Eat well with town's new food guide

A FOOD guide telling people where to find great grub in Newton Abbot has been formally launched.

The Newton Abbot Guide to Local Food and Drink, the directory of local food producers and retailers in and around the market town, is now on sale.

Up to 40 local businesses are listed in the guide unveiled on Wednesday, November 2.

It is free of charge and was conceived, researched and written by the Newton Abbot Local Food Group, an informal partnership between Transition Newton Abbot, Newton Abbot Community Interest Company, Newton Abbot Town Council, Teignbridge District Council and Devon County Council.

Financial support for its design and print was given by Devon County Council.

Newton Abbot Community Interest Company chairman Lynn McElheron said: "This user-friendly directory celebrates Newton Abbot's tradition as a market town — a centre for agricultural and horticultural produce — and looks forward to strengthening the links between producers and consumers.

"Buying local produce encourages the economic vitality of the town and helps to secure its place as a food centre for South Devon."

Guide editor Ralph Mackridge said: "There's a wide range of excellent food and drink produced very close to Newton Abbot, but it's not always easy to for the busy shopper to know where to find it.

"Our guide is aimed to inspire shoppers to make local choices, but also to give them clear information about where to find the food and drink.

"The guide is designed to help local businesses too; producers can see which retailers are likely to want to stock their products and local retailers will be able to quickly see where they can source local products to put on their shelves."

Newton Abbot county and district Gordon Hook has supported the idea of a local food directory from its outset and said he was 'delighted' the guide had been produced. He said: "Newton Abbot has a great future as a centre for food and drink produced from the beautiful countryside around us.

"I'm delighted to support the guide as it will create opportunities for people to access excellent fresh food produced with a minimal impact on the environment and contribute to the commercial strength of the town.

"It is increasingly important to produce and consume local food. We must produce more of our own for environmental, health and economic reasons."

The guide is available from retailers in the town, the Tourist Information Centre and a website planned for the near future.