Special 'swap shop' proves a success at Sussex farm

People are swapping leftover garden apples for farm-produced cider.

The swap is the brainchild of Trenchmore Farm in Cowfold which, as well as producing Sussex Wagyu beef and pasture-raised poultry, also makes Silly Moo Cider.

The last few years has seen Trenchmore upgrade more than 60 tonnes of surplus garden fruit into cider, all thanks to people who swap their apples at the farm.The farm is looking for unsprayed, clean and ripe fruit to be pressed, fermented over the winter and then carefully blended to make Silly Moo Cider - the name coming from their herd of cattle who devour the apple pulp after pressing.

For every 8kg of apples given to them, the farm swaps one bottle of their award-winning farmhouse cider.

Last year's apple swap saw 11 tonnes of surplus apples brought into the yard in bags, buckets and wheelbarrows.

Cider maker Rachel Knowles said: "It would be much easier and cheaper to use imported apple concentrate but we want to honour the flavour of real and locally grown fruit, and so make our ciders from pure and fresh apple juice."

Have you read? Views sought on plans for 260 homes, shops and businesses on prime Horsham site

Horsham level crossing upgrades blamed for ‘ridiculously long’ traffic queues

The Silly Moo Cider team celebrate the natural variation that they get each year, depending on the terroir and different apples that are brought to the farm.Their swap will run every Saturday from September 24 to October 15, from 11am - 4pm, with the last day coinciding with slow cooked food from Brighton chef Sam Lambert and a barn dance in the farmyard to celebrate the end of the harvest.

See www.trenchmore.co.uk