NEWS
Farm shops going green to combat rocketing energy bills Farm shops are turning to their own power sources in a bid to avoid crippling rises in energy bills. A number of rural food retailers have switched to on-site renewables after being confronted with soaring costs from electricity suppliers. Several operators told FFD their bills will more than double in the coming weeks as they renew contracts and feel the effects of global market conditions. Simon Holland of Washingpool Farm Shop said that, from 1st August, the Dorset retailer would be paying 40p per unit for daytime electricity – up from 15p in July. “My current annual expenditure is £19,000 and the new contract would work out at £53,000,” he said. “We had to find ways around it as our business would not sustain it.”
Michael Wilson / Unsplash
By Greg Pitcher
IN BRIEF
For a broadly similar amount as the projected increase in bills, the shop has bought 20kW of solar panels and storage batteries. “We already have 30kW on the farm that sends electricity to the grid, and we will make it up to 50kW to make ourselves self-sufficient on energy,” said Holland. “We hope we will be able to store excess electricity and use it through the winter.” Such is the demand for renewable power sources in the current
economic environment that Washingpool had to access a loan and order the panels immediately to secure them. In a social media discussion seen by FFD, one Staffordshire farm shop said that its bill had gone up a projected £75,000 recently. “We were shocked beyond belief,” said the retailer. “We’ve just switched on 135kW of solar panels which is a relief but we’re still drawing off the grid at night.” A Farm Retail Association (FRA)
spokesperson described energy prices as “a huge concern” and called for more grants to help businesses invest in sustainable energy. Former FRA chairman Rob Copley agreed that power costs were a “massive issue for farm shops”. But he added that there was increased interest in self-generating electricity. “We are ideal candidates for renewables as we can use every scrap we produce – solar produces between 10am and 2pm which is when a farm shop is at maximum usage.” Copley said that his own Yorkshire farm shop, which already has 90kW of solar panels, was now considering bringing in a 100kW wind turbine. “We are doing a wind feasibility survey to see if it stacks up,” he said. “My bill has gone from £55,000 to £100,000 a year. It makes renewables schemes more viable.”
FFD’s publisher the Guild of Fine Food returned to Harrogate last month for its annual Fine Food Show North trade event. The show, which attracts buyers from both the independent retail and foodservice sectors, has a number of long-running traditions, including the Best Stand competition – judged for many years by the muchmissed Tony Howard
(Lewis & Cooper). Broadcaster Nigel Barden took up the mantle this year and selected wholesaler Shire Foods as the winner – citing the variety of products and level of engagement especially from founder Pat Gould (pictured right with Barden). To discover the editorial team’s pick of the show, turn to page 37.
Insurance underwriter NFU Mutual has urged farm shop owners to minimise cash transactions after an unprecedented spate of targeted burglaries. It suggested a swift switch to other methods of payment “if possible” after seven rural retailers were broken into across the North West and the West Midlands. Farm Retail Association chairman Rupert Evans’ Denstone Farm Shop was among those hit by thieves, who stole £15,000 from its safe. The business has since announced it will no longer accept cash payments. NFU Mutual farming
Steffen Salow / Pixabay]
Rural shops told to cut out cash after northern burglary spree
sector lead David Harrison said: “While farm shop break-ins are sadly not a new phenomenon, we haven’t had a series of highly-organised raids like this before.” Harrison urged owners to check their insurance covered the higher levels of cash they may have on site since inflation started driving prices up.
Paxton & Whitfield is now selling six varieties of cheese via Ocado. The range, which includes Baron Bigod, Cave Aged Cheddar and Colston Bassett Stilton, is part of the online retailers new Big Cheese Market section. Start-ups have until the end of this month to apply for the Booths Accelerator, an initiative being run by the northern retail chain Booths to mentor new producers. booths.co.uk/thebooths-accelerator In response to the cost-of-living crisis, Yorkshire-based supplier Cartwright & Butler has introduced a permanent monthly wage increase for each of its 50 employees equating to £1,800 a year.
Rupert Evans said the raid on his store was “a real kick in the teeth”. “It is hugely unsettling for all of us to realise that criminals have obviously been in the shop working out how to return and break in,” he said. CCTV footage showed “figures in dark clothes and balaclavas crawling across the floor to avoid triggering the alarm system, going straight to the safe and emptying it in minutes”, Evans added. He advised farm shop owners to minimise cash held on site. “We’ve really had no option but to go cashless.” NFU Mutual estimates that rural theft cost the UK over £43m in 2020. For more advice visit farmretail.co.uk Vol.23 Issue 7 | August 2022
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