Such a friendly neighbour food!
HOW A GROUP OF LOCAL PRODUCERS GOT TOGETHER TO DELIVER ECO-FRIENDLY FOOD TO DERBY’S DOORSTEPS
WHEN the first national lockdown forced the closure of all pubs, it left Sara Green, of Derby NeighbourFood, with a quandary – how to continue the city’s only weekly farmers’ market which had operated from the Greyhound in Friar Gate, but which was now homeless.
Her answer was to deliver the baked goods, preserves, local honey, meat, dairy products, pyclets, and even gifts and crafts, directly to customers instead – and not only did that save the market, but also saw it thrive. Now fresh produce – all of it environmentally friendly – from 14 local suppliers is reaching homes in the Derby area every week.
Says Sara: “It was a huge challenge, especially because orders increased five-fold as people turned to us when the supermarkets were struggling. We couldn’t have done it without the teamwork and commitment of all the producers. Each week our farmers, food makers and myself all really pulled together. It’s allowed us to open up to a larger customer base.”
Sara believes that customers who joined Derby NeighbourFood during the lockdowns have remained loyal to the enterprise because of the convenience and quality of the products and the delight of using fresh, seasonal produce.
She originally set up the market as Derby Food Assembly in 2016, but after the Europeanbased Food Assembly pulled out of the UK due to Brexit, her venture now runs through the NeighbourFood scheme.
“I’d moved up from London and realised that Derby didn’t really have anything like the Food Assembly I’d been using. Derby’s farmers’ market was operating only once a month and was always held during daytime on a weekday. There was no means for anybody who worked in a full-time normalhours job to be able to shop for locally produced food without having to drive to farm shops outside of the city during their precious weekends off.
“We appeal to professional people who enjoy the convenience of shopping online and collecting their food after work, or now having it delivered, as it fits into their busy lives.”
The market operates a simple system. Customers place their orders online between Thursday and Sunday and arrange either to visit the new collection point at St Alkmund’s Church on Kedleston Road, or have their purchases delivered by one of the farmers on Tuesday evening.
Sara and her co-host, Lucy Giuliano, who joined the small team earlier this year, believe that the market, with its
smallscale local approach, provides a means for families of people of working age to eat better.
“They can shop in a way that’s better from our local economy, and the environment, too. Most of our customers would consider the more sustainable aspect of our market to be a key reason why they shop with us. We have a lot of people of all ages, but especially young families in their 30s and 40s, people who can walk and cycle to our collection point and are keen to live more sustainably.”
Sara and Lucy have been careful to maintain the authenticity of the market. Producers receive 80% of the sale price of their goods, and because the market concentrates on local businesses, 90% of that income stays within the local economy. All the products come from small family businesses, with nothing mass produced. There is no chemical spraying of vegetables.
All eggs and meat are free-range. And because all food is produced locally on a small scale, it has a much smaller carbon footprint.
Sara said: “Our food is super-fresh – all of it comes from within 30 kilometres of Derby – with less plastic and less packaging. And we recycle and re-use most of that if it’s returned to us. Our farmers have higher standards of animal welfare, and their small-scale farms are better for wildlife. They are
the ones who care about the countryside and the environment, and who are actively caring for the wildlife that lives within it. They also care about the quality of their produce. All of them buy into the ethos of our food community.”
And it is very much a community. Initially, customers could meet with the producers in person and chat about products, ask questions and even make suggestions. The pandemic means this no longer happens, but customers are still welcome, encouraged even, to give their feedback through email and social media. Since the delivery drivers are the farmers and producers themselves, there is always a chance to pass on comments at the doorstep.
However, Sara and Lucy aren’t yet content – they are keen to expand further. “Reaching more people means more positive impact for our producers and the environment. We began with seven or eight producers and now have 14. But we are always looking to expand our range of products by finding new local producers.”
“We’re also looking at offering carbon-neutral delivery by bicycle in the future. We want to continue to make a difference to the lives of our local farmers. Every time our customers shop with us, they are doing just that – supporting our local economy and helping to make it stronger and more resilient.”
Derby NeighbourFood can be contacted via email at derbyneighbourfood@gmail.com or via Instagram @ derbyneighbourfood.