FOOD + DRINK
When buying at local food retailers , not only are we putting money back into our local economy , we are also helping to save on mileage and cut emissions by buying food that has been produced and grown closer to home and kept in power-using storage facilities for less time , if at all . Not only this , many of these independent outlets are stringent on using less packaging and have less need to use it . And where could be better than The Garden of England when it comes to local , independent food retailers ?
Kent is no less than packed full of fantastic farm shops , wholefood shops and fresh delivery services that pride themselves on their sustainability practices . And don ’ t be under the impression they might not have what you need – choice of fresh vegetables is always in a rainbow array especially in these insideKENT farm shop favourites . Macknade in Faversham , a family run outlet which has come far since its first days as a roadside shop selling veggies , is now a rural shopping haven with hundreds of glorious goodies and deli delicacies to choose from . Like all of Kent ’ s farm shops , vegetables come with no packaging and recycled boxes can be used to transport them . But better than this are Macknade ’ s gorgeous tote bags , reusable for years , washable and actually very stylish ( especially here in Kent ).
Another farm shop favourite and delicatessen heaven is The Goods Shed in Canterbury , which again has every foodie item minus the plastic packaging . Like Macknade , fresh meat , cheese , fish , vegetables and more can be purchased here with the help of the experts that source , prepare and sell it . As well as being more environmentally friendly , when shopping at a local food retailer such as these , taste , flavour and freshness is guaranteed to be better – with the food having travelled less miles and stored for less time . Quality is also assured , as smaller batches of items can be easily assessed and looked over .
As well as farm shops , Kent is also home to smaller greengrocers and wholefood stores . One shining Kent example is J . Prentis Fruiterers & Greengrocers , a family-based greengrocers founded in 1887 and trading from their premises in Broadstairs since 1979 . J . Prentis also have shops in Deal , Westgate-on-Sea and have a firm commitment to Kent ’ s high streets , serving the local community with high quality fruit and vegetables from trusted local growers and suppliers . Again , at J . Prentis the premise of plastic packaging has been avoided wherever possible with sustainable paper bags , cardboard and wooden boxes being the preferred method of transportation for items .
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