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From Chef to Seed Saver: The Journey of Mitch McCulloch

Episode Highlights:
New Food Matters Podcast Episode
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Mitch McCulloch’s journey into the world of heirloom seeds and heritage vegetables is anything but ordinary. A former chef turned grower, Mitch explores the fascinating stories behind the plants we eat. His book, ‘The Seed Hunter: Discover the World’s Most Unusual Heirloom Plants’, is more than a gardening guide – it’s a deep dive into rare and unusual varieties, culinary traditions, and the importance of preserving seed diversity.
GIY are proud to align our mission, vision and impact with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In response to the urgency of the climate crisis, and in line with the UN Decade of Action, our ambition at GIY is to inspire 100 million people around the world to grow some of their own food by 2030.
Episode Highlights:
In this episode of Food Matters, Mitch talks to Mick Kelly of GIY about how his journey from chef to grower led him to seed-saving. He discusses the loss of heritage vegetables, the importance of seed diversity, and his global search for rare crops.
Our food system is broken and at GIY we believe that nurturing a real connection to where our food comes from is the key to fixing it.
We're on a mission to inspire a global movement of food growers, one GIYer at a time.
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GIY is a social enterprise consisting of two companies: GIY Ireland CLG (Company No 477525) and GIY Ireland Activities Ltd (Company No 490550), both registered at GROW HQ, Farronshoneen, Dunmore Road, Waterford, Ireland and have the following directors: Eamonn Clarke, Carol Montgomery, Aoibheann O'Brien, Tom Popple (UK), Elias Darwish, Marie Oldham, Nevan Redmond, Laura Smith© GIY Ireland Ltd 2025