Sierra Leone loves rice and wants to free itself from imports. But how to do it?
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) — Rice borders on the sacred in Sierra Leone. Unless a meal includes rice, people say, you haven’t eaten at all.
About Me
A freelance journalist, editor and communications consultant, specialising in food, farming and the environment. The global food system is complex; as a farmer’s son with a master’s in food policy and 10 years across the sector, there are few better qualified to report, analyse and communicate its importance to the public.
Published in global media outlets and provides communication consultancy and PR services to businesses, NGOs, communications agencies and philanthropic organisations.
My Latest Work
A fool’s mission: Trying to track the impact of EU migration funding in Senegal
Last year, I set out to investigate the on-the-ground impact of the tens of millions of euros the EU has spent trying to address the root causes of migration in Senegal.
Kevin Carmody Award for Outstanding Investigative Reporting, Large: SEJ 23rd Annual Awards for Reporting on the Environment
Through comprehensive on-the-ground reporting in West Africa and painstaking gathering and assessment of shipping and other supply-chain data, The Financial Times showed how some half a million metric tons of fish from the waters off Mauritania were turned into fish meal used in Norwegian salmon farms. This FT investigation used data visualization, motion graphics and photography to great effect, literally connecting the dots between crisis-level food shortages in West Africa — driven by the near-collapse of the region's fish stocks that Norway's salmon farming operations had caused — and the salmon marketed on UK supermarket shelves."
The European boats fishing under a veil of secrecy
EU vessels are registering with African fleets and exploiting local fishing laws
The Social Cost of Carbon Credits | Hakai Magazine
Multinational companies funded a US $4.4-million carbon offset project. Senegalese locals did much of the work—and saw almost none of the money.
Separating the Weetabix from the Chaff
Jack Thompson traces the supply chain of his family farm's wheat to Weetabix, the country’s favourite cereal, taking in colonialism, seed monopoly, and the future of British farming.
World Bank climate funds green hotels while fishermen sink
Climate Home reveals that the World Bank Group has counted support for luxury hotels as climate finance, which experts say fails the most vulnerable
'Women farmers are invisible': A West African project helps them claim their rights — and land
Mariama Sonko, president of115,000-strong rural women’s rights movement in West Africa is training female farmers from cultures where women are often excluded from ownership of the land they work so closely.
From sketch to sea: diving into Wales’ underwater farming revolution
With its ‘underwater gardens’ echoing a tradition of sustainably harvesting the local waters, we go beneath the waves at a community-owned, regenerative Welsh seafood farm
The beekeepers of Sine Saloum: How all-women team tends to Senegal mangrove
Experts say the management model can be adopted by communities across Senegal and elsewhere in the world.
Joal-Fadiouth, Senegal – Clutching a purse and clad from head to toe in white protective gear, Bintou Sonko removes a small metal kettle from her purse and releases smoke into one of the 50 beehives nestled in the dense mangrove outside her town in Senegal. Pacifying the bees, the 53-year-old extracts a dark golden liquid from within.
Joal-Fadiouth, Senegal – Clutching a purse and clad from head to toe in white protective gear, Bintou Sonko removes a small metal kettle from her purse and releases smoke into one of the 50 beehives nestled in the dense mangrove outside her town in Senegal. Pacifying the bees, the 53-year-old extracts a dark golden liquid from within.
The hidden cost of your supermarket salmon
A visual investigation by the FT. Fish sold by major supermarkets in Europe is harming food security in West Africa. Locals say it's hard to watch the export of basic resources "while we are suffering with poverty."
BBC World Service - Farming revolution powered by WhatsApp voicenotes
Journalist Jack Thompson guides us through the farming revolution in Senegal, being powered by WhatsApp voicenotes.
Returning to a Climate-Changed Home
Millimeter by millimeter the sea has been creeping up. These Senegalese villagers—allowed home for the first time in 30 years—are feeling the change all at once.
A fairer way to rewild?
As the pressure of food security sharpens, where does that leave the question of rewilding and biodiversity? Jack Thompson reports.
Listeria: how dairy can beat the bug
Listeria is both deadly and difficult to eradicate from the food chain. What steps can be taken to prevent further outbreaks?
Regenerative Food Certification: Gold Standard or Greenwashing?
https://modernfarmer.com/2023/08/regenerative-food-certification/
The Fervent Fight Over Fish Meal
A Senegalese fish-meal factory is drawing local ire as the fight for protein heats up.
WhatsApp voice notes are revolutionizing farming in Senegal
For farmers in Senegal who struggle to read or write, sending voice notes has unlocked a new world of collaboration across the industry.
In West Africa, a 'bokashi revolution’ takes root
Farmers in West Africa adapt to soaring fertiliser prices from the Ukraine War with an unlikely solution from Japan.
Reimagining the Jewish experience of land
Land is a complex issue in Jewish history, but two farms are seeing their religion in a new light through connecting to nature and growing food.
Agriculture in Senegal: from subsistence to business
Senegal’s President Macky Sall says Africa must learn to feed itself, and even feed the world. What are the challenges and opportunities for Senegal as it follows this path?
A comic tragedy: Can humour fuel our activism?
From anti-GM stunts in the noughties to XR’s recent decision to move away from direct action: could a lighter approach to activism be more inclusive and ultimately more impactful?
Stack it up: One farm, five farmers?
Could hosting multiple growers and farmers on one farm solve access to land and loneliness in farming? Jack Thompson finds out if it all stacks up.
Falling fowl to fried chicken
What is the dirty secret behind London’s fried chicken? Jack Thompson investigates the supply chain behind one of the most popular late‐night guilty pleasures.
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Contact
You can get in touch via email at: jackthompsonjournalist (at) gmail (dot) com