Editorial Policy

1. Our editorial mission

The journal at The Sourdough Hub exists to make home baking better. Concretely: to help a beginner raise their first starter and bake their first proper loaf; to help a more experienced baker understand why something they thought they knew was probably wrong; and to make food writing in this corner of the internet a little more honest, a little more careful, and a little less shrill.

We publish:

• Beginner guides — clear, patient, written for someone who has read three online posts and is now more confused than before.
• Recipes — tested, in our own kitchen, by more than one person, with notes on what could go wrong.
• The science of bread — written or reviewed by people who actually know it.
• Troubleshooting — with photographs of the actual problem, where we can show it.

We do not publish: clickbait, fad diets, dubious health claims, or anything dressed up to look like editorial content but which is actually advertising.

2. Editorial independence

The journal is editorially independent of our commercial team, which is small enough that it consists of the same people, but the principle is real. When we choose what to write about, we are not choosing what we can sell against. The fact that an article would or would not move kits has no role in whether it gets commissioned.

3. Who writes for us

Most of the journal is written in-house, primarily by Clara Ashworth. We commission outside contributors when they bring expertise we don't have — food science, in particular, where Dr. Elena Hosk has written several pieces. Contributors are paid fairly, named clearly, and credited at the top of the article.

We do not accept articles in exchange for product placement. We do not accept articles written or edited by AI without disclosure. If part of an article was drafted with an AI assistant and edited by a human writer, we will say so visibly.

4. Sources, fact-checking and citations

Where an article makes a factual claim — about temperature, fermentation chemistry, nutrition, the history of a technique — we cite our source. Where the source is a peer-reviewed paper, we link to it. Where the source is a textbook, we name the edition. Where the source is folk wisdom from another baker, we say so.

We do not invent quotes. We do not paraphrase someone else's words and present them as our own.

5. Paid relationships

We disclose every commercial relationship that touches our editorial output. Specifically:

• If an article mentions a third-party product we sell, we say so plainly.
• If an article was sponsored or commissioned by a partner, that fact appears at the top of the article in the same typeface as the headline. We do not currently take sponsored content; if we ever do, this clause is how it will be handled.
• If a piece arose from a press trip, hosted visit, or supplied product, that is disclosed at the top of the article.
• We do not run affiliate links of any kind on the journal at present. If we change that, we will mark every affiliate link with a clear visual indicator.

6. Reviews and recommendations

Where the journal recommends a piece of equipment or a third-party brand, we will be clear about whether we have used it ourselves and for how long, whether we paid for it, and whether the recommendation has any commercial benefit to us.

We do not recommend things we have not tested. We do not write "top 10" lists where the rankings have been chosen by an algorithm rather than a person.

7. Photography and illustration

We use our own photography wherever possible. Where we use stock or licensed photography, we credit the photographer. We do not use AI-generated imagery to depict products, ingredients, or processes that exist in the real world; if we ever use AI-generated imagery for an abstract or illustrative purpose, it will be visibly marked as such.

We crop, light, and colour-grade for clarity, but we do not Photoshop products or ingredients to misrepresent what they actually look like.

8. Corrections

When we get something wrong, we correct it. Corrections appear at the top of the corrected article in a visible block, dated, and the original sentence is preserved with a strike-through where the change is substantive. We do not silently rewrite published pieces.

If you've spotted an error in something we've published, please email hello@thesourdoughhub.co.uk. We will look at it within three working days and respond.

9. Reader content and comments

We do not currently host comments on articles. If you'd like to respond to a piece, please write to us; we read every reply and we publish thoughtful corrections, additions, or counter-points in subsequent articles, with credit.

We may use customer photographs, recipes, and stories on the journal where you have given permission. Permission is treated as revocable: if you change your mind, we will take the content down.

10. Right of reply

Where we publish anything that names another person or business in a critical light, we will offer that person or business an opportunity to respond before publication. Their response will be incorporated into the article or, where length precludes that, published alongside it.

11. Health and food safety

We are a baking journal, not a clinical service. Where we discuss anything that could affect a reader's health — allergens, fermentation safety, food storage — we follow current Food Standards Agency guidance and link to it. We do not give medical or nutritional advice. Readers with allergies, medical conditions, or specific dietary needs should consult a qualified professional before relying on anything we publish.

12. Children

We do not publish photographs of identifiable children without the explicit, recorded permission of a parent or carer.

13. Sign-off and review

This policy was approved by Clara Ashworth, Founder and Editor, on 3 May 2026, and is reviewed annually.