David Watts and John McKenzie from the Rowett Institute, University of Aberdeen discuss findings from their research during the Covid pandemic: In 2021, with Scottish Government funding, we interviewed staff and volunteers working to provide emergency food supplies to families with school-age children during the Covid-19 lockdowns. We had two aims. First, to understand how …
CFHS Blog
Guest blog: Impact of the Covid-19 lockdowns in service providers’ perspectives of the food insecurity of families with school-age children in Scotland
Also posted in CFHS updates, Covid-19
How does community food work link into local policy?
The CFHS programme has been working with the Scottish Government and community food networks to map strategic and practical support for community food activities across Scotland. As part of this, we looked at how community food work fits into local government, Health and Social Care and other key local policies. We found community food activities …
Also posted in Policy news
Guest Blog post: Make sure your views are heard on ending the need for food banks
In our guest blog post, Brenda Black from Edinburgh Community Food gives us reasons on why we should respond to the Scottish Government consultation paper on ‘Ending the need for food banks’ and gives us a few tips to help us. How does the draft national plan hope to succeed in ending the need for …
Also posted in CFHS updates
Area of Work: Food poverty and access
Guest blog: Katy Gordon discusses the different approaches that two local areas in Scotland took to tackle food access and food insecurity last summer.
In March 2020, like many people, we, as researchers with an interest in food insecurity in the UK, were hugely concerned about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the national lockdown on households’ access to food. It was clear from the outset of the pandemic that need for support with food access was rising …
Also posted in CFHS updates, Covid-19, Covid-19, News
Area of Work: Food poverty and access
July CFHS (Covid-19 and recovery) e-bulletin
Our latest e-bulletin is now available, with information about community food initiative’s summer programmes, and the latest webinars and reports to help you keep up-to-date with the community food sector. You can read the CFHS e-bulletin here.
Also posted in CFHS updates, Covid-19, Covid-19, News
Areas of Work: Covid-19 information and resources, Information provision
How has Lanarkshire Community Food and Health Partnership supported a ‘cash first’ response to food insecurity?
In this blog post, Gordon Thomson, Manager for Lanarkshire Community Food and Health Partnership (LCFHP), tells us how LCFHP got involved in the ‘cash first’ approach in North Lanarkshire several years ago, and how this approach supported people during the pandemic. LCFHP has run community food activities such as community fruit and veg retail, cooking …
Also posted in CFHS updates, Covid-19, Covid-19, News
Area of Work: Covid-19 information and resources
Guest Blog: Cash First approaches to addressing food insecurity: What is the role of health visitors, midwives and family nurses?
In this guest post, Dr Flora Douglas (Reader in Nursing at Robert Gordon University) discusses her recent research: In late 2019 I was commissioned to undertake a short, focused piece of work to develop a better understanding of lived experiences of parenting on a low income in Aberdeen City, by NHS Grampian’s Child Health Commissioner. …
Also posted in CFHS updates, Covid-19, Covid-19
Areas of Work: Covid-19 information and resources, Food poverty and access
How have Healthy Valleys created a sense of community during online cooking courses?
Simone Janse van Rensburg tells us what she has learned from delivering their first few online courses – for parents with young children and two different weight management groups. About the courses Simone and her colleague, a cook tutor too, created some home-made videos of recipes they knew people enjoyed at face-to-face sessions and found …
Also posted in CFHS updates, Covid-19, Covid-19
CFHS blog – online cooking skills courses: tips and ideas from REHIS
Since March last year, The Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) has allowed REHIS course presenters to deliver the REHIS Elementary Cooking Skills course virtually, using platforms such as Microsoft Teams or Zoom. Adapting training to a virtual platform is not without its challenges, so REHIS recently developed some additional guidance for its course …
Also posted in Covid-19, Ideas about developing and running cooking skills courses
Areas of Work: Cookery skills, Covid-19 information and resources, Food and nutrition training
A move towards healthy and more environmentally sustainable diets
The Rowett Institute at the University of Aberdeen is conducting a study which will explore healthy and more environmentally sustainable diets in Scotland, focusing on the consumption of red meat with the aim to shift towards plant based foods. Here, the Rowett Institute explains the focus of the study planned for 2023. Cutting down on …