Context/Problem

Like many other farmers in Northern Ireland, Helen and her husband Charlie were facing a challenge: how to make a profit from a small farm and make a positive impact on the soil, air, water and wildlife. With increasing demand for local produce, it seemed obvious to start growing a wider range of crops… but how do you decide what to grow?

To make an intelligent choice would require an agronomist and an understanding of the market. This was the kernel of an idea that Helen brought to the team at Venture Folk who nurtured it into SourceGrow with support of funding from Innovate UK and Techstart NI.

Solution/Activity

As a crop recommendation and market platform, SourceGrow captures demand from restaurants, diversifies produce options for growers and connects local producers to their customers.

With delivery built into the service, growers can stay on the farm and focus on growing what they know is in demand and restaurants have peace of mind knowing that if they place an order by 12pm on a Tuesday, they’ll have their freshly picked produce by Thursday. 

For Growers, SourceGrow provides crop insights based on geography and helps growers find the right produce to grow and sell to local restaurants and veg-box schemes. 

For Sourcers, SourceGrow is a great place to find and buy produce locally. Chefs can request crops on the wishlist and reserve crops before they are harvested. Making it easier to support seasonal growers, plan menus in advance, and get produce with fresher flavour and fewer food miles.

Status/Outcome

SourceGrow Ltd. now operates as a standalone business and VentureFolk’s first spin out venture that will continue to be supported by VentureFolk members. 

The platform is now helping sourcers and growers across Northern Ireland and building a sustainable network of food production, with plans for further development and regional expansion.

SDG 2 ‘Zero Hunger’, SDG 3 ‘Good Health & Wellbeing’, SDG 11 ‘Sustainable Cities & Communities’ and SDG 12 ‘Responsible Consumption & Production’.