Levels' Best

What is Levels' Best?

Levels Best It is a beacon for high quality and transparency and it identifies producers who are doing their level best for consumers.

When you buy Levels' Best you can be assured that this branded food or drink has been produced by people who practice conservation land management, animal welfare, rear native breeds of livestock and where feasible plant traditional varieties of plants and seeds within the 260 square miles (114 parishes) of the Somerset Levels and Moors.

The Somerset Levels and Moors is a wetland landscape defined by its willows and rhynes (ditches). It's ancient heritage underpins today's traditional, extensive farming methods that are sympathetic to the needs of wildlife - breeding, migrant and wading birds, meadow and rhyne flora, mammals such as otter and water vole and water shrew and not least drangonflies, grasshoppers and butterflies.

This website creates a virtuous circle linking you, the customer, to the farmers, growers and producers of Levels' Best products as well as providing information on where you can buy the food and drink along with the pubs, restaurants, tea rooms, cafés, B&B's and hotels that are serving Levels' Best - the Collective Trade Mark for food and drink produced to quality standards on Somerset Levels and Moors.

Announcements

CONSULTANCY available to farmers, growers and food producers within any defined landscape area in the UK who would like to set up their own BRAND. Our experience will save you time, avoid some of the problems we had, and ensure that you have a BRAND that provides traceability and a BRAND your customers can trust.
Contact Elaine 01458 241401.

RICHARD GUEST - Chef at the Castle Hotel, Taunton and Author of "Jam with Lamb" will be at the Levels' Best market on 27 September. This is the opening event of the South Somerset Food Festival. Richard will be autographing and selling his book as well as giving away recipe cards featuring 9 Levels' Best products - all of which will be on sale at the market. For more information call Elaine on 01458 241401.

OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE SPACE IN FOOD MANUFACTURING PREMISES.
One of the Levels' Best producers has approached me with an exciting opportunity to share the use of facilities in their food manufacturing premises. The business distributes its products throughout the South West and also nationally from its base in South Somerset. This proposition would ideally suit a food producer who needs to scale up their processes without the hassle and costs of independently finding and setting up their own production unit . The shared facilities cover 2000 square foot and includes shared use of an office, kitchen, storage and packing rooms. If needed, more space can be accommodated by building a further mezzanine. The premises would particularly suit an ambient food producer and the facilities have all the necessary planning and Environmental Health approvals.

Subject to discussions, the shared lease agreement could include the provision of gas, electric (including 3-phase), pest control, waste disposal contract and buildings insurance. There would be plenty of softer benefits as well by sharing contacts, distribution routes and the confidence that you can be away from the kitchen, say at a farmers market, in the knowledge that there would be someone back at base to sign for a delivery, take a phone message or even load a pallet onto a lorry!
If this is of interest to you, please Contact Elaine 01458 241401

CONGRATULATIONS TO SOMERSET ORCHARDS Ltd. who has reached the final of the 2008 Country Living/Waitrose/Farmers' Guardian MADE IN BRITAIN AWARDS with their cider apple juices. We now keep our fingers crossed until September when the winners will be announced at an event in Lndon. www.somersetorchards.co.uk.