Enjoying food and drink from the East of England

Eating healthily and wherever possible buying from local suppliers is becoming ever more important to many people. In this month’s regular column from East Herts Council, we look at some of the initiatives to support food businesses in East Herts and across the region.

How important are food and drink businesses to the region?

What is East Herts Council doing to support food businesses?
Through East Herts’ GROWN IN HERTS project we offer a wide variety of support to food and farming businesses. We organise and support regular farmers’ markets across the district that are a valuable opportunity for food and farming community to sell their produce and for customers to see what’s on offer in the county.

We work closely with FARMA, formerly the National Association of Farmers’ Markets to bring courses directly related to selling produce and customer service skills. Further support is offered through (ACTION FOR GROWTH IN THE RURAL ECONOMY) AGRE, these include 1to1 computer training and marketing skills all designed to help improve business efficiency.

How does local promotion link in with regional strategies?
The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) has launched a campaign to promote regional produce. It will encourage the links between food and tourism and will make the most of the public’s growing interest in food miles, seasonal produce and local sources. The campaign is called Eat East – Nearer Fresher Better and in the next three years it aims to help local producers increase sales, profits and market share in our region, as well as across Britain and abroad.

EEDA is putting £120,000 into the Eat East scheme and is publishing a regular e-newsletter to which East Herts Council has been asked to contribute. The newsletter highlights the wealth of food and drink available from the east of England shortly. Keep in touch with the EEDA website to find out when www.eeda.org.uk

Marie Francis is EEDA’s recently appointed food and farming champion for the east of England. She said: “From Hertfordshire beef and lamb to Essex pigs, Suffolk ales and Norfolk turkeys, the East of England boasts a wealth of top quality local and regional foods to be proud of.”
Marie is keen to make the supply chain more efficient so that businesses can make efficiency savings and to encourage producers to work together to achieve the necessary scale to get into bigger markets.

I don’t run a food business but I’m interested in supporting food producers in my local area. What can I do?

When you’re holding an event with refreshments, from a buffet or a light lunch to a full meal, look for caterers who use local food. If you or a colleague visits farmers’ markets you can source biscuits and cakes for receptions or just to stock up the office biscuit tin. If you manage a business that provides accommodation, consider buying locally  - jams, honeys, bread, milk, meat, vegetables - for your guests. 
There’s also scope for larger food providers, such as schools and hospitals to buy food nearer to home.

East of England Initiative is bonus for local growers

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