Brighton & Hove "Eco Dinner" & "Circular Economy Club (CEC)" Dinner - Circular Bubbles & Burgers 1st November 2017

We were hosted by Grow40, Kensington Gardens, in the heart of Brighton’s North Laine, in their cosy, relaxed Members’ snug in their bistro and wine bar where they cook with home-grown food and a great gin selection. Thirteen attended, including designers, engineers, priests with a few environmentalists thrown in!

Over an aperitif of either champagne, cocktails or a virgin cocktail, we networked in the comfy sofas and chairs of the upstairs members’ area. It was a pleasure to meet a diverse range of people and get to know some new faces.

As host for the night, I introduced the Eco-Dinner Club and in Peter Desmond's absence (the CEC Brighton & Hove organiser), I introduced the Circular Economy Club (CEC).  This was easier for me as I am also London Local Organiser for CEC. The two Brighton & Hove clubs have agreed that in the spirit of partnership, we will coordinate our events to avoid clashes and ensure that we have complementary activities.

We began with roundtable introductions (who you are, what you do and why food and circular economy is important or of interest to you). Many attendees focused on food waste and the role of retailers in reducing food in stores and at home. We were lucky enough to have Steve Creed, from WRAP, there and he gave a great insight to the work that the whole supply-chain has been doing to reduce waste on the food to fork journey. The challenge is to continue to tackle the enormous amount of food waste generated in our homes; so lets promote not buy more than we need, reduce our avoidable waste and reuse our food wherever we can...then put in a composter or food waste bin.

It was while doing the round table that the burgers of organic beef, fish or polenta were presented with panache and tasted as good as they looked. We continued our discussions until the desserts arrived and were impressed by the colours and taste! All this while supping on light and fruity white and red wines, organic of course.

We agreed that circular bubbles and burgers worked and that we would have the "Dinner" every first Wednesday of the month... (except December when we will meet on Tuesday 5th).

Our outings for next year will be to the Brighton Wind Turbines, urban forages and other events that lead to actual Change, rather than just talking about change.

We look forward to seeing you at one of our next events.

David Greenfield - Co-founder of the Brighton & Hove Eco-Dinner Club @BHEcoDinner

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