Welcome to Brighton People, a new series from We Love Brighton celebrating the brilliant individuals, organisations, and businesses that make our city shine. Meet Christian Amys of Urban Forage, which has recently celebrated its four year anniversary.
How would you describe Urban Forage to anyone who doesn’t know?
Urban Forage is a project born out of Lockdown with a focus on teaching the world to enjoy sustainable wild food. We give you the tools to carve your own forage journey with some incredible food ideas too. Everyone is included on our weekly forage walks and demonstrations and we work with local charities, schools and organisations, to offer a safe environment to learn about nature.
I believe you’re celebrating an anniversary, congratulations! How does it feel to be here now and how did it all begin?
It’s four years since we launched a Forage experience like no other. I’m so proud of all the people we have met and inspired, the events we’ve held and the amount of different groups of people we have included. It began making forage food boxes for people during the Lockdown, I lost my Chef job and my brother was furloughed, so we started foraging everyday and by the time we came out of the pandemic, I had made a business plan, secured a start up loan and launched with walks, afternoon teas and coastal forays. We are now a driving force behind promoting sustainable living.
What do you love about running Urban Forage?
Being neurodivergent, I love to be able to look at different plants, fungi and weeds everyday, if you have been on one of our walks, you will know how much we love sharing our knowledge and learning from others too. It’s the best feeling when you see someone smile after teaching them something new that they can eat and love for free.
What would you like people to know about it?
I think we now offer the most extraordinary experiences, hosted by two brothers from Brighton, Fungi experts and ex Michelin standard chefs, I’m really proud to say I don’t think you can the same outdoor experience anywhere else, going forward we are not going to change too much, just improve and are planning some new experiences such a cookery classes and pop up food events too.
What is your connection to Brighton and what do you love about the city?
The whole Urban Forage family grew up in Brighton, close to Stanmer Park and we are so proud of our gorgeous diverse city, Urban Forage is Brighton and we will be here forever now, we love the amazing vibes that get on our forage workshops from our fellow Brightonians it makes our work such a fun environment.
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Visit Urban Forage for the full list of events.
Address: Stanmer Park, Stanmer, BN1 9SE
