How can I support local farmers?

26 January 2011

Farmers can be faced with unreasonable supermarket demands, leading to:

• Wastage of fruit or fruit sold at a loss due to rejection for minor cosmetic reasons.
• Increased use of pesticides to meet appearance standards.

The best way of supporting your local farmers is to buy local produce direct from the grower, e.g. farmers' markets and farm shops. You can benefit too, as greengrocers and market stalls often offer cheaper fruit and vegetables than supermarkets. And they're a great source of advice and recipes as well.

It's also important to support local independent shops who may struggle to compete with the supermarket giants.

For more information on what you can do, take a look at our Fix the Food Chain campaign.

If you do use supermarkets, buy UK produce whenever it's in season.