The Sheffield Wheat Experiment re-imagines alternative grain economies through hand growing, harvesting and processing a population wheat for and of Sheffield. Through understanding the impacts of industrialisation on our daily bread, this artwork and community heritage project reconnects people to the land and the seed. The experiment explores alternative systems that embody new values that make our food more than just a commodity.
Our food systems are vunerable to collapse, they are deeply unfair and far from nourishing, above all they are contributing to environmental breakdown. The Sheffield Wheat Experiment started in 2020 when the flour started disappearing from the supermarket shelves. This is a fallow year for the project, although the wheat is still growing, we’re coming to spread the word about diverse populations of wheat a little further.
During this workshop, led by Ruth Levene, the artist behind the experiment, you’ll have an opportunity to get your hands on some of the wheat. You’ll learn how to hand thresh and clean small amounts of the grain, that’s If the harvest inearly August is successful, there maybe a little less wheat and more sharing.
Expect slow, mindful, simple acts that carve out space to share ideas around collective and communal food processing and what we can’t afford to loose.
Watch Grain City, a short film about The Sheffield Wheat Experiment for more information.