On 9 December 2025, the historic halls of New College hosted the inaugural OxFarmToFork Showcase Event, a landmark gathering that bridged the gap between Oxfordshire’s regenerative farmers and the University’s world-renowned colleges.
The event welcomed over 100 college chefs, bursars, and food system innovators to celebrate a year of radical transformation in local procurement. Since its inception as a simple WhatsApp group, OxFarmToFork has rapidly grown into a powerhouse network, connecting 21 producers with 21 colleges and successfully ploughing more than £300,000 back into the local economy through direct purchasing.
Defining the Future: The Three ‘Rs’ of Sustainable Food
The showcase centred on a mission-driven framework designed to disrupt the ‘business as usual’ industrial food model, focusing on three core tenets that offer a pathway to a more sustainable system: Relationships, Resilience, and Restore.
The event highlighted that relationships are paramount to the movement. By forging direct links between growers and institutional buyers, OxFarmToFork ensures a truly short supply chain. By hosting events like this one but also a lively WhatsApp group of the team, chefs, and producers, OxFarmToFork has created a network of movers and shakers who want more for Oxford. Not only have chefs and growers connected, but local farmers have shared knowledge and experience with each other. They even pool resources and support when another grower has had crop issues.
Resilience addresses the urgent need to localise food sourcing. With less than 1% of food consumed in Oxford currently produced in the county, supporting local growers provides a critical buffer against global supply chain shocks caused by climate volatility and international events.
Finally, restore champions the environment. The initiative promotes agroecological farming that actively restores soil health and cuts carbon emissions. This is further enforced by our partnership with Velocity, whose zero-emission delivery system actively helps to reduce traffic and congestion on Oxford’s city streets.
As Project Lead Janie Bickersteth noted: “You could not have a fresher, more direct supply chain – literally picked in the field one day and brought into kitchens the following day.” This connection fosters greater respect for food and its provenance.
Another key element of the event was attendees participating in taste-testing sessions using the GRFFN model (pioneered by Matthew Adams). This technique (using a refractometer and taste-testing ratings) allows for direct testing of nutrient density and gathering chef and consumer flavour preferences for local produce vs non-local store-bought equivalents, providing critical data to support the shift towards regenerative farming.
A Celebration of Oxfordshire’s Food Culture
Guests explored a lively producer marketplace featuring Blacklands Organics, Tolhurst Organics, Worthy Earth, Proof Social, Smart Greens, Traditional Garden Growers, Tumblebug Mushrooms, Sandy Lane Farm, Adeline Farm, Swinbrook Farm, Hodmedod’s, Close Farm, Oxford City Farm, Willowbrook Farm, Nettlebed Creamery, The Missing Bean, Twist Teas and Project BAGH.
The day’s panel discussion to wrap up the day was chaired by Josiah Meldrum of Hodmedod’s and featured chef and food educator James Taylor, local growers Cate Bennett of Sandy Lane Farm and Harrison Fannon of Worthy Earth, head chef Sam White of New College, focused on the future of food sustainability, the benefits of championing local produce, and the practicalities of shifting to seasonal menus. The event blended serious discourse with a sense of community, including a true ‘farm-to-fork' canapé tasting experience and even an impromptu game of vegetable ring toss!
Scaling the Impact: From Colleges to Community
With the effectiveness of the model clearly established within the colleges, OxFarmToFork is now setting its sights on broader community impact. The organisation is actively seeking to build procurement relationships with local schools and hospitals to ensure high-quality, sustainable, and ethical produce is accessible to the entire community.
“This event was a celebration of what Oxfordshire can achieve when we work together,” said Janie Bickersteth, Project Lead at OxFarmToFork.
“By connecting college chefs directly with our passionate local producers, we aren't just improving menus; we are building a more resilient, sustainable, and delicious food system for the entire county.”
About OxFarmToFork
OxFarmToFork is a not-for-profit, short-chain food hub bringing produce directly from Oxfordshire growers to local institutions. By leveraging the Tream Marketplace platform, OxFarmToFork enables transparent, ethical, and low-carbon procurement that supports local biodiversity and the regional economy. It was launched by Good Food Oxfordshire in the summer of 2023.
Photos available here.
