A pioneering Cumbrian farm shop has been named the best in the UK.
Low Sizergh Barn, near Kendal, won the Large Independent Retailer of the Year at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair Awards in London earlier this month.
It employs 50 local people and is a marketplace for over 80 local suppliers.
Low Sizergh Barn was one of the first farm shops to open in the county in July 1991. Alison Park, the second generation of the family to run the business, continues to advocate buying local and linking people to the incredible food produced by the area’s farmers, including products from Low Sizergh Farm.
The farm shop stocks well-established Cumbrian producers, from RB Woodall to Thornby Moor Dairy, and provides a platform for newer food enterprises, including Eden Yard.
The Speciality and Fine Food Awards were launched to celebrate the individuals, products, and businesses that make the fine food and drink sector so remarkable. They say the awards recognise those driving change and innovation and putting community and people at the heart of what they do.
Alison said: “Our team operates at the roots of the food industry, at the place where food is grown and produced. We are also glad that at Low Sizergh, people can purchase food from the very place it is made and see the farm in action. We are thrilled to have our way of retailing celebrated in this national award.”
Three generations of the Park family have been involved in farming the 341 acres at Low Sizergh Farm. They have introduced many new initiatives, including pick-your-own strawberries in 1986, a café with a view of cows being milked in 1992, and a raw milk vending machine next to it in 2016. In 2002, the Parks opened a farm trail and, in 2022, a small caravan and camping pitch and facilities.
