This guide compares five farm shops spread across Cambridgeshire: Burwash Larder at Barton, just west of Cambridge; Willow Grange Farm at Chittering, on the road between Cambridge and Ely; La Hogue Farm Shop at Chippenham, on the Suffolk side of the county near Newmarket; Johnsons of Old Hurst, north of St Ives in Huntingdonshire; and Moor Farm Shop at Newborough, north of Peterborough. Each is linked to a working farm. The useful question is which shop has the food you need, and where it was grown.
As a Londoner, I know it is not realistic for everyone to live on a farm. A farm shop, farmers' market or community garden can be part of a more direct food routine. Start with a reachable stop and a short list, rather than expecting to change everything at once.
Which farm shop or picking farm should you choose?
Where you live in Cambridgeshire will decide most of this. From Cambridge itself, Burwash Larder at Barton is the shortest trip and suits a weekday shop for cheese, fruit and vegetables and meat from the on-site butcher. Willow Grange at Chittering is an easy stop on the A10 towards Ely and is the one to choose for the farm’s own Hereford beef. La Hogue, off the A11 near Newmarket, is best for a butchery shop combined with a café breakfast. In the north and west, Johnsons of Old Hurst and Moor Farm at Newborough both sell meat reared on their own land.
Opening days differ, and three of the five are closed on Mondays, so check before a long drive. If you want home-produced food rather than a good range of local and British goods, ask at the counter which items on the shelves come from the farm itself.
Check the farm’s current crops, opening times and prices before travelling. Picking seasons vary, and a farm shop may sell produce without offering pick-your-own visits.
- Burwash Larder , Barton farm shop that began with asparagus
- Willow Grange Farm , Hereford beef on the Ely road
- La Hogue Farm Shop , Butchery and café near Newmarket
- Johnsons of Old Hurst , Fourth-generation Huntingdonshire livestock farm
- Moor Farm Shop , Home-reared meat north of Peterborough
Burwash Larder
Map and location
Burwash Manor, New Road, Barton, Cambridge, CB23 7EY. View Burwash Larder on the map.
Contact: 01223 264600.
From an asparagus honesty box to farm deli
Burwash Larder started more than 35 years ago as a roadside honesty box selling surplus asparagus and sweetcorn from the farm at Burwash Manor. The Radford family have owned and lived at Burwash Manor for many generations, and Mike Radford, who owns the shop, still manages the day-to-day running of the farm, which the shop describes as a working organic farm. Clare and Tinks run the shop. Barton sits just west of Cambridge, which makes the Larder the most convenient of these five shops for people in and around the city.
The shop and deli sell products from the farm alongside fresh fruit and vegetables, a cake counter, a lunch counter that changes, about 70 artisan cheeses, store-cupboard goods, drinks and household essentials. Leech and Sons, master butchers, run the butchery counter inside the deli and supply locally sourced meat. Barton Honey is among the local products stocked. A downloadable stock list on the website shows what is carried.
Visiting and buying
The Larder’s website gives opening hours of 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm on Saturday and 10am to 5pm on Sunday, so it is open every day. Asparagus, the crop the shop began with, is a late spring treat, so May and June are a good time to visit for it. Ask staff which produce on the day has come from Burwash Manor itself. Parking is not described on the website, so check when you call if you are bringing a larger vehicle.
Burwash Larder: website and opening hours.
Willow Grange Farm
Map and location
Willow Grange Farm, Ely Road, Chittering, Cambridge, CB25 9PL. View Willow Grange Farm on the map.
Contact: 01223 481 183.
A century-old family farm rearing Hereford cattle
Willow Grange has been run by the same family for more than 100 years, with a background in mixed and arable farming. Clara’s mum runs the farming side and lives in the farmhouse. After Clara and Errol married on the farm in 2019, the family added weddings, events and glamping, and in 2024 they opened a farm shop and café. It remains a working farm with free-range chickens, a herd of traditional Hereford cows and rare Oxford Sandy and Black pigs. Chittering is on the A10 between Cambridge and Ely, at the edge of the Fens.
The butchery sells the farm’s own grass-fed Hereford beef, raised for 25 to 30 months on grass, hay and haylage, and pork from its own pigs. Other meat is bought in and named: Blythburgh free-range pork from Suffolk, lamb from near Thetford and Sutton Hoo chicken. The deli stocks British cheese from Rowcliffe, Rennet and Rind and The Fine Cheese Co, with Scotch eggs and sausage rolls made daily. A weekly meat box can be pre-ordered.
Visiting and buying
The website gives opening hours for the café and farm shop of Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 4pm, with last café orders at 3pm. It is closed on Mondays outside the Christmas period. Separate festive hours are published for November to January, including Monday opening from mid-November, so check the opening-hours page before December visits. Dogs are welcome in the shop and café. Ask which cuts on the counter are from the farm’s own Herefords and pigs, as some meat is bought in.
Willow Grange Farm: website and opening hours.
La Hogue Farm Shop
Map and location
La Hogue Farm, Chippenham, near Newmarket, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB7 5PZ. View La Hogue Farm Shop on the map.
Contact: 01638 751128.
A farming family’s shop with its own flock
La Hogue is a family-owned farm shop and café run by Chris and Jo Reeks, who both come from farming families. Chris set up the La Hogue flock in 2010. It is made up of Kent Romney ewes, which graze heath and marshland on the Euston Estate near Bury St Edmunds, over the border in Suffolk. The shop is at La Hogue Farm in Chippenham, in East Cambridgeshire, close to the A11 and a few miles from Newmarket. It is the best placed of these five for anyone living in the south-east corner of the county.
The shop is known above all for its butchery section, which sells traditional cuts, speciality sausages and burgers, with meat traditionally reared and sourced from suppliers in Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk. Shelves carry fruit and vegetables, traditional cheeses, savoury pies, cured meats, cakes, ice cream and local jams and chutneys, with East Anglian producers such as Fen Farm Dairy and Adnams among the brands shown. The café serves cooked breakfasts, lunches and daily specials.
Visiting and buying
La Hogue’s website gives farm shop hours of 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday and 9.30am to 4pm on Sunday. The café opens 9am to 4pm Monday to Saturday and 9.30am to 3.30pm on Sunday, with hot food until 3pm, and table bookings can be made by phone. Dogs on leads are welcome in the garden and covered outdoor seating. The website does not say which meat comes from the La Hogue flock, so ask at the butchery counter.
La Hogue Farm Shop: website and opening hours.
Johnsons of Old Hurst
Map and location
Johnsons of Old Hurst, Church Farm, Church Street, Old Hurst, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, PE28 3AF. View Johnsons of Old Hurst on the map.
Contact: 01487 824658.
A former dairy farm rearing cattle, sheep and deer
The Johnson family has farmed at Old Hurst, north of St Ives, for more than a century, and the business is now run by the fourth generation, with Andy, Tracey, George and Edward named on its website. It began as a dairy farm. Today cattle and deer graze 320 acres of permanent pasture, more than 200 lambs are born each spring, and Kelly Bronze turkeys are reared from day-old poults for Christmas. The farm also keeps Highland cattle, has planted an orchard and makes its own hay. Over the years the family has added a butchery, tea room, steakhouse and a small zoo.
The farm shop describes itself as a traditional family-run shop with a butcher, selling home-reared meat alongside local dairy and British fruit and vegetables where possible. There are cheese, delicatessen and bakery counters, plus jams, spreads, sweets and gifts, and Johnson’s own gins and vodkas. Hampers can be made to order. A supplier list is published on the website, and the tea room sits on the same site.
Visiting and buying
The farm shop page gives opening hours of 9am to 6pm Tuesday to Friday, 9am to 4pm on Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sunday. Monday is not listed, and the website says the site opens six days a week. Dogs on leads are welcome in the central area of the farm shop, but not inside the shop or near the butcher’s counter. Wear sensible footwear if you plan to look round the farm, as it can get muddy. Ask which meat on the counter is from the Johnsons’ own animals.
Johnsons of Old Hurst: website and opening hours.
Moor Farm Shop
Map and location
Moor Farm, Decoy Road, Newborough, Peterborough PE6 7QE. View Moor Farm Shop on the map.
Contact: 01733 259645.
Arable and livestock farmers on the Fen edge
Moor Farm describes its family as farmers first, still working the land and looking after the animals. The farm covers around 600 acres, mainly in Newborough and Glinton, growing wheat, barley, peas, oilseed rape, sugar beet for British Sugar and mustard for Colman’s. It also keeps cattle, fed mainly on home-grown silage and home-milled barley, along with sheep, pigs and goats. The farm’s posts follow the year from lambing and calving in spring to the oilseed rape and barley harvests in summer. Newborough is in the Peterborough area, a few miles north of the city.
The butchery counter sells free-range, home-reared and locally sourced meat, and the shop says its meat is fully traceable, with animals born and fed on the farm. There is a deli with pork pies, pasties, cooked meats, Scotch eggs and cheese, plus homemade cakes and pies, fresh vegetables, locally grown pumpkins in season and pantry goods. A weekly meat pack can be ordered by phone, and the tearoom serves breakfast, lunch and cakes.
Visiting and buying
The shop’s website gives opening hours of 9am to 5pm Tuesday to Saturday and 10am to 3pm on Sunday. It is closed on Mondays and also on the day after a bank holiday Monday. The tearoom advises booking for lunchtimes and weekends, and groups of more than eight should pre-order. From the A16 Crowland bypass, follow signs to Newborough and turn right onto Decoy Road. Ask which meat on the counter has come from Moor Farm’s own herd and flock.
Moor Farm Shop: website and opening hours.
Knowing a farm shop you can return to is also one of the most practical ways to be ready for disruption. Read The Be Ready Campaign: A UK Guide to Stocking Your Home With Healthy, Local Food, and use the Be Ready Map to find more local food across the UK.
Plan your farm visit, produce, quantities and picking dates
Choose one or two farms or farm shops that fit your route. Write down what you want, how much you need and what you will do with it when you get home. If one crop is unavailable, decide whether to choose a different farm, change the meal or return another day.
- Confirm the crop, public opening and any booking requirement.
- Ask whether you can pick yourself or buy already picked.
- Check the price unit, payment method and containers.
- Ask about access, parking and the correct visitor entrance.
Farm shop and fruit-picking questions
Where can I buy local food in Cambridgeshire?
Good farm shops in Cambridgeshire include Burwash Larder at Barton near Cambridge, Willow Grange Farm at Chittering on the Ely road, La Hogue Farm Shop at Chippenham near Newmarket, Johnsons of Old Hurst near St Ives in Huntingdonshire, and Moor Farm Shop at Newborough near Peterborough.
Are all these farms in the same town?
No. Cambridgeshire covers a wide area, and this guide spreads its choices across the county. Each farm section gives its location so you can compare the journey before you set off.
Can I pick at every farm or market?
No. Farm shops and markets may sell ready-picked food without opening fields to visitors. Ask the individual business about picking access, the crop and any booking requirement.
Plan your farm shopping with My Shopping List and Harvest Checker
Open My Shopping List to record produce, quantities and estimated costs. Mark items as bought when you collect them and keep the plan for your next trip.
Use Harvest Checker after a grower gives you a picking window. Enter those dates and compare them with your visit date. The tool uses your entries; it does not fetch live availability from farms.
My Shopping List
Keep the produce you actually need in one place before you set off.
Use My Shopping ListHarvest Checker
Compare your visit with dates confirmed by the grower. This does not check live stock.
Use Harvest CheckerUse the tools with your My Ideal World account. Guest and free-account limits apply; paid members have unlimited tool access.
Explore more farm shops and picking farms in My Ideal World. Browse the Farm Shops app below or beside this article, then check the grower’s current crop and opening before visiting.
Sources
- Burwash Larder , About us
- Burwash Larder , Contact us
- Willow Grange Farm , The farm
- Willow Grange Farm , Butchers and deli
- Willow Grange Farm , Opening hours
- La Hogue Farm Shop , About
- La Hogue Farm Shop , Contact and find us
- Johnsons of Old Hurst , Our story
- Johnsons of Old Hurst , Contact
- Moor Farm Shop , On the farm
- Moor Farm Shop , Arable farmers
- Moor Farm Shop , Opening times and directions
Research reviewed 25 October 2026. Farm and visitor sources support the descriptions above. Historical information is identified where relevant; no firsthand visit, current stock check or certification is claimed.