Prince urges supermarkets to buy British (From Western Telegraph)

Prince urges supermarkets to buy British

Pembrokeshire Womens Farming Union and Prince Charles share a common passion for encouraging support of local food producers.

When they met at the recent opening reception of the WFU Spring Conference in Cirencester this subject dominated the conversation. He was keen to discuss the local sourcing of produce, in particular regional abattoirs similar to the one planned at Haverfordwest.

Pembrokeshire WFU member Helen Scourfield says they were impressed by his understanding of the agricultural crisis and his genuine concern for the plight of rural communities.

He urged supermarkets and retailers to buy British produce as he believes this is the one way to make farming profitable again, says Helen.

The Prince urged small farmers to concentrate on the quality of their produce rather than the quantity. He believes co-operation among farmers is vital to their long-term survival.

With prices for grain and milk so low and with so many farmers carrying debt on their low incomes, collaboration must surely be a way to preserve your farms, he told the conference.

If you do not co-operate, I fear you will be picked off one by one by the giant organisations. The theme of the conference was Local Sourcing and on the final day the Pembrokeshire delegation visited the new dairy Prince Charles had installed at Home Farm, Tetbury, to comply with organic requirements. The conference was also attended by members of the Ceredigion WFU branch.