Local Farm Shop Celebrates 10th Anniversary during Pandemic

Husband and wife team Toby and Sarah Murray celebrated the 10th anniversary of their farm shop, Beechwood Fine Foods, recently by sharing homemade birthday cake with the local community that they have come to call their friends.

The pair were planning on hosting a birthday party on Friday 12 June 2020, but sadly Covid-19 and social distancing made that impossible. Instead customers, friends, suppliers and colleagues, were invited to drop by the shop on Frogmore Street in Tring, to pick up a slice or two of Sarah’s stunning homemade birthday cake.

The farm shop has been able to stay open during the pandemic, continuing to offer a wide range of fresh produce from the deli counter as well as bread, eggs, fruit and vegetables, including Beechwood’s own range of jams, preserves and chutney. Additionally, Toby and Sarah introduced daily deliveries at the start of lockdown with many food staples and long-life products.

The doors first opened for Beechwood Fine Foods on the 11 June 2010 and rapidly established itself within the community. In addition to selling the best of local and British produce, homemade cakes and Fairtrade coffee, the shop has been the appointed town centre box office for the David Evans Court Theatre (previously known as Pendley Court Theatre) for many years and, most recently, for Tring Cinema.

‘Back in 2010, Sarah and I wanted to create an independent shop with a unique and friendly atmosphere for those people looking for more than just the off-the-shelf, pre-packaged and mass-produced products,’ said Toby. ‘We can guarantee the provenance of all of the products that we sell, whilst minimising our environmental footprint by sourcing locally wherever and whenever possible.’

Sarah commenced her own homemade range of homemade jams, preserves and chutneys ‘Beechwood Country Preserves’ in 2012 and has won many accolades including the prestigious Great Taste Awards. Her Old Doverhouse Chutney, Boozy Berry Jam, Victoria Plum Jam, Gooseberry and Elderflower Jam, Sarah’s Traditional Fruit Chutney, Apricot Jam, Cranberry and Redcurrant Sauce, Poachers Pickle, Dark and Chunky Marmalade, have all won gold stars and feature the ‘Great Taste’ logo.

Toby also manages all of the off-site activity, participating in a variety of outdoor events from Spring through to Autumn including the County Shows. He has been a judge at the World Cheese Awards many times and is currently Chairman of the local community charity, Tring Together.

Toby concluded, ‘It is thanks to the support and friendship of so many that Beechwoods is firmly on the map and here to stay.  We love what we do and those we share it with!

‘It is testament to the strength of community in Tring and the surrounds that through the trials and tribulations, through the highs and lows, we have continued to be able to provide a choice for customers, firmly rooted in our ethos of British and local.

‘We look forward to being of service to Tring and the surrounding villages for many years to come!’

During lockdown, customers can visit the shop weekdays from 8am to 3pm, Saturday 8.30am to 3pm and Sunday 10.30am to 12.30pm. Deliveries are offered Monday, Wednesday and Friday within Tring and the villages, with no minimum spend or delivery charge.

For more information, contact Toby and Sarah Murray of Beechwood Fine Foods at 42 Frogmore Street, Tring HP23 5AU. Telephone: 01442 828812 or email: hello@beechwoodfinefoods.com.