FAQs
Where can I buy your produce?
Our produce is sold at Frome Wholefoods in Cheap Street, and direct to customers via our box scheme. See our Products page for further details.
Is your produce certified organic?
No. We want to sell wholesome, locally grown vegetables at affordable prices, and the organic certification process is prohibitively expensive for a business of our size. We prefer in any case to build a relationship of trust with our customers locally. We do not use synthetic fertilisers or pesticides in our farming, and our farming practices generally meet and in some cases exceed organic standards. Please feel free to contact us for a visit or to discuss our methods.
How do you produce your eggs?
Our eggs come from our flock of thirty Black Rock hens, which free range at a low stocking density over permanent pasture under the watchful eye of Billy the cockerel. Sometimes we put a few of the hens briefly in arks for weed and pest control in the market garden. In addition to their foraged food, the hens are fed on organic layers pellets from the Organic Feed Company. We’re currently working to increase the amount of feed that we grow for the hens on site.
How can I get involved?
If you’d like to help our project, there are various ways to get involved. One of the best is to buy our produce! By doing so, you’re directly supporting responsible farming and local sustainability (find out more here about all things ecological and sustainable in Frome). You’re also promoting sustainability by keeping your money circulating in the local economy.
We’ve always strived to make our land in Vallis Vale available to the wider community, hosting various events such as children’s farm visits, permaculture training, and even on one occasion an eco-friendly wedding! Check our news page for the latest details.
We’re also registered hosts with HelpX and have attracted volunteers from as far afield as the USA and Hong Kong. We welcome queries from helpxers who might wish to volunteer with us.
What is permaculture?
Permaculture is a way of designing our surroundings by learning from nature about efficient and sustainable ways of using energy, materials and other resources so as to minimise the stress that nature and humanity place upon each other. There are many examples of permaculture design on our holding, but perhaps the most important one is Vallis Veg itself, in its aim to produce wholesome food as close as possible to where it will be eaten. You can find out more about permaculture, including permaculture training opportunities, from the Permaculture Association or by reading Permaculture Magazine. You might be interested in Chris’s articles about our Vallis Vale site in Permaculture Magazine Nos. 50 & 51 (you can find out more about Chris's writing here).
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