Expanding Northern Food Processing capacity and local Supply chains
This action area focuses on developing the infrastructure needed to get larger volumes of local agroecological produce onto people’s plates in the North. Such work involves not only the physical infrastructure necessary to support processing such as appropriate mills, abattoirs etc. but also necessitates building relationships throughout the supply chain – for example via farmer processing coops, food hubs and use of digital technology. It is also important to raise support and awareness with potential buyers – whether this be through getting catering students onto farms to understand the potential of different products or getting the public interested in different tastes and recipes.
To address these challenges, our strategy outlines the following steps:
Our goal: Northern food processing capacity has increased. This includes more abattoirs, millers, bakers, etc. being present, as well as those present processing larger volumes.
Desired outcomes:
- More funding for transitions and set up costs of new businesses/enterprises is available.
- More supply chain collaborations exist.
Example activities that were identified as supporting these immediate outcomes – and which should therefore be urgent priorities for funding – are as follows:
- Offering training and support for collaborative grant funding and crowdfunding.
- Attracting large scale investment into agroecological farming in the North of England by, for example, setting up rural agroecological bonds (like city bonds).
- More support/funding to help existing abattoirs increase their processing capacity
- Facilitating value chain collaborations within pulses, grains, and meat sectors.
- Supporting those networks that facilitate routes to market for agroecological produce.
Some examples of what is currently being delivered by NFF network members:
- UK Food Hub Network funded learning programme
- Local Food Plan launched
- Northern Pulse Collaboration, led by NFF, exploring approaches to increasing the production and consumption of a range of legume crops in the North of England
- UK Grain Lab, and the Yorkshire Grain Alliance regional group, working to address infrastructure barriers that are limiting the production and use of diverse grains
- Concept development for a Northern Planetary Plate
Priority next steps identified by the NFF network in May 2025:
- Take forward the Local Food Plan work via engagement in working groups
- Engage in the development of the national Food Strategy
- Develop the Northern Planetary Plate and build engagement in Northern menus and deliver demand building activities e.g. events
- Support expansion of the Food Hub Network through learning and knowledge exchange
- Explore innovative funding approaches, not project based, to build back small and medium scale infrastructure and ensure long-term viability