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Wales Online
Wales Online
Kirsty Bosley & Nisha Mal

'I ditched the supermarket and went to a local farm shop with no rationing on fruit and veg'

Over the last few weeks, you might have seen supermarkets implement buying restrictions on fruit and vegetables. This is due to overseas supply issues and soaring energy costs.

One shopper decided to ditch the supermarket for a trip to her local farmhouse, where she found an abundance of fruit and vegetables, as well as everything else you'd find in a supermarket - except a lot of foods were locally sourced.

Kirsty Bosley went to Beckett's Farm Shop in Wythall, Birmingham. It sells fruits, veg, meats, cheeses, bread, cakes, pastries, nuts, wines and much more.

You can also pick up seasonal things such as Easter gifts, as well as treats for pets. When she stepped inside the shelves were bountiful and 'alive with colour'.

Sacks of oranges and apples were priced at £1, and pineapples were 99p eash. There was also a wide range of tomatoes to choose from too - unlike some of the supermarkets hit by shortages, Birmingham Live reports.

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And it wasn't just red ones either, Kirsty found yellow and red cherry toms for £8.99 a kilo, large vine tomatoes for £6.49 a kilo and classic loose tomatoes for £3.99 a kilo.

So far she'd picked up a vine of generously sized red cherry toms for £1.07, red seedless grapes for £1, and a tub of fancy, locally sourced cappuccino ice cream for £5.99.

For dinners, she bought a jar of pasta sauce for a pricey £3.49 and a pack of conchiglie pasta for £2.89. She also bought some ready meals, including a casserole, cottage pie and lasagne.

Lots of tomatoes on sale (Kirsty Bosley)

They were £5.99 each. Rather step and more expensive than M&S but at least the money goes to a local business.

She also bought a bottle of Pershore Press apple juice (£3.99), a tub of olives that she filled up herself from a vat (£4.99), six large free-range eggs (£2.49), a bag of baking potatoes (£1), and three peppers (£2.49). It was clear at this point that it wasn't going to be a cheap shop.

Kirsty then wandered over to the cheese counter, where she had ' immaculate service from a lady who greeted me as a friend'. She bought a wodge of 'XXX Mature' Fowlers cheddar for £4.48 and an irresistible chunk of mushroom and garlic cheese for £4.05.

She said: "I bought three fresh mini cottage bread rolls for £1.50 and ate them uncut with the cheese and grapes as though it was the middle ages. Amazing."

If you ever find yourself at Beckett's Farm Shop there's a large meat counter with plenty of options. Feast your eyes (and bellies) on big fat sausages for £9.99 per kilo, and 100g of honey roast ham for £1.69.

You can also buy streaky bacon at £9.99 a kilogram, gammon and back bacon at the same price, and minced beef for £10.98 a kilogram. Kirsty left the farm shop armed with plenty of good quality food.

The entrance to Beckett's Farm Shop (Kirsty Bosley)

Even though she was happy with everything she bought she couldn't help but feel cross. She wasn't cross at the farm, nor the producers whose food costs more than supermarket 'equivalents'.

At the end of the day, they too have to make a wage, pay bills and run a business. Kirsty said: "I was annoyed at the system that means it's so much more expensive to get items made on my doorstep than shipping in from further afield.

"Consider, for argument's sake, that I could have got a bag of conchiglie and a jar of Dolmio down Asda for £2. To be clear, I didn't want that, I wanted to support the farm, the local growers, the regional businesses. But just consider it.

"From April this year, the national minimum wage will be £10.42. That means, those on that pay grade would have to graft for more than half an hour to afford the simple bag of pasta and jar of sauce from their local farm shop. Is that right?!

"Why does it have to be so hard to support one another in our very own community?"

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