Do we really want to be fed by supermarkets?
A World Cafe first from Transition Town Lewes held at Bill's Produce Store on 10 November 2009 (a huge thanks to Bill for donating the venue, teas and cakes)
Facilitated by Martin Grimshaw (Decision Lab and livelihoods2020.org.uk)
About 25 people (including a very welcome baby) came together to discuss this question, which is so pertinent in the face of Tesco's proposed extension (by 50%) and the incredible fact that 2/3 of all retail spend in Lewes already goes to Tesco.
An amazing amount of ideas were generated.
About a third of the people were seasoned local shoppers and the rest were somewhere along the road to localising their food. One of the outcomes (see below) of the evening was a need for more practical information, both about the problem of supermarkets and practical support for local food sourcing. So here are some resources
World cafe is a fun, dynamic and creative way of having a conversation about complicated issues. We asked three questions - link to the pages to see the answers generated - and after each question we moved around tables, and were briefed by the scribe as to what had been talked about:
What do I not like about supermarkets
What are the obstacles to giving up supermarkets/sourcing food locally?
What can be done? By me/TTL/local and national govt, etc?
photo
Then we moved about the room and gathered into a circle to discuss the following:
General ideas coming from the evening
One thing I pledge to do as a result of tonight
Get involved: contact one of the Group contacts on the Groups page
