The boss of one of the UK’s oldest farm shops has hit out at the big supermarket chains for being too expensive and not providing consumers with enough good quality produce from their region.

Simon Hirst, of Hinchliffe's Farm Shop in Yorkshire, said consumers were being left with "little choice" over the food they buy because of the "stranglehold" of the supermarket giants on the food chain.

He said the food available in supermarkets was "poor quality, poorly sourced and, particularly in the case of the meat products, over-priced".

“The supermarkets would have us believe they are cheaper than the farm shops and farmers’ markets but, in many cases, this simply isn’t true," he said.

“Supermarkets may sell ‘value’ meat but really it has no value. Our meat is hand reared on the farm, and we butcher on site too so we know exactly what has gone in to the meat from plot to plate.

"Because there’s no middle man and zero food miles we can offer it at a cheaper price than the
supermarkets but still ensure top quality.”

He added that buying locally sourced produce would give customers "the confidence that what they buy will be top notch - and from their region - injecting money back into their local communities, and not into the pockets of the supermarket bosses".

“Multinationals and chains are stripping away the unique character of our high street – and our countryside – so let’s make a stand before we all end up living in identikit towns and cities," he said.