Tag: access to food

SRUC to open state-of-the-art vertical farm facility in Edinburgh

Low angle view of layered herb plants enjoying hydroponic technology system of controlled LED light and CO2-infused air in pristine growing chamber.

Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) will be the first higher education institute in Scotland to open a vertical farm for research and education.

It will build the half million-pound facility at its King’s Buildings campus in Edinburgh next year.

The project, which has received a £200,000 grant from the Scottish Government, will be used in key research into plant and crop science and will also be used by students.

The facility will grow nutrient-dense fruit and vegetables that have specific human health qualities. It will also analyse crop yield and growth rates with all resource inputs to compare their carbon footprint to other production systems.

It will operate on renewable energy sources from the national grid, supported by battery technology to manage peaks in energy demand.

With only a handful of commercial vertical farms in Scotland, the facility will be important for demonstration and knowledge exchange with farmers, growers and small businesses, giving vital support and promoting innovation.

Mairi Gougeon, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, said: “As we look to produce more fruits and vegetables locally, vertical farming could provide us with a way to make better use of our land.

“It’s an exciting and innovative field that could bring us real benefits and it is important that we have the skills in Scotland to take advantage of this technology.

“By supporting the industry at an early stage, we can assess these benefits and help to focus our long-term strategy. We will also be reaching out to the wider industry to explore in further detail the opportunities low-carbon vertical farming offers. We will work together to establish the future of vertical farming in Scotland.”

Professor Wayne Powell, Principal and Chief Executive of SRUC, said: “One of the most critical challenges we face is how to feed a growing global population. We have been teaching farmers for generations but, as the population increases, it is important that we look at growing different, more nutritious crops to support healthy diets and local access to food.

“Not only will this vertical farming unit be a valuable asset to our students, but it will also provide us with important data to help optimise and promote innovation into this expanding industry.”

The project will be going out to tender in the coming weeks.

Three in four people blind and partially sighted people concerned about getting access to food

Difficulties in social distancing are adding to the stress many blind and partially sighted people are experiencing in getting access to basic shopping, a survey by the charity RNIB has found.

“This first nationwide survey of how people with sight loss are coping during the current lockdown situation suggests it might be impacting particularly severely on them,” James Adams, director of RNIB Scotland, has warned.

“Three in four respondents to our survey reported being very or quite concerned about getting access to food. Uncertainty and confusion over access to shopping and information – compounded by isolation and the barriers to being guided because of social distancing – all add to the stress many people are feeling.

“We are working with supermarkets to ensure those who can’t leave the house, or who can’t see to easily social distance themselves from other shoppers, do have access to basic food supplies.”

People with sight loss can struggle to maintain social distance as they can’t always see other shoppers approaching them, pointed out Mr Adams.

Eighty per cent of people replying to the RNIB survey said that the way they do shopping has changed since lockdown.

Before, 28 per cent said they had done their own shopping. Now, half that proportion do. And while only 18 per cent had previously relied on someone to shop for them, now 49 per cent do. 25 per cent said there was no one in their household who could guide them around a shop.

Shopping online has also proved a problem. 67 per cent of respondents had experienced difficulty finding a supermarket delivery slot, while 26 per cent said they couldn’t access the supermarket booking web-page. RNIB has pressed government and supermarkets to add blind and partially sighted people to the priority delivery list.

The survey has also revealed that the isolation imposed by lockdown has hit blind and partially sighted people particularly hard.

78 per cent said they had less contact with ‘the people who matter to me’; one in five people reported that they now rarely speak to people either over the phone, on video calls or in person since lockdown; while five per cent did not know how to contact many of the people they would normally be in touch with at least once a week.

Accessible information was another worry. One in four respondents had struggled to get written information in a format that they could understand.

“We have urged government and public bodies to ensure that often vital  information is available in formats such as audio and braille,” said Mr Adams.

“While social distancing is an important health measure, the consequences for those who are less able to comply can be difficult, especially if other people wrongly assume they are just being lackadaisical. We need to give more thought to how we ensure people with sight loss don’t end up becoming prisoners of lockdown.

“Our RNIB Helpline is available to help and support all blind and partially sighted people and their families and carers on 0303 123 9999. We want people with sight loss to know they are not alone and that help is available”

Case study – Kirin Saeed from Edinburgh:

One in five respondents to the RNIB survey said they have had to ration food during the current lockdown period:

Kirin Saeed from Edinburgh is registered blind. “I’ve found myself limiting the food I eat as I’m never that sure when my next food delivery will be,” she says. “I have a paid carer who lives some distance away and I’m conscious I don’t want to burden her with too much shopping. Also, as I’m in the black and minority ethnic group and possibly more vulnerable to the coronavirus virus, I need to limit contact with others.

“If I went to a shop myself social distancing would be a massive problem. Touching things to ascertain what they are would, too. Blind people live in a world where touching things is important – but how long does the virus stay on things we touch?

“I don’t think this situation is going to change anytime soon. Everyone’s scrambling through the here and now –  but what about the here and after? There will still be social distancing.

“The hope I have is that shops and supermarkets agree a standardised policy for customers with sight loss, so that we know how to safely get around shops and so do staff. That would be the best way forward for everybody.”