Economic Impact

Selling food locally allows farmers to keep more of the food pound as this cuts out the middlemen and they are able to sell closer to the cost of production.

There is clear evidence that local independent retailers can be essential to enable small businesses to prosper. In Suffolk, a local pig farmer was supplying ham and bacon to 35 local shops and other outlets beyond the region. His business had grown because he was able to do business with local shops. He said it would have been impossible to start and sustain this successful business if there had been no village shops.

The explanation given for the importance of small independent retailers is that the economies of scale match those of start up business. Multiple retailers require large amounts of products and buy in bulk which small businesses cannot meet. [1]

Studies have found that 'the problem is not necessarily that too little money flows into a neighbourhood. Rather it is what consumers, public services and businesses do with that money. Too often it is spent on services with no local presence, and so immediately leaves the area'. [1]

It is up to everyone to play their part to recycle the money within the community...

  • [1] Bernie Ward & Julie Lewis (2002), Plugging the Leaks for the New Economics Foundation

A study in Devon showed that £10 spent on a local food scheme generated £25 for the local economy. In comparison the same £10 spent at a supermarket generated only £14 as the profits are siphoned out of the region and sometimes out of the country to company headquarters.

Source: Justin Sacks (2002), The Money Trail: Measuring Your Impact on the Local Economy Using LM3 for the New Economics Foundation.