Pull on your best festive jumper, get the mulled wine warming and tune into Local Food Britain’s brand new Christmas Market, our very first virtual food and drink market, from Saturday December 5 to Friday December 18.

Hard-working local producers from across the south east will be showcasing their festive treats and telling the story behind their businesses in their own words via a series of mini-podcasts.

“A virtual Christmas market might not be able to replicate all that one of our real events can offer, but it will bring the sights and sounds of the local food scene into the home and hopefully give people a `virtual’ taste of the delicious, quality food and drink which can be found on their doorstep,” says Tracy Carroll, founder of Local Food Britain and The Market Place.

Food lovers can browse five different festive zones and listen to short podcasts from more than 20 Local Food Britain members.

Our market includes everything for the festive table from artisan cheese and free-range meat to gourmet sweet treats, with plenty of refreshment from brewers, distillers and vineyards along the way.

There is also the chance to buy food and drink experiences – such as bread baking, cooking over fire, learning how to appreciate local wines and cheese and more - to enjoy now or to look forward to in 2021.

“This is a key time of year for many of our members, but with the cancellation of Christmas markets, they have embraced the idea of a virtual event with huge enthusiasm and I hope that the public will support them in equal measure. If successful, we will be working with even more of our members to create a bigger event for the spring,” says Tracy.

In the summer, Local Food Britain launched our Stay Loyal to Local campaign to encourage the public to support local producers, many of whom had been affected by the COVID pandemic.

Our new Christmas Market event will give those independents and family-run businesses the chance to showcase their seasonal products and further tell the story of how they have risen to the challenges of 2020.

• Local Food Britain’s Christmas Market will run 24-hours a day until Friday December 18 at christmasmarket.localfoodbritain.com.