Join new-entrant farmers Francesca and Hollie as they talk about their journey setting up Nunwell Home Farm in 2021. The farm is based on a share farming agreement with the Nunwell Estate and currently includes 100 native breed cattle, eight breeding sows and 300 laying hens. They also graze conservation sites owned by the National Trust and Wildlife Trust, and in 2024, they started a joint venture with a local chef to set up a…

Since 2022, the Agrarian Higher School of Viseu, Portugal, has been hosting seasonal Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems Field Schools, open to everyone. Each session (Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring) dives into topics ranging from agricultural practices to social and economic dynamics, co-created with various partners. Participants include farmers, activists, academics, and curious minds. In this session, we’ll explore how these schools operate and share key insights for both Portugal and the UK, focusing on engaging…

Unless you are eating breakfast, it’s likely that the plate in front of you contains chicken. Yet the ubiquity of chicken meat is recent, arising from technological developments in poultry rearing from the 1960s that significantly lowered the price of the golden bird. Why chicken? The meat is very nearly flavourless, especially when raised in the new way, which involves confining the animals so that muscles remain undeveloped. To be sure, the rise of chicken…

Watching the devastation wrought on our food systems and landscapes can feel overwhelming. How can we push for meaningful change on a global scale? One promising solution gaining momentum is ecocide as an international criminal law. In September 2024, Vanuatu, Fiji, and Samoa, formally proposed an ecocide amendment to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court signalling a historic step toward holding environmental destruction accountable. The implementation of ecocide law could transform global food…

A panel discussion between applied permaculture design practitioners and farmers who use the principles underlying permaculture design to create regenerative, water-retentive and resilient landscapes. The panel members will describe how they each integrate, within their respective businesses, the benefits of water retention and purification, for soil creation and carbon sequestration within living systems, maximising biomass resource production and the creation of species-rich habitat.

Neurodiversity is part of human biodiversity, emerged through evolution and is present throughout farming. Neurodivergent people bring traits and qualities that can benefit farms. However, misconceptions and unhelpful practices can create barriers that hinder the realisation of their potential and exacerbate problems. Overcoming these barriers can allow individuals to shine, and farms to prosper and become better workplaces for all. This session will be an opportunity both for neurodivergent landworkers to voice and discuss their…

In preparation for the 3rd Nyéléni Global Forum for food sovereignty — taking place in India in 2025 — building intersectional alliances between the food sovereignty movement and other civil society movements has been identified as of key strategic importance. The struggles for a fair income and good working conditions are shared by food system workers and farmers alike, so let’s come together and discuss how we can build stronger alliances between the rural and…

Is organic the preserve of the privileged? We don’t believe it should be. Healthy, sustainably produced food should be accessible to everyone — not just people on higher incomes. Sustain and Soil Association have convened a panel of speakers working across the food supply chain to explore the opportunities to make organic food more available, affordable to everyone and fair to farmers. We will delve into the challenges of achieving optimal scale alongside ethical practice,…

It’s the end of another year at the ORFC together. Join us for our collective closing, where we’ll take time to reflect on what we’ve loved, learned, and been animated by at this year’s conference. We’ll also take a moment to remember our great friend, Marina O’Connell, a permaculture and biodynamic pioneer and teacher, who died at her farm in Devon earlier this year.