Hello, I’m Anthony Black, team leader of Supportive Food.
I created this website with a lot of encouragement to support people and families in both wealthy and impoverished nations affected by many of the common diseases associated with lifestyle, nutrition, stress, and wider social factors.
Its aims are to: offer encouragement, practical guidance, and nutritional information that sits alongside proper medical care. And to support existing Government and NGO initiatives to feed the world.
Supportive Food is deeply personal to me as a sufferer of Cancer myself.
What we all believe
We strongly support the use of proven conventional and advanced medical treatment. Nothing on this website is intended to replace medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
It is to encourage supportive nutrition, better food choices, and healthier habits that may help strengthen wellbeing and quality of life, alongside appropriate professional care.
At heart, this site is for patients, families, carers, healthcare professionals, and the wider community. It is rooted in respect for the farming community and for those who work hands-on with people in need.
My background
My career has included service in the military, work in hospitality, charitable leadership, and later the ownership of a farm in Spain; “Finca Esperanza” (Hope Farm).
My early life was varied and, at times, difficult. Over the years, those experiences helped shape my outlook and led me into counselling training, which became one of the most important turning points in my life. It taught me not only how to understand people more deeply, but also how to support others with greater wisdom, steadiness, and compassion.
Professionally, my path has been diverse:
- Military service in the British and US Armies, including intelligence and reserve service
- Hospitality work as a chef, hotel manager, consultant, and restaurant owner
- Charity leadership, including founding and directing organisations involved in counselling, medical referrals, rehabilitation, and practical support
- Farming, with a long-term commitment to organic and sustainable food production
Charitable and medical-related work
A significant part of my life has been devoted to charitable work, particularly in areas connected with crisis support, medical need, rehabilitation, and practical service.
This has included work connected with:
- Crisis counselling, medical, and homelessness support
- Inter-denominational and community rehabilitation projects
- Employment and rehousing initiatives
- Leadership roles within medical and humanitarian charities
One of the most significant chapters of my life was serving as a national director for The Leprosy Mission, a medical charity working internationally. During that time, I also had the privilege of working on occasion with Princess Diana in her role as Patron.
Those experiences left a lasting impression on me and deepened my understanding of dignity, suffering, compassion, and service.
Why Supportive Food matters
I believe many people today feel overwhelmed by poor diet, conflicting information, and preventable ill health. I also believe that food, when approached wisely, can play an important supportive role in health and recovery.
Supportive Food exists to encourage better choices, greater awareness, and a more thoughtful relationship with nutrition and wellbeing.
Medical Advisory Board
We will also be adding details of the medical advisors on our Board, whose experience and guidance help strengthen the integrity of our health-related content. This is important to us. Where health is concerned, compassion matters, but so does responsibility, accuracy, and respect for proper medical care.
A final word
My life has taken many unexpected turns, from hardship to privilege, from success to loss, and from ambition to a simpler desire: to leave behind something useful.
If this work helps even a small number of people feel better supported, better informed, and less alone, then I will be deeply grateful.
— Anthony Black
Notes
¹ Head & Neck Stage 4 P16 Squamous Cell Carcinoma. T4N2cMo. 20% survival 1-5 years.
² Source: Linkedin: “If a certain food item was not available prior to 1900, it’s wise to avoid it altogether”