World leaders will be eating Pendle pies for peat's sake at COP26

A scrumptious pie inspired by chips and curry sauce, and made in the shadow of Pendle Hill, will be feeding world leaders when they meet at the historic UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow.
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One hundred orders of Peat Pie, which aims to raise awareness of the global importance of Pendle’s precious peatlands in locking carbon and reducing flooding, have been placed for delegates attending the conference.

The creation of In-Situ artist, Kerry Morrison, with ecologist Sarah Robinson and local chef Andrew Dean, the pie is a bid to connect local people with the peat uplands of Pendle combining South Asian staples with an East Lancashire favourite, chips and curry sauce.

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The basic ingredients comprise,dhal, chips and spinach or kale – to represent the three vital elements of a successful peat restoration project, sphagnum moss, coir dams and vigorous vegetation.

Enjoying a Pendle Peat Pie. PIC: Mark Sutcliffe Salar Media.Enjoying a Pendle Peat Pie. PIC: Mark Sutcliffe Salar Media.
Enjoying a Pendle Peat Pie. PIC: Mark Sutcliffe Salar Media.

And on September 25th, a group of teenage volunteers help Kerry hand out 200 seed bags, containing mixed grass and heather seed.

Kerry said: “The fact the fabric on our seed bags is from Pakistan, and a key ingredient in our Peat Pie is Dhal, is significant. The Pakistani community in Nelson are primarily from Gujarat and Jhelum, and the dhal in the pie represents their food culture. We want to use food to unite and bring people together on this issue that affects us all – climate change.”

The Summit is an initiative led by the arts organisation, In-Situ, with the Pendle Hill Landscape Partnership. Over the past year, it has brought together culturally diverse young people from the two sides of Pendle Hill – Nelson, Colne and Clitheroe – to explore major issues that affect their generation, including ecology and climate change, identity and leadership.

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The seed bags, designed by artist Kerry incorporate a smudge of peaty earth and Geotex fabric, used in peat restoration, which is manufactured in Pakistan.

Teenagers from The Summit. PIC: Mark Sutcliffe Salar Media.Teenagers from The Summit. PIC: Mark Sutcliffe Salar Media.
Teenagers from The Summit. PIC: Mark Sutcliffe Salar Media.

Inside the traditional pie crust case, the filling is a combination of velvety lentil Dhal and layered chips, topped with a layer of spinach.

The dhal represents the peat, held in place by chips - which represent coir logs used in erosion protection. The spinach represents the fresh plant growth on the surface of the peat, topped with a miso glaze that shows the water contained by the peat.

The benefits of healthy peatlands are supported by robust climate science. The peat locks in new carbon and prevents existing carbon leaching into the rivers and the atmosphere by erosion. It also soaks up gallons of water – rather like a sponge – and slows water run-off to reduce flood risk downstream.

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The Pendle Landscape Partnership has over the last three years conducted a series of peatland restoration works on the summit of Pendle Hill. In-SItu is working with Pendle Hill Landscape Partnership to connect people to the landscape through collaborative, innovative art projects with communities.