Catch up on the latest episode of Made in Kent with Sofia Akin
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00:00 Hello and welcome to Made in Kent live on KMTV. I'm Sophia Akin and coming up on tonight's
00:27 show. Can you have a Christmas dinner made entirely
00:30 from Kentish producers? Local producers weigh in. Wonderworks in Margate offer miniature
00:36 thrills with Kent's heritage brands. And Handmade with love charity supports those
00:43 affected by baby loss. Plus the future of Kent's windmills is at risk as a public consultation
00:50 on selling them unfolds. But first tonight, is it possible to have
00:58 a Christmas dinner made from purely Kentish products? Well with many butchers and root
01:03 to veg farmers across our county it definitely must be. Farmers say it's not only fresher
01:07 to eat locally but also more sustainable. Well let's find out which veg is currently
01:12 fresh from the county. Steve Orem joins me in the studio now. Steve you own your own
01:18 veg business. It's something you've been doing for a while isn't it? Firstly before we get
01:23 into the specifics of what veg we can use on our roast dinners, tell me a bit more about
01:28 the Kent Veg Box. Well we've been going for nearly 20 years now and we basically only
01:35 use Kent produce. So we only get all of our veg and 99% of all our other produce from
01:40 Kent producers and therefore it just keeps the food miles down, sustainable etc.
01:47 Can we make a roast dinner purely from Kent products? We have so much green land here,
01:52 so many different opportunities to grow our own veg. So can we have a purely Kentish roast
01:58 dinner? You can. You know there are loads of small
02:03 producers all over the county that cover Christmas. You know most of them in addition to their
02:09 normal produce that they bring in but there's some specialist producers as well of turkeys
02:14 etc. So yeah I mean over the years we've been doing it I don't think we've ever found anything
02:19 that can't be sourced locally from Kent. And what sort of veg is in season this month?
02:26 I imagine things like Brussels sprouts now are nearing Christmas. What other sort of
02:30 veg is in season that people might want to start putting on their Sunday roasts?
02:34 When you look at the typical veg it's perfect for Christmas which if you think about it
02:38 makes sense I guess. But yeah parsnips, carrots, sprouts that you mentioned, cabbages, cauliflower,
02:46 all of those things that are already producing. We started getting Brussels sprouts in last
02:52 week. At the moment the fields are really flooded with all the rain we have so it's
02:58 a real effort for them to get them in. Hopefully that clears by Christmas and it'll be less
03:06 effort for the farmers but yeah fully available now.
03:09 Yeah that's the sort of thing, it's climate can have such an impact on produce can't it?
03:13 We've seen sort of the two extremes with the heat and the rain as well. But how has this
03:20 sort of impacted people more generally sort of across the year as we've seen the weather
03:26 fluctuating? Well you know if we look at cauliflower for example as I say the fields are really
03:32 flooded at the moment. I think the farmers are really thinking about getting a boat to
03:36 get the stuff out of the field. They're literally having to hand walk it in. And one of the
03:41 issues with cauliflower is that now because of that lack of availability, whereas a cauliflower
03:47 was costing something in the region of 60p, they've been going at the market for £2.
03:54 And that is a tremendous difference. And when you're only getting perhaps 10% of the cauliflowers
04:00 out the field that you normally get, then obviously the farmers have to take that £2
04:08 because they need to get all they can. But yeah the market is tough at the moment it
04:13 has to be said. It must be tough because your costs are rising
04:17 yourself and then as you say you unfortunately have to slightly pass it on to the customer
04:20 don't you? So that must be quite frustrating. We've seen inflation sort of easing a little
04:25 bit but we're still seeing food prices high so that must be something that's still impacting
04:28 you. It is and then you get a super inflation from
04:31 the weather and it sort of really, really takes the legs out from under you. Fortunately
04:35 you know a lot of the farmers we've worked with for a long time, so we have arrangements
04:40 in place where the pricing is kept reasonable and they look at us as a long term buyer of
04:48 theirs rather than somebody who's just coming into the market. But that doesn't protect
04:53 us from everything. There's a good wide range of veg available so fortunately when one veg
04:59 like for example the cauliflower skyrockets in price then we're able to find something
05:05 else to take its place. For example there's an abundance of squash in Kent at the moment,
05:11 loads and loads of squash available and so we've been using a lot of them recently.
05:16 We spoke to you about that a bit earlier in the year didn't we when it was around Halloween
05:19 time and also just lastly how can shopping locally be more sustainable, how can it be
05:25 more eco-friendly? Well I think the main thing is the pollution
05:28 from transport. You know all of our produce and anything you buy from Kent you're looking
05:33 at something like less than 50 food miles to get it to us and that has to have a tremendous
05:41 impact on even shipping stuff in from overseas. Yeah it's tough you know if you're going to
05:47 be truly seasonal and therefore truly sustainable you might miss out on cauliflowers for a while
05:53 because they can't get them out the fields but that's what it means and you know that's
05:57 the commitment you have to make. And just lastly very quickly as a veg expert
06:02 what's your favourite veg to have on a roast dinner Christmas dinner?
06:05 Carrots. Carrots. How do you have them honey glazed
06:07 or just boiled? No I just have them normal roasted and just
06:14 as simple as that and you know just because they've got that fresh picked taste then you
06:20 know there's no need to do too much to them. Perfect Steve thank you very much, great to
06:24 catch up with you as always. Thank you.
06:27 Now have you ever dreamed of driving a steam train or racing a Formula One car around Margate?
06:32 Bit niche but now you can. There is a catch though it's all in miniature at the Wonder
06:37 Works. It's the home of some of Kent's heritage brands such as Hornby, Airfix and Skel-X-Trick.
06:43 Well Gabriel Morris has been down to find out more.
06:48 A vintage film of the golden age of steam. Well think again, zooming out of camera and
06:55 you quickly realise this is all actually a model.
06:59 Wonder Works in Margate is a newly opened space featuring models you can play with from
07:03 the Hornby Hobbies brand. But in recent years Hornby has had to compete with computer games
07:10 but they say that's yet to derail their business.
07:13 It's enormously important and I would obviously say it's very sustainable. I mean these brands
07:18 have been building up followings and enthusiasm for years and years and years, for decades
07:22 in fact. And actually there's one thing about them that's really important that it's really,
07:26 really nourishing valuable creative time away from screens. So I think it's a really, really
07:31 important thing for new generations but also to continue supporting the older generation.
07:36 And it's not just model trains, the brand is also responsible for Corgi, Skel-X-Trick
07:41 and Airfix. The new space tells their story and they even have experts on hand to help
07:48 you get in to the hobby.
07:50 I think more than that it's even more sort of therapeutic and really rewarding to do.
07:54 They've gotten smaller since I used to do them when I was younger which makes them all
07:58 the more fiddly and all the more sort of rewarding when you actually get it where you want it
08:00 to be and it's finally painted and all put together properly. But yeah, just incredibly
08:06 sort of therapeutic to paint as well I find, especially doing it freehand.
08:13 And you can even race a car around the Margate seafront. Let's see if I'm any better than
08:18 I was when I was a child.
08:19 And your fastest lap was 11.
08:20 I'm currently at the bottom of the leaderboard but the whole point is you can have as many
08:26 goes as you want to try and build that time up and get yourself at the front in the Grand
08:29 Prix du Margate.
08:30 Yeah, the whole point of Skel-X-Trick is that it's a family game, it's a family thing that
08:34 people can play together. A games console for Christmas is great for one member of the
08:39 family and the others just have to watch. So the point of Skel-X-Trick is you can put
08:42 it on the floor on Christmas Day and all of you can play together. It can be granddad
08:45 and grandma versus the youngest in the family and they're all on the same playing field
08:49 and they can all play together. And that's what we've got here. Families can come and
08:53 enjoy the experience as a whole.
08:54 It might be a world of miniature but bosses here say the Wonderworks is a giant leap to
08:59 encouraging more of us to get into modelling.
09:02 Gabriel Morris for K&TV in Margate.
09:04 Now, a charity in Maidstone is highlighting the struggles of those affected by baby loss
09:12 and high risk pregnancies. Handmade with Love organises knitting groups across the county
09:16 to raise money for this cause. Crafters met up for the first time since the pandemic in
09:21 Rochester Cathedral to work on thousands of knitted and crocheted squares as Bronnie Hughes
09:26 reports.
09:27 A Kent charity is offering support to families struggling with grief as one in four pregnancies
09:32 end in baby loss. At the Handmade with Love shop in the mall in Maidstone, they sell items
09:37 to raise money for the charity Making Miracles. Founder Kelly Wells told us her personal story
09:41 behind starting the charity.
09:43 So I started the charity coming up to 10 years ago now because I experienced a high risk
09:48 pregnancy with my daughter and was told that she was likely to pass in the womb. I had
09:54 about 85% chance of that happening to me. So in that time I looked outside of my immediate
10:00 family and friends for some support and guidance and there wasn't really anyone to provide
10:05 me with that kind of support. So we have what I call a care pathway which is a list of amazing
10:13 services that lead a family experiencing trauma and grief to their new normal. Included in
10:19 that is professional counselling, we have a baby memorial garden in Rochester. We cater
10:24 for the whole family, not just for mum and dad. We cater for children and we cater for
10:28 grandparents.
10:29 I'm at Rochester Cathedral this morning to take part in the Big Knit for Making Miracles.
10:36 I went along to the charity shop yesterday to see the sort of things they make and today
10:40 I've got my hook and I've got my wool and I'm ready to get involved and talk to some
10:45 of the ladies who donate their time and energy to the charity.
10:50 Around 100 crafters came to Saturday's event to mark Baby Loss Awareness Week. 3,295 knitted
10:55 and crochet squares were brought along and made there at the Big Knit to make blankets
10:59 to raise money. I asked one of the volunteer knitters about the sorts of things she usually
11:03 makes for the charity.
11:04 Everything. Toys, Christmas toys, blankets, cardigans, baby cardigans.
11:14 The Big Knit wasn't just an exciting day for Making Miracles. They also celebrated the
11:18 100th birthday of Doris, a knitter who's made more than £8,000 for the charity. Bronnie
11:23 Hughes for KMTV.
11:24 Well it's time for a quick break now but coming up in Dartford, the Orchard Theatre
11:29 is just about to reopen, just in time for the Christmas Pantomime. How exciting. And
11:34 the future of Kent's windmills could be at risk as a public consultation on plans to
11:39 potentially sell them by Kent County Council could be opening to the public very soon.
11:45 And we'll be taking a look back at a 7-Oak's bakery that we met earlier this year. And
11:50 we've been taking a look at Diwali celebrations that have been taking place this week in Kent
11:54 and all that and more coming very soon. I'll see you in just a second.
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15:08 Hello and welcome back to Made in Kent live on KMTV. Now the arts is a profession that
15:15 many people strive to be a part of but struggle to get their foot in the door. The Nucleus
15:19 Arts Centre in Medway is looking to provide the platform for children to showcase some
15:23 of their work and gain confidence. Henry Luck reports.
15:28 What talent can children hold with the brush? The Nucleus Arts Centre in Medway is showcasing
15:34 the amount of potential they have when creativity is unleashed. Created in collaboration with
15:39 the ArtPod and child-friendly Medway. From traditional to digital, every vision is captured
15:47 row to row.
15:48 I believe that the very core of art needs to be fun so what I tend to say to them is
15:54 come along, let me know what you want to draw and then once they're kind of engaged and
16:00 interested in what they're doing then obviously it opens up doorways for me to be able to
16:03 come in and teach them. So they might say to me how do I draw these eyes, how do I draw
16:06 this hand, how do I do action poses, all these kind of things come out and what I've really
16:11 noticed with the standard of the art is so much better because they're so much more committed
16:17 to it so they'll take more time, they'll actually put more focus into it and the results
16:22 are seen here so this is actually the first exhibition we've done to celebrate these three
16:30 groups.
16:31 There's even parts of the exhibit that gets visitor creative juices flowing.
16:35 As well as showcasing young talent, the exhibit has also given me the chance to catch up with
16:41 my own drawing skills.
16:43 Following a successful preview night, Nucleus Arts have plans to keep the paintbrushes stroking.
16:49 I think we'll probably look at doing this once a year at least just to try and keep
16:53 giving these kids this platform and this confidence building exercise to basically give them the
17:00 opportunity to see what it's like as an artist and actually to get that praise that quite
17:04 often a lot of them don't get or they don't know how to accept it so it's quite nice that
17:10 we can put them in a position where they're getting loads of praise and I'll keep saying
17:14 it's okay, you're allowed to feel good about it, feel good about your art and feel good
17:19 about what you do.
17:22 So yeah, so far really successful.
17:24 The children involved in the exhibit have not only gained confidence in their abilities
17:28 but new friends as well.
17:30 Hopefully many more might grab some paint after them.
17:34 Henry Luck for KMTV in Medway.
17:39 Now Kent could be one step closer to losing its windmills as a public consultation on
17:43 selling them will now go ahead.
17:45 Hundreds of windmill maintenance volunteers say they're furious to hear Kent County Council's
17:49 proposals.
17:50 Locals say the mills are vital for Kent's heritage while the council are trying to balance
17:54 the books and say they need to make cuts.
17:58 These are just some of the hundreds of volunteers across Kent who maintain the county's windmills
18:04 and they were furious to learn all eight could soon be getting sold.
18:10 The proposals are part of a bid to fix Kent County Council's multi-million pound budget
18:16 gap.
18:17 Kent's windmills currently cost the council a couple of hundred thousand pounds a year.
18:20 They're dotted far and wide across the county, some of which are museums, some have been
18:25 restored, and some are still working mills today.
18:29 Including the Union Mill in Cranbrook.
18:31 It's England's tallest working smock windmill and is also known for its views of the Kent
18:36 Downs.
18:37 The people of Cranbrook love their windmill, they like the look of it, lots of them come
18:42 to visit it along with tourists from other parts of the country and even other countries.
18:48 I'm quite sure that around here about 99% of the people would not want the proposal
18:55 to continue, they would like to keep their windmill in the good condition that Kent County
19:02 Council have continued to maintain it.
19:05 While these plans are due to go to public consultation, the chair of KCC's Environment
19:09 and Transport Committee tried to overhaul this today.
19:12 I think that we shouldn't be looking at getting rid of them because I think that if you put
19:16 them into a trust or some kind of voluntary organisation with the best will in the world,
19:21 those things are always scrabbling to get money.
19:24 They can never be sure that they will get the finance that those buildings need and
19:29 my fear would be that if that happened, that gradually they will deteriorate and they will
19:34 become less and less the splendid things that they are at the moment.
19:38 I think the County Council has a duty to look after them.
19:41 As we've learnt, Kent has a variety of different types of windmills but they all look different,
19:46 they have different identities, different purposes as well.
19:48 Like this one here in Chillingdon, it looks completely different from the one we saw in
19:52 Cranbrook.
19:53 With most windmills you'll see just the sweeps, turning these bits at the top, turning in
19:56 the wind.
19:57 But what's different about this, this is a postmill which means the entire body will
20:01 turn in the wind.
20:02 It will mean a great loss of our heritage eventually.
20:06 One's only got to look at other mills where other arrangements have been made and generally
20:12 it has not been successful.
20:14 We've been very fortunate up till now because we've had tremendous support from KCC but
20:20 the alternative in this way going forward looks very bleak for us all.
20:25 KCC said these proposals focus on the community groups and give them the opportunity to take
20:30 over the windmills if they wish.
20:32 They confirmed the public consultation will still go ahead but no decision will be made
20:36 until all feedback is received.
20:39 After years of volunteering, those here hope this won't be the final time they're closing
20:44 their doors.
20:45 Sophia Akin for KMTV.
20:48 Well those are just two of the eight windmills that are across Kent.
20:51 Some of those are still supplying flour like the one we saw in Cranbrook and this lovely
20:57 one in Chillingdon.
20:58 Well, earlier this month we spoke to a baker from Sevenoaks.
21:01 You can watch this clip and all of our others on our website kmtv.co.uk.
21:07 Well when I started, when I was baking, before baking bread I made a cinnamon, I made a peanut
21:12 butter from scratch and that idea spiked another, oh yeah I could make some bread now.
21:18 And I started researching recipes from back in, I come from Mozambique originally and
21:22 I found a few recipes on YouTube and I started trialling.
21:25 The first try wasn't good at all, I couldn't eat it.
21:28 It was like stone rock but I didn't quit, I just kept trying and trying and trying and
21:32 I got it right.
21:33 And I started making bread at home and then giving to neighbours, taking it to work.
21:38 And one of the neighbours said you could make a business out of it.
21:40 I said no I'm not making a business, I'm just having fun with bread.
21:43 A few weeks later I thought maybe it could be a journey I could follow, I'll take a chance,
21:49 which I did.
21:51 And I started delivering to neighbours and going to neighbours and wholesalers now and
21:56 it's just grown and grown and grown.
21:59 And the rest is history isn't it?
22:01 Now you do a mixture of sweet, savoury, what do people tend to prefer, is it a combination
22:06 of both?
22:07 It's a combination of both but cinnamon buns are the popular product I have and sausage
22:13 rolls.
22:14 So these are traditional Swedish buns.
22:17 Ah ok, so what's in them?
22:19 The cinnamon, sugar, a bit of cardamom, lots of butter.
22:24 And when were these made?
22:26 Today, this morning.
22:27 Ah lovely, do you want to try some as well?
22:28 Don't leave me eating on my own.
22:30 Yes I'll try.
22:31 They look lovely.
22:33 So would you say, I mean sort of bakeries and sweet treats are something that, it's
22:39 quite different from the ones you'd get in the supermarket isn't it?
22:41 So how do you kind of ensure that it is different from something people can get in the supermarket?
22:46 Because sometimes it will be a little bit cheaper if you buy it in a local supermarket.
22:51 So how do you kind of make it a different experience?
22:54 I source quality ingredients, organic flour and I make it fresh in a day.
23:00 When I'm selling in the market it's made in that day.
23:04 No chemicals, no preservatives.
23:08 What's your favourite product that you do?
23:11 That's a tricky one.
23:14 It's a difficult one, I always like to ask guests though to see which is their favourite
23:17 one.
23:18 It's a tricky one.
23:19 I mean you brought the cinnamon buns, would you say that's up there with your favourite?
23:22 Yeah it is.
23:24 I like cinnamon buns because it's good and dangerous because they're not too sweet, you
23:28 can easily eat more than one.
23:30 Yeah definitely, it's quite different from sort of your typical cinnamon bun and sweet
23:34 food isn't for everyone is it?
23:37 So I guess it's good to have that balance.
23:38 Yes.
23:39 But Leo, thank you very much for joining us.
23:41 Well that was just a few weeks ago where I got to try those delicious cinnamon buns.
23:44 You can watch the full interview on our website.
23:46 But now, the Festival of Lights has captivated the community of Canterbury, inviting in a
23:51 variety of people to celebrate the year of renewal.
23:53 Allegra Webb visited Kent College over the weekend to witness the lights, dances and
23:58 homemade food.
23:59 Let's see how she got on.
24:01 Bringing communities together.
24:04 The Festival of Light or Diwali is a renowned Hindu festival to celebrate the triumph of
24:09 light over darkness.
24:10 Usually celebrated in early November, a lot of people have come together at Kent College
24:15 for the commemoration of life renewal with candles, dance, art and a wonderful array
24:21 of cuisine by Karara Foods.
24:23 I'm here at the heart of Diwali Festival and celebrations have truly begun here in Canterbury.
24:34 Illuminating the spirit and community we have here, I cannot wait to see how this important
24:38 festival has brought together a variety of people, backgrounds and cultures to celebrate
24:42 our triumphs this year.
24:44 But generally it's a time for reflection, it's a time to think about the new year, it's a
24:49 time to think about how to be a better human being, so yeah, Diwali is a very special time.
24:55 The night was alive with mesmerising performances where a variety of students and teachers were
25:00 able to showcase their skills in dance, even opening up the colourful, joyful display with
25:05 the audience.
25:06 Yeah, yes, I love dancing and have the opportunity and we have fun and it is all about having
25:14 fun.
25:15 It's just like meeting different people, different cultures and I just love to see all the dresses
25:22 and the bright colours and it's just a joy.
25:27 In addition to all the exuberant celebrations, Diwali shows the importance of giving back
25:32 and always showing support for one another within our community.
25:35 I came up with the idea that I said we should just contact one of the food banks or a fair
25:41 share and see if we can really get some food from them, which we would buy.
25:47 We would buy the food, then we would make it and then we would give it back to them
25:51 and they would distribute it to various families who need it.
25:56 And that inspired us, me personally, to pick up the pots and pans, whatever we have, and
26:03 it was a really, really heart-filling gesture for us that we are able to give something
26:10 back to the community.
26:11 The Festival of Light has lit up not only a clearly joyous community, but also has shined
26:16 a light on the importance of keeping down costs in time for the festive season.
26:20 Allegra Webb for KMTV in Canterbury.
26:22 Well, that's all from us here at KMTV.
26:25 You've been watching Made in Kent.
26:27 In the meantime, you can check out all of our other special programmes.
26:30 We've got Kent Tonight, The Kent Politics Show and Kent on Climate.
26:33 You can check that out on our website, kmtv.co.uk.
26:37 And if you own an independent business in Kent and you'd like to be a guest on this
26:40 show, you can get in touch on email on madeinkent@kmtv.co.uk.
26:43 I'll see you at the same time next week.
26:46 Thanks for watching.
26:47 Good night.
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