About River Cottage
It was 1998 when Hugh moved into the original River Cottage in Dorset, to start growing and rearing some of his own food. 'River Cottage' has since moved on, and has grown and developed, but we continue to stand for the same principles of food integrity and the consumption of local, seasonal produce.
Today, River Cottage consists of several different projects.
River Cottage HQ, based at Park Farm near Axminster, is the base for our Cookery School, courses and events. These events are inspired by the philosophy of the original River Cottage - ranging from a night's dining and entertainment, through to courses in foraging, curing, gardening, bread making, butchery and more.
River Cottage also has a Canteen and Deli in Axminster, where we work with a wonderful collection of local and organic food and drink producers from the South West, to provide fabulous food in a relaxed and informal atmosphere
Our other projects include series for television, campaigns such as Hugh’s Fish Fight, regular food columns, and a range of River Cottage books, DVDs and online courses.
River Cottage is not a charity, but does aim to be a ‘more than profit’ organisation. This means, firstly, that we are ready to re–invest much of our income in developing our ideology and the base of our activities. It also means that we should be ready to hold back from, or turn down, business that conflicts with our ideology and our commitment to ethical business practice. Thirdly, we feel we should also be making links with, and finding ways to support, other organisations who share our ideas.
