In achieving this vision they strive not to prioritise either shoppers or producers. “We sit in between the producer and consumer in the food system, and we’re trying to not prioritise either of them, as they’re equally important,” says James. On the shopper side this means building personal relationships with shoppers through their service as well as their newsletter and communications. On the producer side this means paying over 80% of the retail price directly to the suppliers.

StroudCo works with a network of about 30 local suppliers offering a range of 300-400 products which fluctuates with the seasons. All producers are surveyed before being enabled to sell through the platform. Livestock producers must adhere to very high welfare standards. Packaging can be a tricky issue: “One of the main questions asked at the start when deciding on a supplier is packaging, and we will favour suppliers with minimal or compostable packaging. Cheese is particularly problematic, as packaging is needed to stop cheese from drying out. Salad is a problem too as it can’t be put in a paper bag,” says James. Beer and juices that come in a bottle are part of a re-use collection system. Products that they hold in stock to expand their range generally have more packaging, which highlights the waste-reducing benefits of short supply chains.

StroudCo are aware that the high standards to which they hold the produce on offer drive up the cost of production, pushing them out of many people’s price range. “No one complains that we are too expensive. People seem to accept the prices are for quality. However, we know we are more expensive than a supermarket.” As such, StroudCo aims to embed redistributive mechanisms within the business. For now, customers can donate to the food bank or a social enterprise offering surplus meals for people in the local area. In the last six months they’ve raised around £2000 for these organisations.

Despite the challenges, StroudCo are committed to the online food hub model as an important component of a re-localised food system, perhaps, in part, due to the important role they have played in pioneering it. At inception in 2008, they received funding to develop their website, before connecting with the Open Food Network in 2014. Nick Weir, one of the founders of StroudCo and a founder of the Open Food Network, was responsible for building links between the software of the two organisations. Nick says, “We realised that at StroudCo we were never going to make enough profit as a local, community business to fund the software development. When we built the StroudCo software, we intended it to be used across the UK to share costs. When we found the Open Food Network and realised there were groups in other countries striving to do the same thing, we could mutualise our efforts globally. This global collaboration to build tools for local food and short supply chains is at the heart of the Open Food Network.”

You can read more about StroudCo in the Open Food Network case study, here.