The online marketplace for those who care about food

The countryside used to be awash with inviting farm shops, bursting at the hinges with local meats and homegrown vegetables. It marked two very important features of Britain’s agrestic welfare: a health in the market for fresh produce and, most importantly, people’s awareness of traceability.

The overwhelming rise of the conglomerate chains, however, ripped a hole through this colourful scene. Suddenly foods could be purchased at a fraction of the price and people were easily swayed. Farm shops were badly affected, as were country pubs, feeling the pinch as their customers followed the billboards and unmissable prices like moths to a flame, regardless of the fact that they were fuelling the farm shops’ demise. Farmers were forced to sell their yields at tiny profit margins to cover their backs, dictated by competitive markets, and they had no other choice but to throw away their irregular-shaped veg. Game pies and potatoes fresh from the ground, still sprinkled in soil, no longer had a place on narrow country lanes and in rickety barns.

The saddest part of all this razzmatazz was that consumers no longer had any bearing on where their food came from. Yes the packet says Ethopia, Germany or Britain, but real traceability vanished like paper in the rain. The average member of public became oblivious. This lost culture was a huge inspiration to the founding of Caprera, an online marketplace where food lovers and artisan producers mix. Whether situated down a bumpy single-track lane in the wilds of Wales, or caught up in the rat race paying an extortionate London mortgage, Caprera brings the farm shop to your door.

Launched in 2014, Caprera seeks to connect people living and working in the countryside and city, enabling the man or woman who works tirelessly in the Shard to enjoy the hard labour of vineyard managers, beekeepers, cheese makers and farmers peppered throughout rural England. The name stems from an island off the coast of Sardinia in Italy, where Giuseppe Garibaldi – the famous Italian patriot and fighter – had spent the latter part of his life. Most people know of Giuseppe’s political accomplishments, but what few realise is that he was also an accomplished farmer, beekeeper and winemaker.

So, who is the perfect Caprera customer? “Someone who is curious and enjoys discovering new tastes and flavours,” says CEO Jeremy Hibbert-Garibaldi, the great-great-grandson of Giuseppe. “He or she is someone who eats intelligently, with an awareness of where the product came from, how the product came to be and the people behind it.”

And indeed it is hard not to be intrigued by the assortment of parochial produce featured on the website: oils and seasonings, cheeses, cereals, fudge and jams. And with each choice there is a story; the chance to meet the team behind its fruition, watch a video on how they do it and understand exactly what went into it. By the time you click ‘add to basket’ you feel truly connected to the producer, and this adds a huge amount of enjoyment to your selections.

When buying cider from Tesco we don’t stop to think about how the apples are picked. While spreading M&S honey on our toast we don’t consider where the bees are housed. But with Caprera this information is readily available. You are able to appreciate that cheese making is giving Brinkworth farm in Wiltshire a sustainable future, and that Claire Crosbie is up at 7.30am every morning, baking Victoria sponge cakes, carrot cakes and lemon drizzle, before packaging and labelling everything by hand. And she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“We select our producers based on certain criteria,” continues Jeremy, “such as how unique their products are. We also look for producers who use traditional recipes and methods; who offer products that are handmade from scratch, using high quality produce; and who steer clear of preservatives and other artificial nasties. Above all, we believe that our producers have to be extremely passionate about their products, because that way we know that they take pride in their work, and will be dedicated to creating products that are of a consistently high quality.”

Caprera’s aim is to inject a whole new outlook on food – “for us, food is never just food.” And as I sit here at my desk, tucking into my third square of Horsham Gingerbread, I wholeheartedly get it. I know the recipe, I’ve watched a video about how it was made and I could recognise the people who poured their passion into it if I was to pass them on a busy street tomorrow. Which is good, as I’d want to let them know how unhelpful they have been with my efforts to run off a little Christmas bulk.

As it was before the supermarket armada landed, these producers make the purchasing and eating of fresh produce an experience. The farm shop lives on!

For more information, and to make a bespoke hamper of fresh produce, visit Caprera.