and cooking programmes on television. People want a good story and there’s nothing more important right now than educating people from all generations and backgrounds about food provenance, regenerative agriculture, conservation, sustainability, community spirit and culture using good old fashioned journalism and beautiful production. Farmers and fishermen are the custodians of our land and sea and they are putting all of this into practice right now.