When you’re as passionate about local food as I am, there’s nothing like a good natter with a like-minded individual. The first time I met fellow foodie Tim McEntire was quite by chance. I was battling along Dorking High Street in a January blizzard when I came across Tim, looking frozen, standing behind a market stall which I could see was called Food Float. I stopped to say hello and find out more. We have since met on several occasions and I was delighted in April when the Chairman of Mole Valley District Council announced that Food Float had won her Culinary Award.
A pioneering community project largely run and supported by volunteers, Food Float appears in Dorking twice a week. Most of the stock comes from within ten miles of the town, so you can expect to find eggs from Hookwood, fruit and vegetables from Godalming, bread from Westcott and preserves from Newdigate, to name but a few. They have even collaborated with a sausage maker to develop their own top-selling Food Float banger, as well as an “own recipe” honey and oat biscuit for cheese.
The project is a great success – for instance, last year they sold 60,000 eggs and 15,000 loaves of bread. The stall has become a meeting place, too. Food-lovers congregate there, have a chat and enjoy discovering the latest from the local harvest.
Seasonality is the keyword. You won’t find lettuces and tomatoes in February, but the cabbages are fit for a king.
“People are constantly telling us how good everything tastes,” says Tim, one of two of the project’s part-time employees (he supplements his income by working as a gardener).
Respectful of the fine line many local producers tread when it comes to making a living out of their products, Food Float – a not for profit community interest company, or CIC for short - takes care not to put pressure on suppliers to cut prices.
“They tell us what margins they need, and we take a view on whether the item will sell on our stall,” says Tim. “What we avoid is going back and asking them to reduce their margins.”
This has to be good news for hard working – and often cash-strapped – small business owners, who sometimes struggle to make a living.
As well as making its twice-weekly appearance in Dorking High Street, Food Float pops up at food festivals and can even be found on occasions at Box Hill visitor centre. It also runs a home delivery and veg box scheme and supplies restaurants and cafes.
Tags: Food Float
Tim McEntire
Dorking Food Float
