Green-fingered Londoners redefine capital growth

London’s Mayor, Boris Johnson, has urged capital dwellers to go back to basics and start growing their own fruit and veg.

The ‘Capital Growth’ project, brainchild of recently appointed chair of London Food, Rosie Boycott, is advocating that residents and community groups in the capital should identify any derelict space - including roof tops - that could be used to grow food.

Hospitals, schools, councils, housing estates and utility companies are all being encouraged to take part in the scheme.

The aim for 2012 is to turn 2,012 pieces of unused land into productive green spaces.

In addition to helping Londoners cut back on food spending during the oncoming recession, shunning supermarket-bought fruit and veg will help boost the capital’s eco-credentials.

Locally grown food has almost zero food miles, and is much healthier than food shipped in by supermarkets because it can be picked when it is ripe and most full of nutrients.

Supermarkets have to pick fruit and veg before they are ripe so that they don’t go off whilst being transported across the country or around the world.

Produce picked pre-ripe is far less healthy than ripe-picked equivalents because the nutrients have not developed to their full potential.

A number of groups have already pledged land for the scheme, including: