Farndon Fields Farm Shop

Spacious aisles heave under fresh fruit and veg grown in fields half a mile away, a butchery section tempts with locally reared meat, next to a fridge packed with local cheeses. Round the corner, the bakery area showcases loaves and muffins made from locally milled flours, and the freezers are full of award-winning ready meals.

That description gives you a small taste of multi-award-winning Farndon Fields Farm Shop, which is undoubtedly one of the UK’s finest farm shops.

A genuine farm shop in a time when the term is often misused, Farndon Fields started life in 1983 when owners Kevin and Milly Stokes opened a small shop on their 250-acre fruit and vegetable farm.

By 1998 they had added a purpose-built farm shop extension, a dairy section, and a locally stocked bakery. Five years later a butchery, café, deli counter and plant centre had been introduced.

On the farm, over 40 types of fruit and vegetables are grown. “Farming is our passion and we’re proud to sell what we grow,” says Kevin, who is a previous Farmers Weekly Local Food Farmer of the Year.

“We aim to give people a really personal shopping experience,” says Milly. In an age of plastic shopping malls, they certainly succeed in that.