Benefit from Brexit by making more from local produce

With experts predicting that food prices could soar in the wake of Brexit, now is the time for independent retailers to invest more in local produce.

That’s the advice from Anthony Davison, founder of Big Barn, a website that helps shoppers and retailers source local food.

“I think higher food prices are a great thing because it’ll only affect imports. What we need to do is see it as an opportunity to produce more food here,” he said.

“Shop owners could then put up signs pointing out that products are cheaper because they’re local.”

Big Barn runs a scheme called Crop for the Shop where retailers can have a dedicated section of local produce in the store by partnering with local suppliers, making a profit of 30% on every sale.

“There’s a fantastic opportunity for small shops to make the supply chain a lot shorter and even undercut the supermarkets,” he said.

The current European policy on food gives £2.9bn to farmers to provide EU consumers with cheaper food.

Davison said this has benefited larger farms while many smaller farms have sold up.