Going for Gold and Bristol’s Good Food Response during the coronavirus pandemic

Since Bristol Going for Gold launched last year, we’ve seen individuals, organisations and policymakers unite behind a shared ambition of making Bristol a Gold Sustainable Food City by the end of 2020. Your collective actions have already seen our city taking significant steps towards making a fairer, more sustainable food community for Bristol.

Though this vision for Bristol’s food system remains unchanged, the food landscape everywhere has altered drastically in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The coming weeks and months will be a true test of just how resilient our food system currently is. As we learn how the pandemic will affect our lives, our community and our economy, we’ll also see how the food we grow, buy, cook, serve and eat will be impacted. We’ll face many challenges, but hopefully also find positive stories and unexpected strength to see us into the future.

Bristol’s bid for gold will be delayed by six months, but the Going for Gold actions and resources will continue to be made available. Use them to focus your efforts at home through tips on resourceful cooking, food waste reduction and home growing, and involve the kids by logging actions and recording your progress. Your logged actions will help us capture a picture of good food in the city during this unprecedented time.

Bristol Going for Gold’s good food themes have never been more urgent and relevant than they are now. As citizens across the city pull together, Community Action is the driving force in making sure those struggling to access food aren’t left behind. New and established organisations are working in new ways to strive for Food Equality in communities. Meanwhile, in the home, we’re finding imaginative ways to use the resources available to us – Buying Better through local, independent producers, Eating Better through clever cooking, and reducing our Food Waste at a time when making the best use of every last scrap of food can help the nation respond to the emergency. For many in the city, Urban Growing will help us stay connected with nature while taking a small step towards self-sufficiency.

We’ll be continuing to share inspiring stories on these themes from the community, as it adapts and responds to changes in our food system. You can help tell those inspirational stories from across the city, too. Share your stories with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or get in touch.

In the meantime, the team coordinating the bid will focus on drawing people in our city together to create a community of knowledge and support around food.

You can access this community online. On our partner website Bristol Food Network, you’ll find information and resources relating to Bristol’s Good Food Response. If you’re in need of support, have time or resources to help others or want to know more about how you can support our local, independent food producers and retailers, head over to the site for the latest initiatives emerging across the city.