A WEST Devon farm shop has scooped gold in the prestigious Taste of the West awards. Lifton Strawberry Fields Farm Shop took the gold award for best Devon retail outlet. Owner of the business Jo Mounce was delighted with the award: ?It was exciting ? it?s really wonderful and we?re really proud. ?The judge came in without us knowing, judging all our farm produce, and gave us the gold award.? The farm shop has only been running for three years, but has an abundance of local produce on offer. Jo said: ?We make bread, sell vegetables and have a butchery, and the café which we put all our own produce through. ?We probably make 70 per cent or more of the produce we sell in the café ?. The award has been an excellent boost to the shop and all its staff. ?We are all very passionate about the shop; it?s been hard work but when you get an award like that, it really pays off. Despite the already sizeable business, employing 12 full-time staff, Jo believes the shop has not reached its full potential: ?We would like a bigger restaurant, so we don?t have to move people around. On Sundays we?re booked three times over. ?We want to be aware of older and disabled people. We have, sort of, up-front cooking and they can see what?s happening and smell it. ?We also want to make our own ice-cream from our soft fruit and with flavours from the real fruit ? that?s the future for us I feel.? Lifton Strawberry Fields Farm Shop now moves into the next round of the competition, against businesses across the South West. ?We?ve won it for the Devon and now we?re up against Gloucester which is another mystery judging round. But we?re very proud of how far we?ve got anyway,? said Jo.
