Farm open day at Croots Farm Shop

Derbyshire farm shop Croots will be throwing open the gates to the farm as part of a nationwide event to showcase British farming.

Farnah House Farm, based off Wirksworth Road near Duffield, will be open on Saturday 4th June, with a host of events lined up to show the public how a working farm operates. With free admission, it will feature the chance to ‘meet the famer’ and find out more about what goes on during a day in the life of a farm. There will also be the opportunity to see lambs and learn more about lambing, watch sheep shearing demonstrations, and get up close to Shire horses and their foals. Visitors can also go on a farm trail, chat to Nero the pony, meet some of the suppliers of Croots Farm Shop and take part in displays and games.

The event on 4th June runs from 11am to 3.30pm and is organised by Steve Croot and his wife Kay, who run the farm shop, and Kay’s parents Jim and Sue Yates, who have farmed Farnah House Farm for 48 years. It coincides with Open Farm School Days, being held throughout June, and is being held the day before Open Farm Sunday, when farmers across Britain showcase British farming and food. “I grew up at Farnah House Farm and now work here at Croots Farm Shop, and this event is a great opportunity for families and children to find out more about how farms work and where their food comes from,” said Kay Croot. “My family have been farmers for generations, and my parents moved here in 1968 and have been farming here ever since. Croots Farm Shop opened almost eight years ago and is the latest chapter in the history of the farm, with some of the key aims being to support small, quality food and drink producers and to supply meat that has been reared on the farm. “We’re excited to be able to invite visitors to find out more about British farming and hope lots of people will join us at our open day event.”

A BBQ with hot beef rolls, hot dogs and burgers will be running during the day, serving up some of the award-winning meat products that Croots is famous for. The open farm events are spearheaded by LEAF (Linking Environment And Farming), and since the first event in 2006, more than 1,000 farmers across the UK have opened their gates and welcomed people onto their farm for one day a year – providing a fantastic opportunity for everyone to discover at firsthand what it means to be a farmer and the work they do producing food and managing the countryside.

Farnah House Farm is a 72-acre livestock farm, where sheep and cattle are raised. Jim and Sue also breed Shire horses and are one of the Shire world’s longest established families.

Croots Farm Shop launched in June 2008, and is well known in Derbyshire for its home-produced meat products. It sells items from more than 40 producers within a 50-mile radius of the shop, and has a wide-ranging deli, as well as a gift and homewares section, plus a popular café. Many items, such as pies and quiches, are baked on the premises. Since launching, Croots has won scores of awards including a number of Great Taste Awards, which are the ‘Oscars’ of the fine food world, and was also shortlisted in the Observer Food Awards.

For more information, visit www.croots.co.uk Find Croots on Twitter @crootsfarm_shop or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Croots-Farm-Shop-127012538821/

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