Fodder effect bringing £1m into the region

Fodder, the food shop and cafe championed by the Yorkshire Agricultural Society and based on Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Showground, saw its sales increase by 17 per cent last year, boasting a healthy annual turnover of in excess of £1.8m.

All profits from the shop are re-invested in projects that benefit the rural community and the shop stocks the wares of hundreds of Yorkshire artisan food producers.

The local food industry had feared the recession and economic downturn would see people turn their backs in favour of mass-produced supermarket food but bosses at Fodder say this has not materialised.

According to the IGD group the economic downturn has actually accelerated the trend for locally sourced food, with shoppers having sought to support local economies and communities.

More than half of shoppers claimed to purchase local products in order to support local producers, while a quarter said they wanted to support local retailers, and a fifth said they wanted to keep jobs in their area.

Managing director Heather Parry said: “Fodder evolved out of a passion to help the rural community and give farmers and local producers a platform to market their products to a wider audience.

“Nearly three years on, the shop and café are thriving and the next step is to help the suppliers find new listings and broaden their customer base.”

One supplier who has benefited from the ‘Fodder Effect’ is Lottie Shaw, who sells traditional Yorkshire Parkin made from a 100-year-old family recipe.

“Fodder has been an amazing shop window for us,” said Ms Shaw,

“We’ve gained lots of listings off the back of buyers seeing us on the shelves there, but perhaps more directly, they’ve helped find markets we’d never have considered.”

Fodder now stocks the produce of 250 Yorkshire farmers and food producers and while the store continues to attract new customers, helping Fodder’s suppliers find new markets is another key component to the success of the project.

Fodder has also made efforts to support local charities.

Harrogate Homeless Society come a couple of times a week and collect surplus fruit and vegetables – products which while still perfectly edible are perhaps not fresh enough for the shelves. A spokeswoman said: “This means that we have zero waste and they can provide their facility users with hearty meals.

“A win win”

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