Sussex Networking Scheme Launched

Created by Sally Edwards, formerly of the South East Food Group Partnership (SEFGP), and Tracy Carroll of food marketing company The Market Place, the website has its own in-site search facility and is optimised to receive traffic from search engines.

Sally Edwards said, “The SEFGP was disbanded earlier this year, which was a blow to the members, so I’m finding the new initiative is being very positively received. Local Food Sussex is primarily focussed on bringing lots of businesses together under one virtual roof. Joining forces in this way is very helpful, not least when it comes to online visibility.”

Of the partially subscription-funded site Tracy Carroll said, “I donate a lot of my own time to the project as I am absolutely passionate about supporting independent businesses and helping them to thrive. It’s jolly hard for the farmer, the butcher, the tea shop owner to be heard and get found, which is where Local Food Sussex comes in. This is an opportunity to join with other like-minded business owners and make some real noise. Once we build a consumer database we’ll also be able to push out news directly to local people.”

Membership costs £60 plus VAT until the end of August 2014 and includes a full page of editorial-style information, images and an outgoing web link.