Better Food Traders urge holidaymakers to choose local

A new campaign by Better Food Traders is encouraging holidaymakers to support indie food businesses by seeking out local producers and retailers in the UK this summer.

The Adventures in Local Food campaign is urging travellers to use independent shops, bakeries, farm stalls, market traders, veg box schemes and local producers during their UK holidays.

Better Food Traders has created an online map to help people locate businesses selling locally produced food. It is also encouraging the public to share their discoveries on social media and recommend local traders not yet on the map.

The initiative comes as hot, dry weather continues to put pressure on the UK’s food system, with Better Food Traders highlighting the challenges faced by businesses across its network.

In a LinkedIn post, the organization says: “Across our network, farmers are dealing with water-stressed crops, rising irrigation costs and livestock welfare in the heat. Shopkeepers, delivery drivers and veg box scheme managers are battling overheating fridges and temperamental tech, just to get food to us and keep it fit to eat. This is tough stuff.”

It adds that these conditions underline how vulnerable the food system is to climate change and reinforce the importance of supporting resilient, locally rooted producers and traders.

Helping high streets

Better Food Traders says its network is committed to supporting nature-friendly farming, creating good jobs and strengthening connections between consumers and the people who grow and produce their food.

It notes: “Spending a little of your holiday money with a Better Food Trader goes a long way, keeping money circulating in local economies, creating thriving high streets, a healthier planet and better conditions for the people producing your food.”

By Jane Wolfe, contributor