Market celebrates 10 years of trading (From The Oxford Times)

Market celebrates 10 years of trading

12:00pm Tuesday 16th October 2012 in News

SHOPPERS flocked to the bumper anniversary of the Wolvercote farmers’ market as it celebrated 10 years of local trading in Oxford.

The popular market, which runs every Sunday with 15 regular stallholders, hosted 35 stalls on Sunday to celebrate its first decade of trading.

Founder and organiser Alex Towler said he was “delighted” to see the market still going strong after 10 years.

He said: “It’s fantastic. This was the first farmers’ market doing only local produce in the Oxford area, and so many other things have sprung up since then, so it’s great that it was the starting point.

“Obviously markets have suffered since 2008 as people looked at their budgets, but the fact it has kept going for that long just shows it’s a viable business which supports local producers.”

He said Oxford-based Countdown co-presenter Susie Dent and chef Sophie Grigson had been only too happy to support the landmark celebration.

He said: “Susie is a regular customer, and when we needed a keynote speaker, something like that, she was happy to help.

“We also had Sophie doing cooker demonstrations, which was really good.”

The market is held every Sunday from 10am to 1pm at Wolvercote Primary School and only features products grown within a 15-mile radius or produced within 30 miles.