© Peckham Cart 2014.
For too long ‘economy’ has been used as a word to legitimise the retraction of state support, austerity, dirty trade deals, the proliferation of corporate power. But fear not, we’re seeing the rise of a new economy. One where small scale producers, local people, community causes and the environment benefit. A circular food economy if you like, one that feeds Peckham as it is fed by Peckham.
Our story starts with Manuel, a professional French baker who arrived in Peckham 25 years ago with a taste for high quality baked goods and social justice.
Passionate about the rights of immigrant and refugees, he became and remains a component part of Southwark Refugee Project. When austerity slashed funding, Manuel set-up Peckham Cart Project, a static cart in the Aylesham Centre from which he sold his bread and cakes, with all profits going to the Refugee project.
We stumbled upon Manuel and the Cart when we were out collecting surplus food to cook up into a big three course community feast at Peckham Foodcycle, a weekly project we had helped establish one year previously.
‘Wow Manuel’, we said ‘What beautiful doughnuts you have!’‘Oh!’ cried Manuel, ‘All the better for filling with Foodcycle’s surplus fruit jam!’
And so a partnership was formed. Manuel would bake, we would fill with all types of jam; blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, chilli, papaya, pineapple. We’d distribute to some of Peckham’s finest vendors (Slow Richies, Hop Burn and Black, Fat Boys, The Nines, Lerryns), and we’d collect the profits for the Refugee Project. Then BOOM -a doughnut scene exploded in Peckham - we were filling and delivering one hundred doughnuts a week and we were loving it.
Our story starts with Manuel, a professional French baker who arrived in Peckham 25 years ago with a taste for high quality baked goods and social justice.
Passionate about the rights of immigrant and refugees, he became and remains a component part of Southwark Refugee Project. When austerity slashed funding, Manuel set-up Peckham Cart Project, a static cart in the Aylesham Centre from which he sold his bread and cakes, with all profits going to the Refugee project.
We stumbled upon Manuel and the Cart when we were out collecting surplus food to cook up into a big three course community feast at Peckham Foodcycle, a weekly project we had helped establish one year previously.
‘Wow Manuel’, we said ‘What beautiful doughnuts you have!’‘Oh!’ cried Manuel, ‘All the better for filling with Foodcycle’s surplus fruit jam!’
And so a partnership was formed. Manuel would bake, we would fill with all types of jam; blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, chilli, papaya, pineapple. We’d distribute to some of Peckham’s finest vendors (Slow Richies, Hop Burn and Black, Fat Boys, The Nines, Lerryns), and we’d collect the profits for the Refugee Project. Then BOOM -a doughnut scene exploded in Peckham - we were filling and delivering one hundred doughnuts a week and we were loving it.
Building a local food economy that
celebrates Peckham’s producers and
gives back to community causes.
Then it was time for Manuel to take a break from the Cart. Baking through the night while working a full time bakery job and spending hours keeping the refugee project afloat was taking its toll. The doughnut scene subsided and things went quiet. But a seed had been planted. For us Peckham Cart had become a symbol of strength, community and support. We saw in it the potential to change the way we think about food in Peckham.
Peckham hosts a colourful array of grassroots enterprises, producers, and community growing projects. We want to create the conditions for our local producers and projects to thrive, and for Peckham’s relationships with them and with each other to take hold and deepen.
We want money to stay in Peckham and to sustain Peckham.
We want to enable a new kind of local buying culture and of redefine what it means to be an investor.
We want to continue donating to Southwark Refugee Project, Southwark Day Centre for Asylum Seekers and Refugees (SCDAS) and other local causes.
We want to catalyse greater involvement in these local causes through an alternative community currency.
We want to tackle waste; wasted food miles, waste food, untapped potential of networks and people power and to make use of the underused capacities of some of Peckham’s most vulnerable people in a way that builds confidence and community.
Peckham Cart is restarting its journey, we’d love for you to join for the ride!
