WWOOF (Working Weekends on Organic Farms, as it stood for then) was born in 1971. Sue Coppard organised a trial weekend for herself and three other Londoners on an organic farm in East Sussex. Sue arranged a deal with the farmer: they would help out with work that needed doing on the land in exchange for food and accommodation. It was a big success. Soon other organic farmers got in touch, all keen to offer their hospitality in exchange for help from willing volunteers.
Today, WWOOF stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms and it has developed to become a truly global phenomenon with over 12,000 hosts in 100 countries and approximately 80,000 WWOOFers.
The founding idea of WWOOF...
... is to facilitate human exchanges around organic agriculture. WWOOF hopes to provide a way for people to learn about organic food, agriculture, and sustainable ways of living. In doing so it brings together people who share similar human values and philosophies. WWOOF also hopes to provide helping hands to its hosts and, at the same time, allow volunteers to understand what it means to earn a living as an organic farmer.
WWOOF organisations...
... compile a list of hosts (‘’Whosts’’) that welcome volunteer help at certain times. Against a small membership fee, volunteer helpers ("WWOOFers") can then contact these Whosts to arrange a stay.
There are many separate national WWOOF organisations around the world. Whosts in countries with no national organisation are listed by WWOOF Independents.
Belgium was previously part of WWOOF Independents but to better promote and help develop organic agriculture and sustainable living practices in Belgium, a small group of very motivated people sharing this passion decided to establish WWOOF Belgium. WWOOF Belgium is run by volunteers as a not for profit organisation.
WWOOF is an exchange
Volunteer help in exchange for food, accommodation and learning opportunities in organic farming and sustainable life practices. There is no hierarchy between host and volunteer, no productivity expectations, no financial transactions, and as such WWOOFing encourages a partnership based on mutual trust and respect.
WWOOF hosts in Belgium ("Whosts")...
... are pursuing and promoting sustainable lifestyles. There is a wide variety of Whosts. Some are individuals or families who have a piece of land and desire to cultivate their own produce for themselves, others are communities where each individual uses their skills to make their collective as self sufficient as possible, others earn a living from their agricultural work. The wide range of different Whosts and activities should ensure that each person WWOOFing in Belgium will find a place that suits them. Furthermore each registered Whost in Belgium has been visited by a member of WWOOF Belgium to ensure they are in accordance with the values we wish to promote. A description of each Whost and their activities is presented on the Whost list on this website.
WWOOFers in Belgium...
... provide help with many different activities such as gardening and making compost, animal care, chopping wood, helping with eco-construction projects and much more. Accordingly WWOOFers in Belgium can develop many skills and learn about many different aspects of organic agriculture and sustainable living practices depending on which Whost they choose and which activities they participate in.
