New service to help London food buyers keep it local

On 10th October, London Food Link[1]  is launching the 'local food finder' - an online directory to help businesses in London locate food produced in and around the capital.  This new service is responding to the increasing number of enquiries London Food Link is getting from businesses looking for sustainable local produce, including restaurants such as Wahaca, outlets at the BBC London Clubs, and Sausage & Mash café.

Oliver Rowe,[2]  the BBC's Urban Chef, enthused: “If the local food finder had been around when I set up my restaurant it would have made my job ten times easier. Now, when ever I want to find a product that's close to London, I know where to look first.”

Thanks to this new directory, London buyers will now be able to find information on a huge range of local and sustainable producers, searching by criteria such as product type, location and delivery area. This is the first time that information on such a wide variety of producers local to London has been made available in one place.  London's businesses will now be able to search for products that are local to London without having to search one county at a time.

The launch of the Local Food Finder comes hot on the heels of British Food Fortnight,[3]  the biggest national celebration of the diverse and delicious range of food that Britain produces.  The fortnight encourages businesses and consumers to choose to buy British and buy local.

Ben Reynolds of London Food Link explained the business case for keeping it local: “One way for businesses to edge ahead of the competition is to use distinctive, local produce and communicate this to customers.  This is backed up by market research - both Mintel[4] and the Institute of Grocery Distribution[5]  report increasing consumer demand for seasonal, local and sustainable produce.  There is a gap in the London market which businesses could be filling.”

London Food Link runs Ethical Eats, a network of restaurants and caterers keen to improve their sustainability.  Ethical Eats offers its members practical support through regular events, with recent meetings tackling tricky issues such as sustainable seafood, waste and recycling.[6]  London Food Link is also a partner on the Greener Food project, which offers free environmental business support to London's restaurants and caterers. [7]

Go to http://www.localfoodfinder.org/ from 10th October onwards to try out the local food finder for yourself.

Press contact: Ben Reynolds, London Food Link project officer, tel (work): 0203 5596 777; (mobile): 07939 202711 or ben@sustainweb.org

Notes

There is no charge for producers and suppliers to be listed in the local food finder. 

To see the criteria that businesses must meet to be listed on the local food finder, see  https://www.sustainweb.org/page.php?id=344

Full contact details of businesses listed, including telephone numbers, email addresses and websites, will only be made available to London Food Link members. For details of how to join, call Ben Reynolds on 0203 5596 777 or email ben@sustainweb.org 

London Food Link is funded by Defra's Environment Action Fund and the European Regional Development Fund.

 

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1. London Food Link is part of the charity Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming. We exist to create a more sustainable food system for London, and run a number of networks for the food sector, including Ethical Eats, a network of restaurants and caterers who are interested in local and sustainable food.
2. Oliver Rowe is the owner and head chef of the restaurant Konstam, which buys over 90% of its produce from within the area covered by the London Underground.  Oliver's search for ingredients was followed by the BBC for their 2006 series The Urban Chef. Since then Oliver has made a number of other TV appearances on shows including Saturday Kitchen.
3. The sixth British Food Fortnight runs from 22nd September to 7th October 2007. For further media information and photography, please contact Alexia Robinson or Jennifer Meakin T: 020 7840 9292 or see www.britishfoodfortnight.co.uk/.
4. In 2006 Britons spent over £2 billion spent on "ethical foods", up 62% since 2002.  (Mintel report on Attitudes Towards Ethical Foods – see http://www.mintel.com/press_release.php?id=242166)
5. Local, seasonal food is seen by consumers as being fresher, tastier and more nutritious, and two thirds of consumers say they are trying to shop more seasonally. (Institute of Grocery Distribution, Retail and Foodservice Opportunities for Local Food, March 2006)
6. To find out more about Ethical Eats, please contact Charlotte Jarman, London Food Link, on 0203 5596 777 or charlotte@sustainweb.org.
7. The Greener Food project is funded by the London Development Agency and co-ordinated by London Sustainability Exchange.  For more information or to sign up for free support, contact Charlotte Jarman, London Food Link, on 0203 5596 777 or charlotte@sustainweb.org.