Paul West

Paul West is a chef, food grower, and passionate advocate for sustainable living, best known as the warm-hearted host of ‘River Cottage Australia’. With a contagious enthusiasm for real food, regional communities, and connecting people to where their food comes from, Paul has become a beloved figure in kitchens, gardens, and festivals around the country.

Trained at Melbourne’s acclaimed Vue de Monde, where he also met his wife Alicia, Paul swapped the high-end restaurant world for a dirt-under-the-fingernails life of growing, cooking, and sharing food. His journey took him from WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) across Australia to building a thriving small farm in Central Tilba, NSW – the heart of River Cottage Australia.

As a co-founder of ‘Grow It Local’, Paul champions backyard veggie patches and community food projects. He’s a bestselling author (The River Cottage Australia Cookbook), a regular face on the ABC (Gardening Australia, Catalyst, Back Roads), and a highly sought-after speaker and live demonstrator at food and sustainability festivals nationwide. Paul is also a passionate supporter of a variety of charities, including National Parks and Wildlife Foundation, OZ Harvest, Earth Hour, REAP, NEST and Cure Cancer.

Whether he’s hosting a bee challenge on national television or sharing recipes with home cooks, Paul’s charm lies in his ability to combine deep knowledge with down-to-earth storytelling. Paul now lives in inner-city Melbourne with Alicia, their two sons Otto and Bowie, and a loyal dog named Digger, where he can be seen still growing food, spinning yarn, and inspiring others to live a little more sustainably.