Becoming a Member
The Association of Foragers is an international professional foragers association, promoting considerate foraging, nature connection and ecological stewardship through teaching and harvesting wild plants and fungi for use as food, drink and medicine. We currently have about 200 members spread around the world, though most are based in the UK. All members actively work in foraging and share a common outlook as enshrined in our Statement of Principles.
Please note: Membership is conferred on individuals, not businesses or organisations.
Once you are a member you can:
- Appear on our directory of foragers
- Edit your directory listing
- Receive AoF Newsletters
- Participate in our internal forums
- Join our private Facebook group
- Attend AoF online events and chat rooms
- Attend physical AoF events such as our Annual Meet-Up (see here, here and here)
- Apply for AoF grants
- Promote your book(s) on our blog
- Be paid to contribute blogs to the AoF website
- Attend the AGM and influence the running and future direction of the AoF
How To Join
1. You must make a proportion of your income from a foraging activity
The Association of Foragers is a membership organisation to support those working in the area of foraging. You can apply to be a Member if you can demonstrate that you earn part or all of your income from a foraging activity (for example, teaching courses, supplying foods). When you apply, you must provide a website, links to blogs, advertised events, ticketing sites or something that clearly demonstrates that you are teaching about wild food or supplying foraged foods. If you spend a significant amount of time working as an unpaid volunteer teacher, then you may be eligible if you can demonstrate your activities. Membership is not open to people who just have a general interest in foraging.
Please enter a statement explaining your experience and reasons for wishing to become a member in the box called "Biography" on the application form. This will appear on our internal forum and is the means by which our members self-regulate and ensure we are an association of peers. On successful enrolment you can edit the statement so it becomes a statement of who you are and what you do to the general public.
Please follow this checklist of things to include in your statement:
- Your reasons for working as a forager
- How many years of experience you have as (a) general interest and (b) professional interest
- Why you would like to become a member of the AoF
- What you might be willing to contribute to the AoF, such as knowledge sharing, admin skills, blog contributions
- Any specific areas of foraging you specialise in
- If your foraging work is on a self employed/freelance basis or exclusively for one company
Your application should also include links to your website and social media. These should clearly demonstrate your work in foraging. If you can't show what your work involves thorough this, please supply some other evidence of the work you are doing.
2. You must be willing to abide by our Principles of Practice
You must agree to abide by the Association's code for our Principles and Practice published here on our website. This governs Membership and guides our professional ethos in terms of practice, harvesting, sustainability, fairness, respect for others (both human and non-human) and mindful conduct.
3. You need to be proposed and seconded by existing Members
You need to be proposed and seconded by two existing members of the Association who will vouch for you. These may be members you already know, but If you don't already know any members, please get in touch with those listed on the Directory page in your region, or an area that you will be visiting, introduce yourself and arrange to meet up with them or schedule a call. You will find existing members approachable and happy to explain more about the Association and discuss your application. Making that contact with is a first step in your new network of friends so please don’t be daunted by reaching out.
Once you have a proposer and seconder you can apply using the form below. Any applications that do not include a proposer and seconder will be returned. Once we receive a completed application form, the application is circulated to existing Members and the proposer and seconder asked to confirm the application. This process can take up to 2 months.
Either the proposer or seconder may be your employer (if they are a member of the AoF), but not both of them.
If your foraging work is exclusively tied to one employer, please note this in your statement.
4. You will need to pay an annual membership fee
There is an annual membership fee of £40 to cover the costs of running the AoF that needs to be paid on the anniversary of when you join for your membership to remain current.
The system will automatically send you an invoice for your first annual membership fee payment when you send in your application.
Please don't pay the fees invoice until we contact you to confirm your application has been successful.
New applications go to the members for at least a month for comment before processing, so your fees will start from the day your membership begins if you're successful, not the day you applied to join us. Please keep the invoice safe and disregard any site auto-reminders until you hear back from us about membership acceptance. Once your membership is approved and the fees invoice is paid your membership will be activated.