The Cream of Cornish Produce

I confess I am not a great fan of Supermarkets – and as for Mrs C - who will happily tell you where to buy handbags or shoes but sadly not sausages. So this week I want to highlight some of my favourite, local food suppliers who we should all be actively supporting in and around the Falmouth area.

When it comes to buying meat I will never think of going to a supermarket. So when Ralph Michell came out of retirement earlier this year to re-open his farm butchers just outside Truro, I breathed a sigh of relief. Besides, there are not many butchers you can visit where you are greeted outside by two colourful Peacocks. Higher Callenick Farm Butchers is a 20 minute drive from Falmouth but I can assure you its well worth making the effort because the meat is as fresh as it can be. Ralph is also very proud of his homemade sausages that he makes on the premises, so please take note Mrs C...!

Calenick Farm Butchers does what it says on the tin, farming most of their own animals and producing a huge array of fresh beef, pork and lamb. Their chicken is the best I’ve tasted anywhere in the world and makes supermarket chicken taste like rubber. So make the drive and enjoy.

The Argal Farm Shop in Falmouth is another of my firm favourites. The shop is run by Stacey Williamson and it’s a real Aladdin’s cave of foodie treats. Mrs C and I affectionately refer to Stacey as ‘Mrs Carrot’ - which has nothing to do with the colour of her hair; it's simply because her locally grown carrots actually taste of carrots and not water. During the summer I regularly shop there for their lovely heritage tomatoes. Those plump red, yellow and orange ones that are so unlike a supermarket tomato and well worth the small extra cost. There is also a vast array of fresh herbs and spices together with those extra treats that you just can’t resist adding to your basket. What I like about Stacey is that she is a huge supporter of local Cornish produce including Penryn based Black Bee honey, and fresh salad leaves from the local Chyan Community. If only Stacey’s Aladdin’s cave were bigger – it would be the best ‘local’ ‘supermarket’ in Falmouth.

It’s a sad fact we now live in a Supermarket society – and shopping in them quickly becomes a bad habit. But that shouldn’t mean we have to buy ALL our food in a supermarket. The Cornish people are very good at supporting their home-grown producers and we, as consumers, should do our utmost to ensure our small hard-working independent shops survive. So please, where possible, take the opportunity to change your shopping habits and support our local food shops.

Higher Calenick Farm - Kea, Truro, TR3 6AH - 01872 278939

Argal Farm Shop - Hillhead Road Falmouth TR11 5PE - 01326 372737

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