The Rural Youth Project held an Ideas hack welcoming 30 young people aged 18-30 to explore what the fresh food/horticulture sector has to offer regarding employment in Kent and Medway. This included job opportunities, business ideas and creation, career potential and a gave a deeper understanding of where fresh food comes from. Delegates travelled from all across Kent and Medway including Ashford, Ash, Chatham, Dartford, Edenbridge, Gillingham, Lydd, Maidstone, Medway, Rochester, Sevenoaks and Tunbridge Wells.

Employers and businesses within the industry were also invited to re-imagine what the future could look like for the sector, and how to appeal to young people.

Watch the highlight video below and be inspired!

Big thanks go to Kent Council Council, and all the local councils and businesses who supported the event, it would not have been possible without their support.

Hear from some of the delegates

	Taran Neighbour is now proud to say he is part of the horticulture,sector after leaving insurance to join the PICK ME scheme at Berry,Gardens. He came to the hack to learn more about the industry he is now,apart of, and this is what he had to say CLICK HERE.
	Kent County Council are looking to explore opportunities to get more young people into horticulture. Hugh Jarvis from Kent Council Council explains why they supported the event CLICK HERE.

Hear from a few more here:

Passionate about fresh food and produce, Carol Ford attended to share her experiences and what she has learned from the sector.

Franscesca Pritchard, currently undertaking a grad scheme role with MDS enjoyed hearing about the other sides to food production, rather than her usual commercial view.

Jack Scott went into the weekend ready to leave the sector but left hopeful for the future.

Jacob Potts talks here about opportunities he has found in the horticulture sector in Kent.

Mizuho Nitahara is studying on a year abroad at the University of Sussex and heard about the event through them, shares her experiences.

Rohan Mahajan felt the weekend allowed him to find an interest in agriculture and learn a lot about horticulture.

Zoe Collins is a PhD student looking at labour rights and shortages in the UK food system, the weekend provided her with valuable insights.

Vailiki Loukaki gained an appreciation for where food comes from and the horticultural sector in general, including the multitude of careers available.

Case Studies

Laura Taylor

Laura spoke at the Kent & Medway hack. After being made redundant at the end of 2019, she set up Wild Box, initially with the aim of creating a mobile bar company available for weddings and local events.

Zoe Collins

Zoe attended the Kent & Medway Ideas Hack because it aligned with her PhD topic and was a good opportunity, close to home, to meet other local people. Having grown up in zone 6 of London and moved to Kent, Zoe Collins sees the lack of young people in rural areas.