Backing the Campaign

Sandy Duncan, general manager of Northumbria Larder, lead partner in the North-East England Food & Drink Group “Here in North-East England we have some wonderful and varied food and drink products, including seafood, meat, vegetables, cereal, bread, beer and, of course, fresh water. This is no accident, as we have a long coastline, giving access to the sea’s riches, a huge rural hinterland and a long tradition of food and drink production and preparation based on these natural advantages.

“But that same tradition can also work to our disadvantage in that we are so accustomed to having great produce that we tend to take it for granted.

“One of our jobs at the North-East England Food & Drink Group is to bang the drum for these producers both inside and outside the region, and The Journal is a great ally in doing that. We are delighted to be associated with its campaign to encourage everyone – suppliers, retailers, restaurants and the general public – to support the North-East’s great wealth of food and drink.”

Tony Binks, top North-East chef who runs the acclaimed Barrasford Arms near Hexham, Northumberland “I support The Journal campaign because I support local. Where I can, I get everything from my doorstep. Ninety per cent of my customers are connected in some way to agriculture or are auctioneers or livestock hauliers, which is why it is important to support local.”

Caroline Dickinson, Brocksbushes Farm Shop, Corbridge, Northumberland “What a good idea!

I am delighted to support The Journal Taste North-East England Campaign. At Brocksbushes we try to provide as much local food as possible. All the food we serve in our tea rooms is home-made, and all the cakes and pies etc we sell in the shop are either homemade or produced locally. We are always interested in listing as many local products as possible.

“Last summer we began our country markets on the third Friday of every month.

“This was an idea to provide a venue for local producers to sell their products direct to the customer.

“Our customers loved it, they felt it was a chance to buy real food from real people and they were able to talk to the people behind the products.”

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