Half the food we eat in the UK is produced by about 180,000 farmers who manage 70% of the land. Current “industrial” mainstream farming practices significantly contribute to soil degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change. Regenerative farming practices, within an agroecological system, promote healthier soils, provide healthier, affordable food, restore biodiversity and sequester carbon.
Six Inches of Soil is a story of three new farmers on the first year of their regenerative journey to heal the soil and help transform the food system - Anna Jackson, a Lincolnshire 11th generation arable and sheep farmer; Adrienne Gordon, a Cambridgeshire small-scale vegetable farmer; and Ben Thomas, who rears pasture fed beef cattle in Cornwall.
As the trio of young farmers strive to adopt regenerative practices and create viable businesses, they meet seasoned mentors who help them on their journey.
They are joined by other experts - Henry Dimbleby, Ian Wilkinson, Mike Berners-Lee, Vicki Hird, Dee Woods, Tim Lang, Hannah Jones, Satish Kumar, Nicole Masters, Tom Pearson - providing wisdom and solutions from a growing movement of people who are dedicated to changing the trajectory for food, farming and the planet.
The 96 minute film, with its original music score and beautiful animation, was completed at the end of 2023, and was launched at the Oxford Real Farming Conference on 4th January 2024. It was also shown at COP 28 in December 2023 through EIT Food Systems.
More about the event
The event is produced as part of the Cultivate programme, in partnership with FilmCrew. Cultivate is a creative partnership that brings local food, arts, nature and people together for the benefit of rural communities and the natural environment in South Somerset.
Light refreshments (tea, cake, soft drinks etc) will be available from 6.45pm and during the evening.
There will be a panel discussion following the screening with farmers Fred Hosford and Ashley Wheeler, chaired by Francis Blake.
Fred Hosford returned to his family farm in Dorset a couple of years ago. He is now farming with his uncle and father, George and Dougal, who took over the farm in the late 1980s from their father, Jonny Hosford who started farming at Travellers Rest Farm in 1960.
Fred has been introducing many new ideas about regenerative farming into the management of the farm which is very exciting and challenging for everyone. He is passionate about soil health and all that live in it. https://wildfarmed.com/blogs/wildfarmed-farmers/the-hosfords
After being brought up on an organic council smallholding, Ashley Wheeler studied horticulture at Reading University and pursued his interest in restoration of historical gardens for a couple of years, before founding Trill trillfarmgarden.co.uk and returning to vegetable growing, now producing on 5 acres. The farm has always mainly sold to restaurants and cafes, but in 2020 their vegetable box delivery scheme started, delivering to Axminster, Lyme Regis, Seaton and surrounding areas in Devon and Dorset.
Ashley and Kate won the Young Organic Grower's of the Year Award in its first year (2021) for their commitment to organic principles and how their attention to good soil management and biodiversity has helped them deliver quality vegetable production despite a farm with a high water table and poor drainage. They were also commended for their commitment to ongoing training, including their support for the Landworkers’ Alliance.
Francis Blake (otherwise known as Herbi) has lived in Somerset all his life. He farmed organically for 10 years, then joined the Soil Association in 1986, first to run Soil Association Certification, later becoming Standards Director. He currently chairs the US-registered Alliance for Organic Integrity alliancefororganicintegrity and also, closer to home, the Green Scythe Fair committee greenfair.org.uk
