New farm shop celebrating local produce opens today
A NEW farm shop offering a huge range of local produce from meat and cheese to arts and crafts opens today.
The shop, at the Stoughton Grange Rural Centre, near Oadby, is the latest in a number of developments at the well-known rural centre.
The popular on-site pub, The Cow and Plough, underwent a comprehensive refurbishment during April, re-opening at the start of May with an upmarket brasserie feel.
A woodland wedding venue and glamping area is also being created, and farm animals are gradually being re-introduced to the site, which was once home to a farm park.
A gin distillery will soon also be opening next to the farm shop, which has been created in a former milking parlour and retains a rustic feel in keeping with its surroundings.
Many of the materials used for the build are reclaimed, such as the wood panels on the walls, and the corrugated metal sheets.
Customers will find a wide selection of fruit, vegetables and salad, with much of the produce grown onsite in polytunnels, and other items grown elsewhere in the county.
A key aim is that it should be as sustainable as possible, and in keeping with this ethos, nothing that has to be flown on a plane will be sold.
General manager Robin Kemp said the majority of stock will, from the start, be from local producers, but he is keen to hear from more.
“It is heavy on local producers, but we have started with some national products,” he said. “The hope is that once people know we’re here, local producers will come to us, and we can gradually shift towards selling just local produce.”
There is a section of the shop dedicated to baked products from Rutland’s Hambleton Bakery, and there is a vast chilled counter, where customers can pick up everything from fresh cakes to cheeses.
There will be plenty of local options here, including Long Clawson Stilton and Sparkenhoe Red Leicester.
A deli selection will be available, with items including olives and cooked meats. The shop has its own butchery counter selling native breed meat from Leicestershire and Rutland farms, and producing homemade items including Scotch eggs, sausage rolls, burgers and sausages.
A milk machine will enable customers to purchase milk from Kingarth Dairy, of Burton Overy.
Beer from Melton’s Round Corner Brewing and Charnwood Brewery will be on sale, along with wines from Rothley Vineyard and Welland Valley Vineyard, plus cider from Simply Cider at Market Harborough.
Robin added: “We’ll be different to other farm shops because after a short period of time, we plan to replace the brands you see in farm shops across the country with all local producers. It will mean less profit for us, but it’s important and it’s what we want to do.”
The farm shop will be open from 9am until 5pm Monday to Saturday, and 10am until 4pm Sunday.