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UK Grain Lab

@uk_grain_lab

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Network of farmers/millers/breeders/bakers/brewers/scientists 🙌 non-commodity grain. Email enquiries, DMs not always monitored.

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The Gaia Foundation's Seed Sovereignty Programme and UK Grain Lab have been working with farmers, growers and communities across the UK for nearly a decade, accompanying and convening those creating a more diverse and resilient seed system.⁠
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With hands in the soil and ears to the ground, our networks are uniquely placed in their experience of changes to our climate and food security, as well as national and international policies.⁠
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Farmers' rights, localised seed supply, transparent governance: this paper outlines what we need from a new policy framework in order to support plant diversity, alongside commercial crop production. These options are crucial for the resilience of future farming systems, and it's vital that agroecological growers can help shape the legislative landscape.⁠
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👉️ Find the full paper linked in our bio

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Super Friday with @yorkshiregrainalliance and hosted by Hannah and Alex at Fraser Farms in Denby Dale!

We heard the story of the farm and its transition to organic status including the regenerative techniques employed such as cover crops, living mulches and agroforestry alleys, we heard about the links between nutrition and soil health, and we had an update on all things grain in Yorkshire.

We visited one of the fields and we also got to see the new seed cleaning system, which can process grains in that awkward middle space between tabletop and commodity grain tonnages - an unbelievable triumph of research, learning, design and fabrication in unchartered territory!

And we tasted the fruits of this year's Yorkshire-based grain trials with @uk_grain_lab by means of delicious shortbread biscuits!

So informative and so great to see such a wide and varied audience that included three of our new grain seed trainees! It was so lovely to meet you all.

Anyone with an interest in diverse, democratised and decentralised grain in Yorkshire and its surrounding fringes are welcome to join this vibrant and growing movement. Sharing is through a WhatsApp group and it meets three times a year. Or follow the collaborator links to stay up to date.

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The Innovative Farmers programme has been championing on-farm research led by farmers, for over a decade. As part of the @soilassociation we run a variety of field labs, which are the heart of our programme and allow farmers to work directly with researchers to design trials and test out innovative ideas across the UK.

The field labs vary in length and topic, and cover everything from horticulture, agroforestry, arable farming, livestock farming and much more. In order to share the results as widely as possible, we publish all of our final reports online, as well as running on-farm events, webinars, a knowledge exchange hub on our website and learning networks.

The learning networks are a key part of our work, where communities come together to share knowledge and experiences to support on-farm trials.

Check out our website to learn more and sign up to our newsletter to get regular updates!

We are grateful for the support of the @kingcharlesfund @rothschildfoundationofficial, the Aurora Trust, the Mark Leonard Trust and our other funders for their support over the years.

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MAKE SOME DOUGH 🌾🍞 💸

This year a number of our farms are looking for bakers, millers, or soil to slice operations, to join the network of businesses and growers on their land to make some dough outta dough.

Are you an artisan baker, looking to expand to a new location – and/ or work with more locally grown grains? Want space to experiment with a more nutritious loaf? Or have you got an idea for a cafe that serves sourdough croissants, made with locally produced organic flour? 🥐

Many of our Partner farms are growing heritage grains, have unused outbuildings cafe space, and established customer bases and/or farmers market opportunities for selling fresh loaves and pastries. They’ll even take the leftover milling husks to feed to the pigs.

There’s also amazing milling and baking expertise in the Pitch Up! & Grow network to tap into - from @scotlandthebread @cormobakery @baern_cafe at @balcaskie_estate to @leavened_ at @lannockfarm and aishbakeryuk just setting up at @thefarmatworstead

Here’s @baern_cafe in conversation with @balcaskie_estate and @scotlandthebread on how they got started on Balcaskie’s land. Find the full audio in our Soil to Slice conversation on our Substack via the link in bio - along with the full list of opportunities this year.

#bakersofig #pitchupandgrow #heritagegrains #sourdoughseptember #organic

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Laura Valli reports from the European Grain Festival in issue 6 of our grainiac newsletter; The Auricle - out now! Link to sign up in bio

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🌾Lille Bakery had arrived with an incredible array of flavorful cookies and cakes and BMO (bolle med ost) where, instead of varying the cheese, the changing factor was the grain used for making the buns. The excellent catering offered during the event left no room for hunger – it was pure curiosity (or was it greed masked as indulgence?) that made me join the queue.

I was looking at those bagged buns, made from flours that had traveled to Copenhagen in the form of grains from France, Georgia and Hungary (in addition to the Danish grain mix) and I wondered what it meant to choose one over the other.
Akito Saito argued, “For Lille Bakery, this project is not simply about making bread from rare or unusual flour. It is about understanding the relationships among farmers, grains, landscapes, milling traditions and historical backgrounds, while also considering the future of food.” This also perfectly captures the spirit of the European Grain Festival.

“What you shared at this grainy gathering will travel further than you know,” said the thank-you postcards given to presenters as we departed.🌾

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Grain Gathering 2026 (WSU Bread Lab, Burlington,WA)

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Deux jours au Danemark.
Des dizaines de passionnés.
Et une conviction renforcée 🙏

Le European Grain Festival by Landsorten nous a confirmé une chose : partout en Europe… et bien au-delà, de plus en plus de professionnels souhaitent reprendre la maîtrise de leur matière première.

Nous avons rencontré des boulangers, paysans-boulangers, meuniers et agriculteurs animés par la même envie : produire une farine et un pain de qualité, gagner en autonomie et redonner de la valeur à leur métier.

Pendant ces deux jours, nous avons eu le plaisir de faire découvrir le Moulin Pionnier, le Moulin Révolution et la Brosse à Grain Astréïa à des visiteurs venus de toute l’Europe… et même des États-Unis.

Les retours nous motivent énormément :
🌾 Des installations compactes pensées pour optimiser l’espace.
🔇 Un fonctionnement étonnamment silencieux.
⚙️ Une intégration facile dans un atelier, une boulangerie ou une exploitation agricole.
❤️ Des équipements conçus pour durer.

Au-delà des démonstrations, nous repartons avec de belles rencontres, de nouveaux projets et la confirmation que cette filière internationale partage les mêmes valeurs : qualité, autonomie et savoir-faire.

Un immense merci à @landsorten pour son accueil, ainsi qu’à toutes les personnes venues échanger avec nous. Merci à toutes celles et ceux qui sont venus nous rencontrer. Et si nous ne nous sommes pas croisés cette fois-ci, ce sera avec plaisir lors d’un prochain événement ! 🌾

English Version in comment👇

[Stone Milling, Fresh Milled Flour, Artisan Baker, Farmer Baker, Grain Milling, Whole Grain, Flour Quality, Moulin Astréïa, Moulin à meules de pierre, Meunerie, Paysan-Boulanger, Farine sur meules, European Grain Festival, Landsorten, Savoir-faire]

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Wir haben lokales Getreide verkostet, Brote gemeinsam gebacken, gesungen, in der prallen Sonne auf dem Feld über Dammkultur gesprochen, gemeinsam gegessen und über eine bessere Zukunft philosophiert.

Zwischen Geschichte, Kunst, Testfeldern sowie Brot- und Getreidevielfalt war ganz viel Hoffnung zu spüren – besonders in Zeiten, in denen Krisen die Nachrichten dominieren und Nachhaltigkeit immer weiter in den Hintergrund rückt.

Für ein paar Tage kamen hier Menschen zusammen, die intrinsisch motiviert sind und innovative, bodenständige Lösungen entwickeln: um die Böden gesund zu machen und die leckersten, vielfältigsten und gesündesten Backwaren möglichst vielen Menschen zugänglich zu machen.

Vielen Dank für die vielen Begegnungen, Gespräche und Impulse!

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ENGLISH VERSION

We tasted local grains, baked bread together, sang, talked about ridge cultivation in the blazing sun out in the fields, shared meals, and philosophized about a better future.

Amidst history, art, test fields, and a vast diversity of bread and grains, there was a real sense of hope. Especially in times where crisis dominate the news and sustainability is increasingly pushed into the background.

For a few days, people came together here who are intrinsically motivated and are developing innovative, down-to-earth solutions: to restore soil health and to make the most delicious, diverse, and healthy baked goods accessible to as many people as possible.

Thank you for all the encounters, conversations, and inspiration! @landsorten

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Make something good grow!

Our Landsorten hearts are filled with grain and gratitude. We have spent 3 days trying to get our hands down (and it’s starting to look a little weird). Thank you for an incredible festival, for being there and sharing so much good energy and inspiration with us all.

This gathering reminded us exactly why we need to meet in person, share stories, practice and experience across boarders and generations. It is food for thought and motivation to continue the work for better food for health and planet.

See you again soon and let’s continue the conversation🌾🌱

You can become a member of Landsorten by subscribing on our webpage - both international and danish members are welcome.

#europeangrainfestival2026 #letscultivatediversity

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European Grain Festival 🌾👩🏻‍🌾👨🏻‍🍳

Thank you @landsorten and @lets_liberate_diversity and every single one of you attending at this magnificent, lovely and hope-inducing and motivating festival, completely entrenched in grains. I had a blast, met so many wise and active people, and learned a lot. Thank you also to @kvann_norwegianseedsavers for letting me attend as part of the organisation’s board – I will make sure to share what I’ve gathered 🫘🌾

I’m back in Norway feeling very motivated to be a driving force in getting the grain and baking revolution based on organically, regeneratingly grown diverse heritage grains, relationships, health, nutrition and flavour on the road also here ✊

Make sure to catch Caroline’s most powerful words on the last slide here. As actors in our communities and in this world we have real responsibilities.

#realbreadcampaign
#europeangrainfestival
#grainandbakingrevolution

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There is still time to apply for our NEW Year-Long Grain Seed Production Training, featuring the first-hand wisdom of our incredible friends and allies from the grain sovereignty movement.⁠
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👉️ Find out more and apply through the link in our bio ⁠
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Successful applicants will journey through a series of online and in-person sessions while each growing three winter wheat crops (two heritage/rare crops and one modern variety as a control) from seed to seed. ⁠
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Growers, farmers, bakers and grain enthusiasts wanting to grow diverse grains on a small to medium scale, we would love to hear from you!⁠
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🌾🌾🌾

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