Organic food fans open shop in Longridge

An enterprising Lancashire family has made the bold decision to open a new business in lockdown.

There were queues outside the door this morning at Bowland Organics.

Charmaine McKee, who is running the Longridge based business with her son, is sharing her passion for organic food and believes there is a gap in the market.

Charmaine said she changed her diet to an organic one some four or five years ago and feels better for it.

But for many years she and her husband had had to travel to west Lancashire to purchase organic fruit, vegetables and other supplies each week.

She said her interest in organic foods started when her husband decided he did not want to eat foods treated with pesticides. She followed his example and said: “It’s better for you and he feels healthier for it and I do. We started looking into things.”

She said they were surprised by what they learned about food additives and ingredients and were determined to see what they could do to help themselves health wise by being more discerning about what they eat.

Charmaine was pleased that her son too began to take an interest in his diet and opted to eat organic too.

The thought of opening a shop kept returning and conversations with friends and family underlined the demand for such a business. They saw the opportunity when shop premises became vacant in Berry Lane, Longridge.

Speaking just hours after opening, she said: “There was a gap in the market. Everyone keeps saying we need this round here.”

The shop is stocking organic fruit and vegetables, organic cheeses, sourdough bread, Suma tinned products, non dairy and vegan foods including desserts. They also plan to start a vegetable box service.

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