People have come to associate farm shops as selling owngrown and local foods, more often than not from an outlet situated on the farm itself. However, since the term ‘farm shop’ is not legally protected, any food shop may use it, and this has led to some disillusioned customers, and the perception that ‘farm shops’ can be expensive, gloried delis.

The National Farmers’ Retail and Markets’ Association (FARMA) is seeking to protect the term as one that should be used only for food shops with a direct link to a productive farm; a shop which prioritises its own homegrown, homemade food, then food from local farms and producers, followed by regional, British, and finally foods from oversees.

Many farm shops will go out of their way to reassure you of the provenance of their food, and clues such as fields of fresh vegetables growing outside, and own labels are usually good clues. You can also look out for the GOAL accreditation logo introduced in 2010 which a number of farm shops now use to support their claims.