Community-led, nature-friendly, and ready to grow:

A Scottish Food Commission tour of D&G

By Abi Mordin

On Friday 26 June on a roasting hot day we welcomed members of the Scottish Food Commission Board to the region, for a tour of community led and grassroots food projects.

The aim of the day was to share insights into what is working well to create change on the ground, alongside discussing what additional support is needed. This will help to shape the work of the Commission, and feed into future Good Food Nation Plans.


Joining the day were staff representatives from NHS D&G Public Health team, D&G Climate Hub, and D&G Community Food Network and Sustainable Food Partnership. Logistics and planning were led by Propagate.


The first stop was the NANA Community Garden, run by LIFT in Lochside, Dumfries. We were met there by the awesome Angie and community gardener Naomi. Together with volunteers and the local community, they have transformed a previously underused greenspace into a thriving space for nature, food, learning and sharing. An orchard, herb and vegetable beds are complimented by wild edges for biodiversity. Schools and youth groups regularly use the space, which also has a portacabin that serves a variety of purposes: women's woodwork, volunteer hang out, creative action. The group would like to take on more of the greenspace around them to expand the growing spaces and orchards. Visitors were all impressed by Angie’s dedication to her community, and determination to improve the lives of those around her.

The next stop was Stepping Stones Community Larder in Castle Douglas. Originally a foodbank, the Larder evolved as a way to make sure everyone had dignified and affordable access to food and other essentials. Another brilliant local woman Leanne coordinates activity here, supported by a dedicated team of volunteers. Stocked with surplus food from Fareshare and supermarket supply chains, the Larder also offers a space to sit and have a cuppa, connect with others and find additional support through signposting. Low energy cooking equipment is also available to those who need it. The Larder team would like to take on a larger premises so they can offer cooking skills workshops and other activities for their members.


From there it was a short hop to Crossmichael, and a visit to Lochhill Agroecological Farm. This new community farm is growing a place where different sustainable land based enterprises can co-exist and collaborate, while producing healthy nutritious food for the local community. First in development is a cow with calf micro dairy which will produce milk, yoghurt and cheese; and a market garden producing fruit and vegetables. Alongside this is a series of open days, courses, workshops and other learning activities. The farm team – Jonathan, Richard, Emily, Lesley and Abi – shared how they are growing and grazing in a way that boosts biodiversity, shared some of their successes so far, and plans for the future to be a centre of learning and living for agroecological food and farming.


Finally, the last stop was Galloway Food Hub in Dalry, where the visitors experienced the bustle and busyness of the locally led short supply chain. The Food Hub was set up by nature friendly producers as a way to get their good food to local communities. Visitors shared lunch with volunteers and staff, and heard how the Hub operates on a day to day basis as well as the history of how it all started in 2022. While it is based in the Glenkens Community Centre, there are 13 collection points across Galloway, with both producers and customers coming from within 60 miles. Galloway Food Hub is on a mission to become financially resilient over the next year while continuing to be not-for-profit and finding ways to make our local food system fair to both producers and consumers. 


Days like this show what's possible when community-led food initiatives are given the chance to grow, and how much further they could go with the right backing. Across Lochside, Castle Douglas, Crossmichael and Dalry, we saw the same story: dedicated people building resilient, dignified, nature-friendly food systems from the ground up, often with limited resources and against the odds. We hope the Commission's visit will help translate these grassroots insights into the policy support and investment needed to help projects like these thrive, and we look forward to seeing how it shapes the next Good Food Nation Plan.

Scottish Food Commission Members – Jayne Jones (CEO), Dennis Overton (Chair), Prof. Mary Brennan (member), Graeme Jack (member)


D&G Host team - Thomesena Lochhead (NHS Public Health - Good Food Nation lead), Billie Lockhart (NHS Public Health Improvement Officer), Denis Davies (Propagate - D&G Community Food Network Coordinator), Dawn Thompson (Propagate - D&G Community Food Network Coordinator), Senga Greenwood (D&G Climate Hub - Lead Officer), Phoebe Gray (D&G Climate Hub, Community Officer), and myself, Abi Mordin (Propagate - D&G Sustainable Food Partnership Coordinator).