Andrew’s enterprise part growth in UK network of farm shops

Successful poultry farmer Andrew Gilbert has seen a smart idea to help his neighbours and others in his Ballygowan, Co Down community with access to local foods during the pandemic go from strength to strength.
Andrew Gilbert of Springmount Free Range Eggs in Ballygowan has grown his business by creating a farm shop as a community serviceAndrew Gilbert of Springmount Free Range Eggs in Ballygowan has grown his business by creating a farm shop as a community service
Andrew Gilbert of Springmount Free Range Eggs in Ballygowan has grown his business by creating a farm shop as a community service

Andrew, who owns and runs Springmount Farm with wife Rosemary and has won national food awards for his free-range and woodland eggs, decided to set up a small farm shop initially at the gateway to the farm at the outbreak of the pandemic.

The farm shop was a logical extension of his longstanding practice of selling fresh eggs from the farm gate.

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“I started a fresh egg delivery along with a ‘cluck and collect’ service early in the pandemic,” he remembers. “I subsequently decided to focus on providing fresh eggs for collection in the small shop and the business has grown since then to include foods from other local suppliers. Our wee shop is the true essence of a farm shop. We rely on the support of the local community. We see the shop as a service and not as a business. Its size is its charm.”

Andrew Gilbert is developing a new business by offering honey from his own hivesAndrew Gilbert is developing a new business by offering honey from his own hives
Andrew Gilbert is developing a new business by offering honey from his own hives

The popularity with local people reluctant to shop in large supermarkets and the growing range of products stocked led Andrew to switch the venture to a large container near the farmyard.

The small shop offers customers an extensive range of fresh produce from other local farms such as vegetables, seasonal fruit, chilled milk along with dry-cured bacon, freshly baked bread, cakes and even pizzas. There’s a price beside each group of products and an ‘honesty box’ for shoppers to pick the products and leave payment.

He’s also developed a successful own brand honey business from his own hives which he is keen on growing especially in sales to other local shops.

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Andrew’s business is part of the dramatic growth in farm shops throughout the UK since the early days of the pandemic. Researchers have found farm shops now make a major contribution to the national and local economies, generating £1.4 billion in annual sales and providing employment for more than 25,000 workers.

The farm retail industry, according to researchers from Harper Adams University in Britain for the Farm Retail Association, is proving invaluable to the UK food industry.

During the pandemic, farm shops experienced an 89 percent rise in sales, and 64% of the 1,600 farm shops expect sales to increase in 2022. 

Andrew’s enterprise, furthermore, demonstrates farm shops are now an important springboard for smaller and start-up food businesses everywhere.

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“We are keen to support local producers as part of our focus on offering shoppers as much variety as possible. We’ve long been committed to the local agri-food community and to support artisan food and soft drink producers,” Andrew explains.

The study, the first of its kind in the UK, reveals that “customers are increasingly seeking higher quality products and excellent customer service and this is why they are attracted to community farm shops”. 

Andrew continues: “The study shows the sector’s potential and its enormous value to local and predominantly rural economies. Farm shops offer a different experience to high street shopping through the quality and local sourcing of their produce and their high standard of personal service.

The lockdowns in hospitality, in addition, forced shoppers to experience new foods at home when eating out was largely impossible.

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“More people tried – and many are continuing to try - cooking different and locally sourced foods at home. And with top-quality local produce, the growth in exciting artisan products, and pleasant farm settings, it’s easy to understand why consumers were keen to visit their community farm shops during the pandemic…and are continuing to do so.

Andrew continues: “It’s proving a popular development for us and in line with the current trend among shoppers for locally sourced and fresh products which are now rightly recognised as highly nutritious and with a low carbon footprint.”

Care for the environment is also seen in the farm’s commitment to renewable energy sources. This approach includes solar panels on the hen houses and extensive recycling of materials. All packaging is carried out on-site as part of a focus on keeping the carbon footprint as low as possible.

“We are developing a sustainable business that’s based on the best hygiene and husbandry standards and is producing high quality eggs with provenance and traceability. We ask customers to bring back egg packaging and jars for reuse. Glass milk and juice bottles are recyclable and we pay for returns. Andrew developed the farm shop on the back of an impressive reputation for delivering fresh eggs which have won acclaim in major food competitions such as the prestigious UK Great Taste Awards and Ireland’s Blas na hEireann.

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