Consumers are more in tune with buying locally than ever before. Farm Shops across the UK offer unique shopping experiences and many have diversified further into events like pumpkin festivals and drive through shops.

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The Farm Retail Association (FRA) and leading rural insurer NFU Mutual are hosting a webinar on setting up a farm shop at 6pm on Thursday 25 June 2020.

Free for anyone from across the UK to join, the 90-minute webinar will give an insight from both the FRA and NFU Mutual, as well as experienced farm shop owners who will be sharing their lessons learnt.

Jenny Rose, Manager of the FRA, the national body supporting farm retail, said: “Consumers are more in tune with buying locally than ever before. By holding the event online we can still offer a helping hand and inspiration as well as bringing like-minded people together to think about ways to develop their business.”

Many farms are considering different diversification activities to increase their business resilience. An NFU Mutual survey at the end of 2019 found almost half of UK farmers (48%) were planning to set up or expand diversification schemes – a figure which doubled from the year before.

David Harrison, Farming Sector Lead at NFU Mutual, said: “Many farm shops have really come into their own serving local communities at a critical time under Coronavirus. From using drive-throughs to veg boxes, vending machines to socially distanced shopping experiences, consumers are valuing the high-quality produce and services that our farm shops have to offer.”

Speakers include Emma Mosey from the Minskip Farm Shop in North Yorkshire and Rupert Evans from Denstone Hall Farm Shop and Café in Uttoxeter Staffordshire.

To register for the event, visit https://farmretail.co.uk/diversify/