High House Fruit Farm, in Sudbourne, has taken advantage of a Rural Enterprise Scheme grant from Defra to provide fresh, seasonal produce for neighbouring towns and villages.

The grant has helped fund an on-farm refrigerated store, purchase of a delivery van, renovating the farm shop and promoting the business. It is hoped there will also be benefits for the local economy by generating business and creating seasonal jobs.

Farmer Piers Pool said of the Local Food for Local People project: 'We now have the nucleus of a viable and sustainable business for the future. There is growing awareness and demand for our products, such as apples, asparagus, loganberries, blackberries, redcurrants and gooseberries, and we are confident that this will continue.

'We now have the infrastructure in place to build on our existing business and we will have cherries, plums and blackcurrants available for the first time this summer.

'Produce is available at the farm gate and through outlets within a 12-mile radius of the farm, with information available on our website. We do not believe that any of this would have been possible without the support provided from Defra.' David Sillett, senior advisor with Defra's Rural Development Service, added: 'The Rural Enterprise Scheme is a wide-ranging scheme that aims to help rural economies and communities by supporting new business opportunities.

'There is no maximum or minimum project size under the scheme, and High House Fruit Farm is a good example of a relatively small project that has developed very successfully. It's the kind of initiative we are very pleased to support, because it brings benefits not just to the farmer, who is adding value to his produce, but to consumers who have fresh local produce available on their doorstep.' Defra is currently running a series of clinics in Suffolk to provide advice for anyone wishing to make an application for funding. The next one will be at Defra's offices in Bury St Edmunds on April 23.