Alford Country Market

Alford Country Market

The Local Country Market in Alford, Lincolnshire, is part of the nationwide Country Market Co-op.

See http://www.country-markets.co.uk/

The market is setup to allow home producers to sell their goods, from food to crafts. We have only recently started to sell some of our spare produce there but it is an excellent place to buy genuine home produced goods made by micro businesses and individuals. The stalls (tables) are arranged so that similar goods from multiple people are sold on the same table with a generic Country Market branding. There are no individual logos and the people operating each stall / table sell their own and other peoples produce without favour, there is no pushing your own produce over someone else's. A small commission is taken. 

We aren't going to become rich doing this as our own turn over, although increasing each week, is still counted in single or ten's of pound. £20 for the week would be maximum so far but it is only for one morning a week. The Country Market in Alford is just open from 9:30am to 12pm. A very informal and friendly bunch they are too.

The pictures just show the fruit and veg stall. These photos include produce from several home produces.  There is also a craft stall, a flower / plant stall and a cake and jam stall as well as a few tables and chairs for coffee and snacks to be bought and consumed.

Often a small selection of samples is available for people to try before buying.

The Market is located within the Church Hall next to the Church.

The market is an excellent place to obtain items that you can't buy anywhere else or that are hard to obtain, or items that have been produced with absolutely no chemicals. For example, fresh Broad Beans, Globe Artichokes, Dairy Free Cakes, Wooden Chopping Boards, Traditional Strawberry Jam.  

There is also the ability to ask one of the producers to bring in something specific. 

There is also no reason why you can't ask someone to grow a particular vegetable or fruit or even make a wooden item just for you, that you can't find anywhere else.

It is also a great way to support your local community or even to get advice on how  to grow or make something yourself. If you simply want to know exactly where your food comes from and know exactly how it was produced or are worried about what you are eating then the Country Market is the perfect place to source some of your food. Pricing is similar to main stores but the idea is not under cut other local producers.