Leading catering team visits hydroponic herb farm buried 33 metres beneath Clapham streets
In the newest phase of its campaign to serve its clients exquisite food that is also sustainably sourced, Vacherin has conducted a Sustainability Focus Group training and sampling session – with a big difference. The Growing Underground herb farm is quite literally buried in tunnels 33 metres under the streets of Clapham and grows produce with a remarkable USP.
In a whole new definition of sourcing local vegetables these micro-herbs are grown in former WW II bomb shelters below the Northern Line. These ultra-fresh microgreens and salad leaves use the latest hydroponic systems[1] as the farm grows crops incredibly quickly and year-round in a controlled, pesticide-free environment. It uses 70% less water than traditional open-field farming and makes zero contribution to agricultural run-off.
Sustainability Focus Groups such as this are conducted quarterly as part of Vacherin’s employee training. A location is chosen and Chefs, Managers, Directors, and Front of House staff come together to review trends in the world of food sustainability – in this case urban farming and hydroponics.
In an open invitation to his team to experience the technology and taste the produce Vacherin’s co-owner and commercial director, Phil Roker, said: “Sustainability Focus Groups are a vital future-proofing and innovation strategy that ensures service to our clients remains of a high standard. These microgreens are tiny flavour bombs; they’re on-trend, look stunning and enhance many fine dishes.”
Anthony Kingsley, the Sustainability & CSR Lead at Vacherin said: “Growing Underground provides a potential solution for British food security for herbs through hydroponics, or even a huge chunk of agriculture itself. The agricultural and livestock industry is the second largest greenhouse gas emitter after the energy industry. Exposing our team to new ideas and technologies in London is the purpose of our Sustainability Focus Group. We want to reduce our environmental impact whilst ensuring we receive high quality products and at the same time educating & engaging our teams.”
“I’d like to extend a big thank-you to the Growing Underground guys,” he continued. “We offer completely bespoke service to our clients which means our chefs and managers make the purchasing decisions on-site. Getting them out to learn about hydroponics and microgreens is the ideal way to bring sustainability into each of our staff restaurants and hospitality operations.”
[1] Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, in water, without soil.
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