Chiswick's Sarah Cruz on her 'rather good idea' of a glut trading scheme

Too many vegetables? Too many pears or apples?
"Please don’t let your glut go to waste," says Sarah Cruz founder of Chiswick Local Produce who founded a trading scheme which sells surplus produce or ‘glut’ to residents and restaurants who are really keen to buy local.

"In June 2008 I was organising the plant stall for a school summer fair when I got a flyer through my door. My bee-keeping neighbour, Brian Whitley was selling his surplus local honey. I had my own glut of courgettes and it occurred to me I could sell both honey and courgettes at the fair." explains Sarah.

"Being a graphic designer, it was easy for me to go one step further and do labels for the honey and a logo. The response to 'Chiswick local produce' at the fair was so overwhelming that I realised I was on to a rather good idea.

"I was astonished to find that there is nothing like this operating in the UK. My hope is that other boroughs adopt a scheme for taking in gluts. In the same way that we automatically take unwanted clothes to a charity shop, we should all have local outlets for gluts. Local residents and restaurants are really keen to source local produce, so there is no shortage of demand. At the moment it is run by a few volunteers. What we really need is more help and more produce! I would like to get the message out to allotment holders and everybody with fruit tree in back garden!"

How The Glut Trading Scheme Works

If you have ripe and ready produce and would like to sell direct to local restaurants, bakers or jam makers contact Sarah Cruz on 07771-786-411.

OR

you can trade directly! Chiswick Local Produce has an agreement with Andreas Georghiou on Turnham Green Terrace. Take your glut of good quality produce to the shop and he will buy it from you at the wholesale rate.

Chiswick Local Produce has been running for a year as a not for profit community project. They return 100% of the sale price back to the grower because they want to encourage more local people to grow their own and make good use of their surplus.

If you have any exotic or 'expensive' crops (for example artichoke, figs, beetroot, fennel, wild mushrooms, elderberries, mulberries) and would like to sell direct to a restaurant at retail prices then contact Sarah on 07771-768-411.

October 7, 2009