New local food market attempts to change the way we shop and eat

Chester has a new local food market that takes place each week at Telford’s Warehouse.

The Chester Food Assembly is a market with a twist, as all of the produce is pre-ordered online each week by customers choosing produce direct from the local baker, the farmer, the bee keeper and the yogurt maker.

Organiser, Katie Lyttle, said: “We all want to support our local producers and gain access to the amazing food being produced in and around Chester. But it isn’t always easy to seek it out as we are all so busy. The Food Assembly aims to solve this issue. “Ordering local food online and then picking it up makes it so simple and quick. Getting to meet the people behind the food at pick up time is incredible. How often do we actually get the chance to meet the people who make/grow/rear our food?

'Cooking a meal from the ingredients bought from local producers, knowing exactly where the produce has come from, who made it and how it was produced, is pretty unique. There is always a feel good factor about supporting local.'

The Chester Food Assembly is not only having an impact on dinner plates, but also in the lives of local producers.

Organic vegetable grower Lisa Payne said: 'The response has been overwhelmingly positive, and for a small-scale producer like me that has such a direct impact on my business. With continued support from the customers I’ll be able to grow my business organically and in a way that is sustainable.

'As Food Assembly customers place their orders in advance, waste has been reduced. We only harvest exactly what has been ordered by our customers. So now we don’t have to eat spinach every meal for a week if we harvest it for a market and it doesn’t sell!'

There are 11 local food producers selling their produce through Food Assembly, supplying customers direct with produce such as free range pork, grass fed beef, organic fruit and vegetables, raw honey, home baked bread, gluten free baking, sweet treats, jams and preserves, cheese, yoghurt, organic butter, organic eggs and much more. Many of the producers are award winners, showcasing some of Cheshire’s best produce.

05/11/2014