Retailers farm fund offers recovery aid
Retailers farm fund offers recovery aid
FARMERS are invited to apply for financial support from a new £1.45m fund set up by seven leading retailers in the aftermath of the foot-and-mouth outbreak.
The Farmers Fund offers one-off financial assistance to farmers creating recovery plans aimed at establishing new revenues from the market place. It is backed by Asda, Marks & Spencer, Safeway, Sainsburys, Somerfield, Tesco and Waitrose.
The same supermarkets donated another £650,000 earlier in the year which was distributed to farm charities via the NFU. Jan Shawe, chairman of the fund, said: "We want to invest where our help will make a real difference in these difficult times. So market initiatives, market planning and re-training are all candidate areas."
Details of applications can be found on the Institute of Grocery Distribution web-site at www.igd.com or by writing to Farmers Fund, c/o Marlow Wade and Partners, PO Box 156, Haslemere, Surrey GU27 1XW. *