Local Food Award

REDHILL FARM FREE RANGE PORK

DECLARED REGIONAL CHAMPION OF THE BRITISH COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE AWARDS

Tastes of Lincolnshire member, Redhill Farm Free Range Pork based near Gainsborough in Lincolnshire, has won the East of England regional Local Food Award in the annual Countryside Alliance Awards.

Redhill Farm will now compete with 11 other regional champions from England, Scotland and Wales for the UK Countryside Alliance Local Food Award and will attend a prestigious ceremony at the House of Lords on 30th March where the national winners will be announced.

The Countryside Alliance awards celebrate rural life, business, heritage and produce. Entrants are first nominated by members of the public and then judged on their answers to in-depth questions about their business’ role in their community. Community values and commitment to product or skill are the foundations of what the judges are looking for. Britain is split into 12 geographical regions for the purposes of this competition.

“The East of England region covers Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Essex, and Hertfordshire so we are absolutely amazed and thrilled to have been selected as the winner of the Local Food Award out of all the other entrants throughout such a vast region,” comments Redhill Farm Managing Director, Jane Tomlinson.

The Countryside Alliance East of England Regional Director, Sarah Taylor, visited Redhill Farm as part of the judging process and comments, "Jane & Terry Tomlinson at Redhill Farm are incredibly passionate about their business and true ambassadors for local produce. The knowledge that Jane and Terry have is exceptional and this is evident by the amount of people who queue for their produce at Farmer's Markets. There is also a farm shop at Redhill Farm which is very popular with the local restaurant trade, yet all business has come to Jane and Terry through word of mouth.

Overall, Redhill Farm is a pioneer in the local food industry, their products are second to none and their dedication and determination to help people buy and enjoy local food really does come across - an outstanding business which richly deserves this award.”

First conceived of in 2005, the awards were borne of a need to support and promote rural communities. The Countryside Alliance had long felt the "doom and gloom" tales of rural decline, while true to an extent, did not accurately reflect the spirit of rural people and the efforts of thousands to keep their communities alive.

The national winners will be chosen by a panel which is chaired by the Countryside Alliance Chief Executive and which also includes TV cook Clarissa Dickson Wright, the Daily Telegraph commentator Philip Johnston, Farmers Guardian Editor Emma Penny and Chris Dewbury of Rural Hero supporters, Hunter Boot.

For further information on Redhill Farm Free Range Pork Ltd please visit http://www.redhillfarm.com/ t. 01427 628270