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Creating a better world by bringing people together through food
On a recent morning, a team from the Easton Cowboys and Cowgirls were packing fruit and vegetables into boxes ready to deliver across their community to people who are vulnerable, self-isolating or struggling financially due to the pandemic.
The community crisis veg box scheme is something that they have been doing since the start of the pandemic but rather than doing it at their base at the Plough in Easton, they are now packing the food in a tent on the Downs.
The tent is in the middle of Breaking Bread, with its position at the heart of the site an intentional way of informing visitors of the importance of the collaborative project, known as Team Canteen.
is needed now More than ever
Team Canteen’s mission statement is “creating a better world by bringing people together through food”, with their tent aiming to be “a positive, purposeful and collaborative space” with a fully equipped kitchen suitable for training and food production, as well as a flexible dining and event area.
Listen to chef Josh Eggleton talk about Team Canteen on the latest episode of the Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast:
Acclaimed chef Josh Eggleton told the Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast that Team Canteen was set up as a community interest company “to take on the mantle” of much of the aid that the hospitality industry in Bristol has been involved in since the start of the pandemic.
“I was concerned that all this would fall away when we opened back up because I had integrated with lots of restaurants across the city to make different meals for different charities; different refugee charities, Caring in Bristol, Feeding the Homeless…
“Team Canteen was set up to take on that aid and also still act as a link to the hospitality trade.”
The current Team Canteen as part of Breaking Bread on the Downs is a pilot project, with Eggleton wanting to move it into permanent premises in the near future.
Josh Eggleton outside Team Canteen at Breaking Bread on the Downs – photo: Martin Booth
Main photo: Martin Booth
Read more: Seasonal sourdough from Bristol bakery named Britain’s best loaf
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