A trip to Tesco this week showed that on six out of nine food items the retailer was actually more expensive than farm shops. Our chief reporter Johann Tasker bought meat and vegetables from farm shops in Essex and carried out a price check comparison with Tesco on November 5. He found that on dry cure bacon, a leg of lamb, topside beef, leeks, onion and desiree potatoes Tesco was substantially more costly. Only on broccoli, carrots and savoy cabbage were they cheaper.
In the words of Anthony Davison of Bigbarn.co.uk, "We have got so used to supermarkets saying that they are cheaper, that we believe them. It's actually a load of crap."
Next week, local food hero John Geldard from Plumgarth's hub in Cumbria, is introducing a major new report on what needs to be done to enable farmers to fully exploit local food opportunities in the UK. We need a revolution in the way this is handled and quick.
Douglas Wanstall, winner of the Farmshop.co.uk Local Food Farmer of the Year in the FW Awards last week is a shining example of how to do it. In just a few years, he's teamed up with other Kent producers and is supplying a phenomenal amount of fresh produce and meat to retailers, hotels and restaurants. He's also cracking public procurement by winning some impressive contracts with hospitals in the London area.
We've got to find ways of spreading these messages and sharing this know-how far and wide. And we must work harder at dispelling some of the myths shoppers have about farm shop grub being pricey. With the recession top of mind, this is a positive line that needs much better promotion nationally and locally. .