Highland food producers sign up to new online initiative
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FOOD lovers will soon have another way to get hold of the best local produce thanks to a new initiative.
Everyone has heard of farmers’ markets, where consumers buy directly from suppliers, with the monthly Inverness market popular with shoppers.
Likewise most people are familiar with ‘click and collect’ where online purchases can be picked up at the shop.
Now Food Assemblies are bridging the gap between the two as consumers order local produce online and collect from a central point.
Local farmer Richard Jones says the initiative offers “the best of both worlds”, giving easier access to local food and improving connections between farmers and consumers.
Mr Jones said: “Food assemblies normally run on a weekly cycle, with five days of online ordering via the Food Assembly website where local producers offer their food in a similar way to any other online retailer.
“The food is paid for online and on day six producers process their orders for collection on day seven.
“The producers meet at the collection point and customers can collect their orders as well as meet farmers and growers face to face.
“The idea has been a great success to date, with thousands of members across the UK now buying their food in this way and, in doing so, supporting their local producers.
“Farmers, growers and their customers are in a win-win situation, with 86 per cent of the sale value going back to the producers and customers knowing exactly who they are buying from and where their food has been produced.
“The Food Assembly is in no way intended to replace the local farmers’ markets which have thrived on the back of the online offering, and indeed most producers work with both organisations to great effect.”
The Inverness Food Assembly will launch on May 5 with shoppers able to pick up their first orders from the Fairways golf course, Castleheather, Inverness from 4.30pm the following Thursday (May 11).
Producers signed up so far are: Black Isle Veg Boxes; Highland Drovers and Borland Farm; River Croft; Highland Crackers; The Oyster Shed; Highland Roastery; The Chocolate Place; and The Really Garlicky Company.
With dozens of local food assemblies set up across Britain, the movement recently won the BBC Food and Farming award for Best Initiative in British Food.
For further details see www.thefoodassembly.com, search for “Inverness” under “Where do you live?”, then click on the “house” icon that shows in the map.
