The Voice of the Countryside – Resilience for Real

Project manager Hans Hallengren wants to highlight the conditions that small food producers face in Knivsta, Sigtuna, Uppsala, Vallentuna, and Östhammar, and how regulations and control systems affect their opportunities to operate.

The project is carried out as a podcast series where local producers get to speak with their own voices and experiences. Through the conversations, a basis is created that can be used to spark dialogue and give decision-makers at the municipal, regional, and national levels a clearer picture of how regulations impact reality. Hans's ambition is to contribute to more proportionate conditions for small-scale food production and to a food system that better strengthens local food supply.

The work consists of mapping producers, conducting interviews, and producing the podcast series, but also of creating meeting places where producers and decision-makers can meet, share experiences, and discuss possible ways forward.

In the long term, the project will leave behind a documented knowledge bank and a clearer conversation structure around small-scale food production. The podcast series and the compiled material can continue to be used in advocacy work and future initiatives, while also contributing to a greater understanding of local food production as part of both preparedness and sustainable rural development.