The Bowhouse Market Weekends in the East Neuk of Fife have been awarded Farmers Market Certification from the Farm Retail Association, as part of a scheme to bring consistency and clarity to what it means to be a real Farmers Market.
Farmers Markets across the UK provide thousands of farmers with a viable local route to market their produce. The ‘Real Farmers Market’ certification scheme has been refreshed and devised to give the public a clear understanding of which markets are true Farmers Markets by meeting eight key principles.
Part of Balcaskie Estate, Bowhouse opened its doors in 2017 as a community of food and drinks producers with a monthly market. It now welcomes around 4,200 visitors to its monthly markets.
To become a certified Farmers Market under the Farm Retail Association, Bowhouse has met eight key principles:
- Champion the farmers – customers should be able to buy directly from the farmers, growers and producers who grow and produce the products on sale.
- Prioritise local produce – It’s important to recruit stall holders from as close to the market as possible and the majority of stallholders come from within the county in which the market is located.
- Be proud of your provenance – Each stallholder should have either been grown or produced, baked or made by the stallholders at your market.
- Understand your product(s) – Stallholders should be able to talk to customers about how the product has been produced from field to fork and give customers accurate advice and clear information on how the product has been created.
- Be correctly insured – All traders must have suitable Public, Product and Employment Insurance in place to protect their customers.
- Follow the correct legal procedures – All traders and markets must follow all relevant national and local laws, and as a minimum ensure that each trader is registered with Trading Standards and Environmental Health.
- Promote yourself as ‘Real Farmers Market’ – Be proud to fulfil these principles and shout about it in your communications, clearly talking to customers about the farmers, suppliers and products that make it a ‘Real Farmers Market’.
- Enforce the above principles – The market organiser should have systems in place to ensure that the above principles are enforced at all times.
Kylie Clark, Business Operations Manager, Balcaskie and Bowhouse said:
“We’re incredibly proud to have achieved Farm Retail Association accreditation. Bowhouse was set up with the ideal of making the best local food and drink available direct to local people and this is a mark of that. Beyond this it recognises our market as a key way that the community of estate producers reach their customers. It’s an important reason why businesses want to base themselves here and we’re always keen to hear from other businesses who want to join us on the estate.”
Emma Mosey, Chair of the FRA comments,
“It is vital that there is an industry standard for Farmers Markets in the UK so customers can be sure of the provenance and locality of the produce. When a Farmers Market has demonstrated their credentials and been awarded certification, it shows an ongoing commitment to these values. The FRA is proud to support and promote certified markets.”
Balcaskie Estate covers 4,500 acres in the East Neuk of Fife. With an organic and regenerative focus, farming practices include mob grazing, improving soil health, native wildlife conservation and the reintroduction of heritage breed livestock for a more sustainable future for food production and rural communities. At the heart of the estate is Bowhouse, a growing community of producers, which work to transform local ingredients into artisan food and drink.
For more information on Bowhouse, visit https://www.bowhousefife.com/. To find out more about running a business from Balcaskie Estate, visit https://www.balcaskie.com/pitch-up/.
For more information about the Real Farmers Market scheme or the Farm Retail Association, visit https://farmretail.co.uk/.
