A joyful harvest: young Welsh growers on Powys land supplying Birmingham children with fresh produce

A charity called Our Food Trust converted 15 hectares at Wern farm, near Newtown in Powys, into three plots for young growers. The site was uncultivated pasture 18 months earlier. Each plot includes a holiday chalet where the growers live and access to shared facilities: a barn, a diesel generator for backup power, and some solar panels.

Who is growing and what they produce

Tilly Gomersall manages a 4.9-hectare holding on the site called Cân y Pridd (Song of the Soil) but is currently cultivating about half a hectare, much of it in polytunnels. Her output includes courgettes, cucumbers, tomatoes, salad leaves and herbs. Neighbouring growers such as Lydia Dibben and Charlie James work a separate plot they have named Tir a nNant (Land and Stream).

Sales channels and guaranteed demand

The growers sell through several routes: a 35-customer veg box subscription service, local wholesale, regional markets and a contract arranged by the charity to supply Birmingham city council. Produce sent to Birmingham is distributed to holiday clubs serving disadvantaged children, giving those children access to fresh, homegrown fruit and vegetables.

Our Food Trust's stated aim is to increase homegrown produce and tackle Britain's food insecurity. The UK imports about 40% of its food and has a relatively low food self-sufficiency ratio compared with other large western European countries. Our Food Trust argues there is significant scope to expand Welsh horticulture: they note that only 0.2% of land in Wales is used for horticulture.

A core obstacle for young growers is access to affordable land and housing. Our Food Trust worked with the landowner, Powys county council, to secure a 95-year lease and persuaded the council to amend planning guidance for rural enterprise dwellings so growers can live on the land they farm. Powys council leader Jake Berriman supported the move, citing local concerns about extreme weather as an additional reason to back homegrown production.

The site's infrastructure is practical rather than high-tech. Growers use a two-wheel tractor and manual labor to convert pasture to market beds. Shared assets include the barn, a diesel generator to supplement solar panels, and basic on-site housing. Growers report heavy physical work when cultivating land that had been pasture.

Financial outlook and community focus

The growers emphasize community supply over scaling to full commercial viability at present. While sales to local households, markets and a wholesaler contribute income, they say current demand and customer ability to pay—affected by the cost-of-living crisis—limit how far community sales alone can sustain their businesses. The Birmingham contract provides a guaranteed buyer for some produce at a key early stage.

What this could mean for regional food supply

The project offers a model for lowering entry barriers to horticulture: combining long-term land access, on-site housing and a guaranteed institutional buyer to help new growers establish production. It demonstrates one practical route to increase local supply into regional and urban markets while supporting growers in the early, risk-heavy period of starting a farm.