Croots Farm Shop staff undertake sponsored cycle ride for charity

Staff at Croots Farm Shop in Derbyshire will be taking to the saddle to raise cash for their adopted charity to mark the store’s fourth birthday.

But the team will be going nowhere, as the charity stunt will take place on exercise bikes in the shop near Duffield.

The staff have vowed to pedal 200 miles – the return distance to the seaside resort of Skegness, which is where Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre is located.

During 2012, Croots is supporting the children’s holiday centre, which provides 450 holiday places a year to disadvantaged youngsters from the county.

Last year, staff at the farm shop completed a sponsored walk up and down the drive to Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road, to celebrate the store’s third birthday – taking in more than 50 miles by doing the walk in relays. They raised more than £1,200 for Treats Children’s Charity.

This year the team will be getting on their bikes over the weekend of June 16th and 17th and are hoping once again that customers will get behind them and support their efforts.

They have set themselves a £1,000 target and have already begun collecting donations.

The shop will also be staging a pork pie festival over the weekend as part of the celebrations.

“Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre is our adopted charity of the year and, with the help of customers, we hope to raise a decent amount of money to help the charity to give holidays to disadvantaged youngsters from Derbyshire,” said Steve Croot, who runs Croots Farm Shop. “We’ve had great support from our customers since we opened in June 2008, and we like to show our appreciation by giving something back to the community.”

The shop is also raffling a giant 53-inch teddy bear in aid of Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre.

Donations for the sponsored event are being taken in the shop, or online at http://www.justgiving.com/Crootsfarmshop

Croots Farm Shop has raised thousands of pounds for various charities since opening four years ago.

As well as Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre, the store is also supporting the Shire Horse Society. Farnah House Farm has been home to Shire horses for many years.

Croots Farm Shop & Kitchen is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

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Food and Drink iNet supports Nottingham-based importer of Argan oil

One of the UK’s first importers of a ‘magical’ oil which has health and cosmetic benefits has been given a grant by the Food and Drink iNet to help expand the business.

Azzelarab El Alaoui, who runs Nottingham-based Alassala Olives Ltd, launched Argan oil to the UK market at the end of 2011.

The organic oil, which comes from a small and specific part of Morocco, has been dubbed the golden oil for its health, nutrition and beauty properties. Rich in essential vitamins, it is beneficial for skin and hair, and also as part of a healthy diet.

It’s been used extensively in the beauty industry but Alassala Olives Ltd is one of only a handful of food importers currently selling Argan oil in the UK’s food sector that has been naturally processed at source to retain its healthy properties.

Now the Food and Drink iNet has supported the business with a £3,900 grant which has helped Alassala Olives Ltd to launch an e-commerce website – meaning both consumer and trade customers can buy products directly online.

Azzelarab has just unveiled www.alassalaolives.co.uk and www.alassalabeauty.co.uk which he is using to promote and sell Argan oil - produced by women’s co-operatives in Morocco as part of the Marocavie project to protect the Berber tribes and the Argan Forest.

The websites will also help to promote the firm’s other products, including Moroccan olives and Moroccan Amlou paste – a product made with almonds and Argan oil, which is traditionally considered an aphrodisiac and which is often spread on bread or melba toast.

“The grant from the Food and Drink iNet has come at just the right time,” said Azzelarab, who match-funded the support with his own contribution. “It will mean a lot in terms of generating new sales, as people will be able to get hold of this niche product more easily. If things take off, I hope it may also lead to the creation of job opportunities.”

Since launching last year, Azzelarab has secured around 40 outlets that are now selling or using Argan oil. Trade customers include retailers, pharmacies and restaurants in London – in areas such as Knightsbridge and Kensington – and in Bristol and Nottingham.

Argan oil has a range of proven benefits. It helps to reduce wrinkles and repair brittle hair; it relieves the symptoms of eczema and dry psoriasis, even in infants; it contains antioxidant vitamin E, which is good for regulating the heart and other organs; it helps reducing the risk of obesity; it contains sterols, which block cholesterol absorption from intestines and are anti-cancerous; it’s helpful in rheumatic disease and arthritis.

Alassala Organic Argan Oil is made from the nuts of the Argan tree, which is found only in the south west part of Morocco. The nuts are cracked by hand and the seed extracted and ground into paste oil. It is traditionally made by local Berber women who work in cooperatives and it can take ten to 12 hours to produce one litre of oil.

Through fair trade, Argan oil provides the Berber women with a dependable source of income, a means of improving their financial independence and it opens better access to health care and education.

Richard Worrall, director of the Food and Drink iNet, said: “This project is very important to provide new routes to market and increase turnover of this fledgling business with their products. “The Food and Drink iNet supports innovation for food and drink firms in the East Midlands, and this project fits our health and lifestyle theme perfectly. We are also keen to see the ethical aspect of supporting Berber communities.”

The £3,900 grant will support the firm with new product development, introduction to new markets, marketing and information communications technology.

Part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), The Food and Drink iNet co-ordinates innovation support for businesses, universities and individuals working in the food and drink sector in the East Midlands.

It has developed an effective network to encourage the collaboration of academic expertise and knowledge, and local food and drink business innovation needs. It aims to build on the tradition of innovation in the food and drink industry in the region by helping to create opportunities to develop knowledge and skills, and to help research, develop and implement new products, markets, services and processes.

The Food and Drink iNet is managed by a consortium, led by The Food and Drink Forum and including Nottingham Trent University, The University of Lincoln, and The University of Nottingham. It is based at Southglade Food Park, Nottingham, with advisors covering the East Midlands region.

For more information about the iNet and grant eligibility visit www.foodanddrink-inet.org.uk

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Focus Consultants sponsors charity golf day

Focus Consultants has handed over £180 to Lincolnshire charity the Butterfly Hospice after organising a charity golf day for clients, associates and staff.

The event, at Belton Park Golf Club in the grounds of Belton House near Grantham, was organised by Trevor Newton, partner at Focus Consultants’ Lincolnshire offices.

He presented the £180 proceeds of a raffle held on the day to Jane Parsons from the Butterfly Hospice, which is based in Boston.

Situated behind Pilgrim Hospital, the hospice was opened by HRH the Princess Royal last year and has been furnished and equipped thanks to the support and generosity of local communities and businesses throughout south east Lincolnshire.

It is the first of its kind in the area to provide in-patient beds for people with a life-limiting illness and provides bedrooms with en-suite wet rooms, a large lounge, a kitchen, offices and treatment rooms.

"We are very pleased that Focus Consultants has been able to support the Butterfly Hospice, which is doing such great work in Lincolnshire,” said Trevor. “As a company, we like to give something to our local community.”

Focus Consultants, with offices at Endeavour Park, Boston, Aubourn, Lincoln, Phoenix Business Park, Nottingham, Princess Road East, Leicester, and Holborn, London, specialises in creative approaches to securing funding packages and delivering high quality projects across the UK.

Since its creation in 1994, Focus has secured over £800 million of grant assistance, and delivered more than £1 billion of projects and programmes - including enterprise support, innovation, culture, health, regeneration, affordable homes and energy carbon sustainability projects.

The company is a leading edge multi-disciplinary funding, project management and surveying consultancy.

www.focus-consultants.co.uk

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Luke Evans Bakery raises cash for charity during National Doughnut Week

Derbyshire baker Luke Evans Bakery has donated £88 to the Children’s Trust after taking part in National Doughnut Week.

The bakery, based at Riddings near Alfreton, gave 10p for every doughnut sold at its shop during the special week, and also added its own donation to the good cause.

“We were pleased to take part in National Doughnut Week and do our bit for charity,” said managing director David Yates. “It’s an event we’ve supported for some time now.”

National Doughnut Week has raised more than £735,000 for the Children’s Trust since it was first launched – and this year organisers hope to collect a further £30,000 for the good cause.

Luke Evans Bakery was one of many participating bakers across the UK helping to raise money for the Children’s Trust, which is a national charity that provides care, education and therapy for children with multiple disabilities and complex health needs.

www.lukeevans.co.uk

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Shanti Yoga School in Nottinghamshire hosts world-renowned mantra master

A world-renowned mystic and mantra master will be running a two-day workshop at the Nottinghamshire-based Shanti Yoga School in July.

Muz Murray, who has been studying mantra for 40 years, will be sharing his knowledge and expertise at the yoga school on July 21st and 22nd.

Based at the Eco Centre at Home Farm, Screveton near Bingham, Shanti Yoga School offers yoga teacher training and continuous professional development courses.

“This is a rare opportunity to study with one of the heart masters of mantric knowledge and Advaita Vedanta in the West,” said Liz Thomas, who runs Shanti Yoga School. “Muz will be offering an introduction to the spiritual, psychological and practical aspects of mantra, plus pranayama, the energisation of the physical body with the mantric alphabet, mantra chant practice and satsang.”

During the 1960s, Muz became the founder of a mystical community in London, known as Gandalf’s Garden, which produced a world-distributed magazine of the same name. The magazine and work of the community became a spiritual inspiration to many thousands in Britain and on the Continent during the flower-power era of the late Sixties and early Seventies.

Now in his early 70s, Muz lives in France and tours the world giving workshops.

For further details or to book a place at the event, which costs £90 per person, please contact Carole Pearson on 0116 2711220 or 07742613703 or carolepearson@fsmail.net.

For further details about Shanti Yoga School, which has trained dozens of yoga teachers in Hatha Yoga since it was launched in 2003 and is accredited by Yoga Alliance as an approved teacher training school, visit www.shantiyogaschool.co.uk

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Tourism apps Pocket Places now contain even more things to see and do

Personal tour guide mobile phone app Pocket Places has boosted the content of its apps for some of the UK’s key tourist destinations ahead of the summer of celebrations.

Guided walks, picture puzzles, extra tourist attractions, quiz questions and improved offline Ordnance Survey mapping are just some of the additions added to a number of apps in its Pocket Places series.

The apps feature audio-commentary about an area’s history, information about local tourist attractions, as well as suggested places to visit.

Three apps have just been updated with new information - Pocket Places Cornwall, Pocket Places Lake District, and Pocket Places Norfolk.

The additional content for Pocket Places Lake District includes a series of ten guided walks, suitable for all the family.

Starting from key tourist spots in the Lake District, such as Ambleside and Windermere, each walk can be completed within two or three hours.

Pocket Places Cornwall now includes details of the top ten beaches in the county.

In addition, picture puzzles have been added to both Pocket Places Lake District and Pocket Places Cornwall.

Meanwhile, Pocket Places Norfolk now has details of even more places to visit in the county with a new section on top attractions, including gardens, historic houses and heritage railways.

With information available in the palm of the hand, the Pocket Places apps are the perfect personal tour guide to some of the UK’s most popular tourist areas. More than 100,000 downloads have been made already.

Once downloaded, the app can be used wherever and whenever you like as it does not require an internet connection.

Download the Pocket Places apps for iPhones from iTunes for 69p. www.pocketplaces.co.uk

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Pretty in pink for Holdsworth Chocolates

Handmade chocolate maker Holdsworth Chocolates has unveiled its new pink theobroma cube gift box of chocolates. Filled with a delicious selection of mouth-watering truffles, pralines and creams, the attractive pink box complements the blue theobroma cube already on offer in the Holdsworth range. Each of the 16 chocolates in the box has been carefully selected by Holdsworth’s skilled chocolatiers. They include pink champagne explosion, orange mimosa and hazelnut praline. Every one of the chocolates is handmade, hand-finished and hand-packed by the team based in the heart of the Derbyshire Peak District at Bakewell. Named after the theobroma tree, which produces the cacoa beans that are the main ingredient in chocolate, the cube brings a feminine touch to the Holdsworth range, which includes gift boxes, ballotins and assortments. The recommended retail price for the 240g theobroma cube, which features milk, plain and white chocolates, is £14.95. Holdsworth Chocolates was created by Barbara Holdsworth in 1988. Spurred on by a passionate belief in making chocolates by hand, she developed her own recipes. Barbara handed over to daughter Genevieve in 2002. Stockists of Holdsworth Chocolates include Harrods, Selfridges, Waitrose, Chatsworth House shop and Chatsworth Farm Shop and Ibbotsons of Ashford. Holdsworth Chocolates is based in Station Road, Bakewell, Derbyshire, DE45 1GE. Telephone 01629 813573. E-mail info@holdsworthchocolates.co.uk or visit the website www.holdsworthchocolates.co.uk Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk