The Sourdough School

Centre of Research & Education in Nutrition & Digestibility of Bread & the Gut Microbiome

The bread that you eat every day has a powerful, influence on both your phyical and mental health. We teach a groundbreaking, evidence-based approach to bread to nourish your gut microbiome and support health. Our courses are open to wide range of people, including bakers and healthcare professionals to learn how to bake and eat beautiful bread as lifestyle medicine. "Vanessa’s work on sourdough and the gut microbiome is changing the way we think of food, health and baking.” - Tim Spector
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How to raise money to support others by baking sourdough

Sourdough Pocket Breads

Oats Pocket Bread

Bakers play a central role in the community,  and can lead the way in encouraging people to think about what we eat and how we are connected.

The fact that you are reading this means you already understand that it is you and not me that will make a difference. Hold on to that feeling you have right now. It is not easy to raise funds, but it does mean that you have understood that baking sourdough is a form of activism; you are already more than halfway to making a difference with this realisation alone.

Do I have to use the Seeds for Solidarity Porridge?

You don’t have to use the Seeds for Solidarity Porridge recipe in your bakery to raise funds, but it has been specially developed to create a deeper understanding of the complexities of the current situation. I would like to encourage bakers and bakeries all over the world to use it as a means of visual protest on their social media, but also to take this recipe and method as a way of using your voice to raise funds and support the hundreds of thousands of people who have been devastated by this invasion within your communities.

The message behind the Seeds for Solidarity Porridge coupled with some basic facts will help you to communicate why we must support peace.

https://www.sourdough.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/How-to-raise-funds.m4a

My 7 top tips on using bread to raise funds

  1. One of the best ways to reach a large group of people quickly is through social media. Remember to include the date, opening times and venue.
  2. Remember that this humanitarian crisis is just beginning. Consider a longer-term way to incorporate raising funds as part of your approach.
  3. If you are going to bake from home, please be very clear on your duty of care when it comes to allergens and hygiene rules. If this is something you want to do regularly, then consider asking your local pub or restaurant if you could borrow their kitchens and perhaps pay them in bread.
  4. If you are a professional bakery, then consider using the porridge in a loaf that is not necessarily your best seller. You still have overheads, and there are hidden costs in raising money. At this time, your base costs of electricity, ingredients and staff will be increasing.
  5. You will make more money if you make smaller items, such as pocket breads or rolls. But the boules are beautiful.
  6. I appreciate our human connections, but please try to look very carefully at supporting through an official charity. Take time to look carefully at who gets help on the ground and try to ensure that your funds do not go into a top-heavy admin charity.
  7. Consider having a charity pot clearly visible. Sometimes people are happy to just make a donation.

Why we will all be impacted by this conflict

The cost of war to bakers and why we must keep calling for peace.

I have had messages asking why we need to act. Aside from the absolute horror of what is happening in Ukraine, I believe that baking is activism, and offers us a way to communicate with and connect to each other. The events that are unfolding right now will impact each and every one of us, and it will certainly impact our bread. We must each do all we can to support peace, end violence and support the millions of people impacted by this horror.

If that is not enough, then look at the longer-term implications below. It is clear we are all far more connected than people might imagine.

1. The cost of energy will further increase. We are dependent on Russian natural gas shipments, which accounted for 43 per cent of the EU’s total gas imports in 2020. Small businesses across the UK, including bakeries, will bear the brunt of the national energy crisis on costs. 

2. Russia and Ukraine are both major producers of wheat. This crisis will exacerbate inflation pressure in the food aisle. In 2020, Russia produced 86 million tonnes of wheat, second only to China and India. However, both China and India consume their product domestically; Russia the biggest exporter of wheat by a significant margin. UK inflation is forecast to hit 8 per cent  in April, and we face a cost of living crisis in the UK. Remember, animals are fed on wheat and a price increase for this essential grain impacts the cost of almost all our food. 

3. It’s not just British or European bakers who face global food prices approaching record highs. These price rises threaten the world’s poorest. When you look at the poorest counties, who import the majority of Russian grain, it is clear we are facing an event of catastrophic proportions. Hunger leads to social unrest on a widespread scale, and has historically been linked to the rise of extremism – which is also linked to an increase in oil prices. 

Our worlds are not separate. We are one world, and our survival depends on embracing diversity. War distracts us from finding a solution to the global impact of climate change on our food systems. We must call for peace.

Who to support?

It is not my job to tell you this. It is my role to provide you with the means to create and communicate. Use your own voice to lift up those that matter. It is up to you to how you choose to support Ukraine and call to Russia for peace. I will be adding more suggestions, but time constraints are on me, so if you have a suggestion, please comment below to share.

One of the best and fastest ways we can help people in Ukraine is by offering financial donations.

One off financial help allows those on the ground to make informed decisions about where and what help is needed in the short term. Whereas a regular donation can help provide long term and sustainable support to those affected by this conflict. Charities often say that at the start of a crisis, there is a flood of money and support, which slows over time. Regular donations help charities plan for the future – could you consider a monthly donation?

There are lots of organisations across the UK and internationally who have launched appeals, and you may wish to donate through these organisations instead. There are some simple steps you can take to ensure your money is safe and being used effectively:

  • Check the charity’s name and registration number using the search the charity register tool
  • Most charities with an income of £5,000 or more must be registered, which means they are regulated by The Charity Commission
  • Make sure the charity is genuine before giving any financial information
  • If in doubt, ask the charity or organisation for more information

For more information about making safe donations see the government advice here.

If you want to donate to help those in Ukraine today, we have made a list of suggested places where you can do that:

Amnesty International – the world’s leading human rights organisation, campaigning against injustice and equality everywhere. Here is their Protect Civilians in Ukraine campaign page

Red Cross – are preparing to provide shelter, basic aid items, and medical supplies for displaced people. They are also ready to provide first aid and psychosocial support when needed. We are aware that the Red Cross, and some other very large organisations has a high percentage of administration costs perhaps compared to some other smaller charities.

Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) – an umbrella group of UK charities which coordinates and launches collective appeals to raise funds to provide emergency aid and rapid relief to people caught up in disasters and humanitarian crises around the world.

UNICEF – is working with partners in Ukraine to reach vulnerable children and families with essential services including health care, protection, education, water and sanitation.

The UN Refugee Agency – The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has launched an emergency appeal to send more resources, staff and aid to Ukraine’s neighbours, who are taking in hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH) – are providing humanitarian aid including food and other forms of support to people who had to leave their homes. Their actions include people affected by conflict both internally displaced as well as refugees coming to Poland.

United Help Ukraine – was created in 2014 during the geopolitical events around Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Its main focus is getting emergency kits and supplies to Ukrainians who are still in the country as well as those who are trying to flee.

Sunflower of Peace – is mobilizing support and aid for Ukrainian orphans, internally displaced persons, and those most affected by the current situation by providing medical assistance and other necessities.

Razom – which means “together” in Ukrainian, is a volunteer charity organization that was founded in 2014 to support Ukrainians after Russia annexed Crimea. They are now organizing and providing medical supplies and humanitarian aid during this current crisis.

There are many more, but these are some suggestions. Again if you have any further recommendations, please do leave details in the Comments box below. Thank you.

A choir

A choir is full of many voices, and all voices count. When we pull our voices together, I hope we will drown out the voices of violence and aggression. I ask that whatever charity you choose, it is one that supports peace and is anti-violence – that it does not support the continuation of violence in any way. This is a bake for peace on every level, to support activism and to show solidarity – to make our voices heard as one community: the sourdough community.

I will remind you, however, that there are many, many brave bakers, including some of my own team in Russia right now, who are living under the threat of an autocratic megalomaniac who is controlling and suppressing the thoughts, speech and actions of his people with the same hand that is invading Ukraine. Be compassionate – it is a complex and dangerous situation for more people than you might realise.

The thing that really matters? To make a difference. The hashtag we will be using as we bake for peace is #SourdoughSolidarity

THE GENDER GAP IN HEART DIAGNOSIS
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According to a report by the British Heart Foundation, more than 8,200 women died needlessly over a ten year period due to inequalities in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease. Concerningly, women fare worse at every stage in their health journey for heart disease globally. 
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DID YOU KNOW?
-	Women get half as much heart attack treatment as men 
-	Women are 50% more likely to receive a wrong initial diagnosis than their male counterpart, increasing the risk of death by as much as 70%
-	Women are less likey than men to recieve standard treatments such as bypass surgery
We can and must do better, starting by tackling the false- and deadly- assumption that women are not at risk of heart attacks. In reality, women are twice as likely to die from coronary heart disease than breast cancer.
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🌾Whole Grain Consumption And Heart Disease Protection
There is a robust body of evidence that suggests whole grains can protect against coronary heart disease, alongside obesity and colorectal cancer.
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❤️ According to a senior dietician at the British Heart Foundation: "Eating more whole grains is a simple change we can make to improve our diet and help lower our risk of heart and circulatory disease." Opting for wholemeal or granary in favour of refined white bread is a simple, effective way to increase your whole grain and fibre intake. #hearthealth #healthyheart #wholegrain #feedthecells #lifestylemedice #bake2give1 #wholegrainbread #internationalwomensday
A NEW APPROACH

👉🏻 For the past 3 years we’ve been working on something incredible … prescription sourdough bread making courses for our @sourdoughclub members 

📈We have had amazing advances in healthcare, but there is no pill to cure poor diet. The best medicine is prevention via a healthy lifestyle, and many studies have shown that people who eat healthily and exercise regularly sleep better, have less anxiety and depression, have more energy, and lower their risk of chronic illness overall.

🙌 Vanessa’s work on Bread & the Impact on the Gut Microbiome has been turned into something extraordinary. Prescription bread-making courses as a lifestyle intervention, and the Bread Protocol we teach here is designed to address the way you live, exploring behaviour related to nutrition, physical activity, stress management, sleep, social support and environmental exposures. These courses are 12 weeks long, and designed to maintain health and prevent disease not just in individuals bit in patients and populations, so we have 2 ways to enrol on a course: 

1️⃣ SOCIAL PRESCRIPTION 
If your doctor or healthcare practitioner is one of  our Sourdough School graduates and they feel that this bread-making prescription course is something that will improve your health, then they may can prescribe the course for you as a social prescription free.

2️⃣ SELF PRESCRIPTION 
You can self-prescribe these courses by enrolling yourself on a course to improve your health and wellbeing.

📰 If you are interested in learning more about the prescription courses then please sign up to the newsletters as we will be announcing their launch over the coming weeks and months. 

@vanessakimbell
@drmiguelmateas 
@dralexdavidson 
@dksherratt 

#lifestylemedicine #preventativemedicine #systemschange #socialprescribingday #socialprescribing
IN 2016 WE TESTED BLOOD SUGAR RESPONSE TO OUR PUMP IN 2016 WE TESTED BLOOD SUGAR RESPONSE TO OUR PUMPKIN SOURDOUGH IN THE  CLASSES

Our students measured their responses throughout the #breadandguts #sourdoughschool & @vanessakimbell wrote the recipe up in her bestselling Sourdough School book.

✨ So good to read that a recent 2021 study on Glycaemic and Appetite Suppression Effect of a Vegetable-Enriched Bread ( mentioned by @theguthealthdoctor today see last slide ) where researchers looked at the impacts of veg-enriched bread compared to  commercial white bread and commercial brown bread on the insulin levels of people participating. 

The results showed that when the participants ate the veg bread they reported feeling more satiation versus when they ate the white or brown bread. 

👆🏼They also experienced a lower insulin response with the vegetable bread. 
essentially translating this science into practice before it was trendy 😂👆🏼👍

This image is taken from the @sourdoughschool book by @vanessakimbell, produced by @kylebooksuk, with photography by @nassimarothacker, styled by @season_adam & with foreword by @richardhartbaker
DID YOU KNOW WE HAVE AN ONLINE SHOP & CAN PURCHASE DID YOU KNOW WE HAVE AN ONLINE SHOP & CAN PURCHASE MY WHITE SOURDOUGH STARTER?
(with worldwide delivery)
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I have several sourdough starters but The French white starter is one that I have been using since I was 11 years old and originates in the bakery I grew up baking within France. It takes a bit longer to reach it’s peak and is generally slower and sweeter, and much more forgiving of being neglected for a week, so the one I recommend for beginners. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
We have verbal confirmation that the starter originated over 115 years ago and If you swipe right in the video you can listen to me chatting to one of the older residents of the village confirming that bakery did not shut during the war either .. & it has been maintained ever since... it’s a lovely story. Although the microbes double every 20 – 30 minutes when they are refreshed ... so it is either over a century old or 30 minutes old depending on how you want to look at it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
You can purchase a pot of my starter, along with a grey moon kilner jar & a mini video course on looking after your starter. 
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TAP THE PICTURE TO SHOP.
 
Swipe right to see the amazing video of the French bakery where the starter originated from @vanessakimbell has been baking with this starter for over 20 years … and first baked almost 40 years ago with it …#romantic 
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#breadbosses #breadporn #flourwatersalt #breadtalk #bread #breadstagram #sourdough #sourdoughschool #bread #sourdoughlove #sourdoughlover #naturalleavened #leavening #levain #realbread #breadmaking #bakebread #makebread #makerealbread #learntobakebread #breadmakingclass #sourdoughstories #bakingforlove #bakingtherapy #sourdoughbaking #bannetons #bakery
UNDERSTANDING SOURDOUGH … starts, not in the bak UNDERSTANDING SOURDOUGH …
starts, not in the bakery, but in the soil.
#sourdough
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