30 June 2014, 12:22 PM

So there’s much to shout about in the independent food sector – make sure you’re heard!

I was lucky enough to rack up some miles judging for the Farm Shop & Deli Awards. In the process I was truly enamored by the quality of retailers and the passion and enthusiasm shown by those working in the shops. Invariably the drive and innovation came from those who had set them up, but so infectious is their enthusiasm that it’s passed on to the staff. This sector includes bakers, fishmongers and greengrocers.

Of the 300 entries into the Farm Shop & Deli Awards in 2014 nearly a third were from Farm Shops (all of which had been visited by the judges) and the winner of this category and the overall retailer of the year was Ardross in Fife.

Rob Pollock’s predecessors had brought their cattle over from the west coast of Scotland by train, to settle in the east.

In 2005, with wife Fiona and daughter Nikki Storrar, and faced with rising fuel costs and under huge pressure from supermarkets Rob made the hard decision to diversify and find a different way to make a living out of agriculture. Having found a local abattoir and butcher to hang their beef they decided to sell their meat directly to the public. They converted a cart shed into a shop and opened up with the assistance of a chest freezer, a calculator and a lot of enthusiasm.

They’re now aided by 22 local employees and offer 40 seasonal fruit and veg grown and picked daily from the farm. Anything not sold is fed to their rare breed Stabiliser cattle and using their own commercial kitchen they provide ready meals for fridge or freezer.

The Pollock’s want to promote British agriculture and so 90% of their wares are produced by diversifying farming families, with other goods coming from artisan companies.

The best accolades heaped on this down to earth family and their business should come from the shoppers who frequent the shop perched on the Fife coast:

“Ardross has kept its integrity and sticks to its principles. They rear their own meat, grow their own produce and truly believe in keeping food miles low.”

“Ardross is literally the nicest place I have ever purchased food. The steak pies are to die for. I’m from Elgin and make a point of travelling all the way to Fife at least once a month to get my hands on their fine food.”

So there’s much to shout about in the independent food sector and it’s being driven by a growing band of focused and talented retailers who love what they do, which helps compensate for the hours they invest in the business.

Make sure what you are doing in this exciting sector gets the regional and national attention it truly deserves – enter the Farm Shop & Deli Awards today, visit farmshopanddeliawards.co.uk.