Field to Fork Academy

This year, we launched the Field to Fork Academy at SKAO Observatory, Jodrell Bank. As of December 2024, 36 learners from various sectors of our business have attended the sessions, acquiring new skills and techniques to apply at their respective sites.

In January, we began sowing seeds in the greenhouse, including Aubergines, various types of tomatoes, peppers, chilies, cucumbers, courgettes, strawberries, nasturtiums, and soft herbs. Meanwhile, crops such as potatoes, onions, parsnips, garlic, and beetroot were planted directly into the ground, alongside gooseberry, raspberry, and blackberry bushes. Herbs like thyme, different varieties of sage, lemon balm, Thai basil, and rosemary were also introduced.

The first sessions focused on Aubergines, exploring how to utilize the entire vegetable and handle surplus. The teams created a dish featuring Lebanese Aubergine steak, Aubergine caviar, black garlic and balsamic gel, wild garlic chimichurri (foraged from the allotment), and Aubergine crisps made from surplus produce.

Next, we turned our attention to tomatoes and zero-waste cooking. Using tomatoes from the greenhouse, the teams crafted an intricate dish: poached lobster, tomato jelly, lobster kimchi, charcoal tuile, and lobster bisque, finished with dehydrated tomato crisps.

As the colder months set in, the focus shifted to beetroot. During these sessions, learners honed advanced culinary techniques such as creating aerated sponges using CO₂, dehydrating surplus ingredients for preservation, tempering chocolate, and making honeycomb. These skills came together in an elegant dessert: chocolate Cremeux, beetroot sponge, honeycomb, honey tuile, beetroot gel, and torched Swiss meringue, beautifully adorned with edible flowers from the kitchen garden.

The program also included a visit to Bidlea Dairy, a local farm supplying many of our Manchester-based sites. Our teams had the opportunity to witness the dairy production process, learn about raising calves on-site, and sample the farm’s renowned ice cream.

The academy’s curriculum is being finalized, and we can’t wait to welcome even more participants throughout 2025!