Joyce seeks urgent assurances from Ceredigion Council about farmers market funding

Labour Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales has written to the Chief Executive of Ceredigion Council to seek urgent assurances from Ceredigion Council about a potential threat to funding for farmers’ markets across the county.

Joyce Watson has been campaigning for people to support local businesses in the run up to Christmas: to ‘make each shop a local shop’.

She has received support for her campaign from local producers, with an allegation that markets within Ceredigion (Aberaeron, Aberystwyth, and Lampeter) may be under threat of closure due to withdrawal of funding from Ceredigion County Council.

The traders say they are reliant on local farmers’ markets to sell their produce and say, ‘In the current political climate where we are all being urged to reduce food-miles and support local farmers and businesses doesn’t this fly in the face of current thinking, not to mention further penalising the already hard-hit farmers of this County?’

In her letter to Mr Owen Watkins OBE, Chief Executive of Ceredigion County Council and W Gwyn Jones, Council Director of Finance, Mrs Watson writes:

“As you may already be aware, in the run up to this Christmas, I have been urging people to support their local producers by considering the many benefits of shopping locally.

In the light of this campaign, I have received representations from small-scale producers who rely on local farmers markets to sell their produce, and who have informed me that Ceredigion County Council may withdraw its funding for these markets. Consequently, there is real concern about the future viability of the farmers markets in Aberaeron, Aberystwyth and Lampeter, and about the damaging implications this has for local producers and the local economy.

I am seeking urgent clarification of the council’s position on this issue, and I would greatly appreciate correspondence on this very important issue.”