Harborough friends launch online food business after being disappointed in 'sub-par' supermarket produce

Friends disappointed in ‘sub-par’ supermarket produce are aiming to change the way people buy their food and have launched their own ‘farm to fork’ business based in Market Harborough.

Mathew Halford, who lives in the town, and friend Julian Ramkissoon opened Table & Kin at the end of last year.

The duo said they were inspired to start their own company after discussing the quality of supermarket produce, along with how far much of it had travelled.

They decided to launch their own online food business, where people across the county could buy fresh, independently produced food and drink to be delivered to their homes.

Mathew, a former headhunter, said: “The current food system is broken, with sub-par produce in supermarkets, that have an outrageous number of miles attached to each product, not to mention the long list of unnecessary ingredients included.

“We have some of the finest producers in the country across Leicestershire, but it is a practical impossibility for customers to shop at them all without having to travel far and wide.

“Many people don't even know these producers exist, which is why we conduct our own photography of their produce and premises for customers to know exactly what they're buying from us and who the people are that made it.

“It’s all about trust in a very broken food system.”

The pair opened their business at the cattle market at Melton Stockyard and collect products from suppliers on a daily basis as they are ordered online.

Mathew, age 38, added: “Unlike other outlets and farm shops, we hold no stock, ensuring there is no waste. We’re able to do this through our ‘click to harvest’ model, whereby the produce is only made once an order is placed by the customer.

“We guarantee that the produce they receive was harvested or produced the morning of their delivery day. We offer a vast array of products, including grass-fed, free-to-roam, high-welfare meat, all varieties of freshly baked items, eggs laid that day, milk harvested within the previous 12 hours, handmade chocolate and much more.”

The pair work with suppliers including ‘Simply Cider’, using Harborough apples, Wild & Furrow, which stocks oat milk, and bread is collected each morning from Hambleton Bakery.

So far orders are delivered from Wednesday to Saturday and while it is currently just covering Leicestershire, the duo hope to expand to other counties soon.

Mathew said: “Ultimately, we want to change the way people buy their food. We know people will people will typically shop at Lidl and Aldi for some of their shopping, Sainsbury and Tesco for other elements, but then there is a third tier of shopping for the best meat, cheese and all the produce we intend to be synonymous for.

“There is no one brand that people think of when it comes to the very best quality, from independent producers and we want this to be Table & Kin. To do this we are building a community and this takes time.”

Visit tableandkin.com for more information.