The FarMM is a non-partisan, active think tank focused on food & agricultural development and sustainability with an innovative, highly entrepreneurial approach.
We are organised as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee, incorporated in England & Wales with registration number 10284458. The Board of Directors is responsible for the governance and oversight of the operations of the organization. Net revenues, donations and grants are retained by The FarMM to fulfil its mission and generally to promote the expansion of its programmes.
We are in the process of establishing a Strategic and Advisory Council which will provide recommendations to the Board of Directors on strategic, policy and operational issues. The Council will be an independent body established by charter and will comprise a cross-disciplinary group of experienced academics, influential policy makers and professionals in the areas of food technology, nutrition, agriculture, education, marketing and investments, among others. Members of the Strategic and Advisory Council will also provide expert guidance to the various programmes and projects of The FarMM. A number of academics, investors and professionals within the private and public sectors have expressed their interest in being part of the Council.
The FarMM works closely with Mercato Metropolitano, an innovative, multi-faceted urban market format that opened its first site in London earlier this year, after a great success with the Milan pilot (2015) and the Turin branch, which is already a great success. Mercato Metropolitano is a 50,000 sq. ft. complex within the Borough regeneration triangle and has managed to attract important private and public partnerships, including social housing association, Peabody Trust.
The mission of The FarMM stated in its manifesto 2016 is to create a highly collaborative environment where influential academics, policy makers and technology professionals will work alongside the start-up and corporate venturing communities to address current issues in the food value chain, such as security, sufficiency, sustainability and traceability.
Over the next five years, The FarMM will put in place a number of programmes to fulfil its mission. These will include, among others:
Incubator – With the first programme expected to be announced in Q1 2017, The FarMM Incubator will provide seed capital, mentorship and business support to two or three cohorts of start-up companies and university spin-offs each year. For each cohort, The FarMM Incubator will invite candidates to submit business ideas and plans to address one or more given issues in the food and agricultural sectors. Selected business ideas will be admitted to the incubator programme and will work closely with mentors and the relevant members of the Strategic and Advisory Council for a period of six to nine months, before having an opportunity to access an accelerator or other programmes offered by partner organisations.
Regional Promotion Programme – Expected to start in Q2 2017, with this programme The FarMM and its partners will work with European public and private organizations to promote regional produce and food products within the UK. The objective of this programme is to provide business, logistical, technical and marketing support to small and medium regional food producers and manufacturer who want to export into the UK but are unable to access the big distribution channels. This programme will be aimed at rural operators whose practices are in line with The FarMM's values and ethos, and is intended to promote a Mediterranean diet richer in vegetables and leaner in meat-derived proteins.
Education Support Programme – Expected to start in 2018, this programme aims to help talented and less advantaged students access food and nutrition formal education; support promising PhD candidates whose research is related to food and agriculture and is in line with The FarMM's values and ethos; and bring food and healthy living education and vocational training to communities throughout the country, in each case, with the assistance of smart social entrepreneurs and education technology.
