What a search for camembert has to do with your FarmCamps holiday
Sometimes a good idea starts on holiday. That is exactly what happened when Olga from Farms Around went looking for camembert in France with her family: not from the supermarket, but straight from a farmer or small local producer. Cheese that is not only delicious, but also tells you something about the place you are visiting. But that turned out to be surprisingly difficult. Where do you find a farm shop like that, what exactly do they sell and can you simply stop by?
That search stayed with her. Because how many wonderful farm shops, milk taps and local food shops might there be that you simply do not know how to find? That is how Farms Around was born: a platform that makes local farm sales points easy to discover. A mission that fits beautifully with FarmCamps, where families do not just discover farm life, but experience it up close.
Local food with a story
Olga lives in Delft with her husband and two children. She loves travelling, discovering new places and local food. Her favourite way to shop is directly from the farmer. Not just because the products are often super fresh and full of flavour, but mainly because you can see where your food comes from. You meet the people behind the product. You see the animals, the farmyard and the surroundings. And sometimes you discover things you almost never come across in the supermarket: raw milk cheese, goat meat, unusual vegetables, regional fruit or eggs in all kinds of colours. So when you buy from the farmer, you are not just buying food. You are taking home a piece of the story too.
From hobby account to European map
During the pandemic, Olga noticed how much fun it was to visit farm shops with her children. You could do your shopping there, but also see animals, spend time outside and experience the countryside. When she told friends about a lovely farm shop close to Delft, it turned out many of them had never heard of it. That surprised her. How could such a great place, so close to home, be invisible to so many people? She started an Instagram account to inspire people to visit farmers more often. Today, Farms Around has grown into a multilingual platform with a map full of farm shops, milk taps, local food shops and small scale sales points. Not only in the Netherlands, but also in other countries. Farmers can add their own location, just like visitors who want to help make these places easier to find. And so the map keeps growing.
Why FarmCamps and Farms Around are such a good match
The match with FarmCamps is actually very logical. Farms Around helps people find local products at the farm. FarmCamps lets families experience farm life up close. At FarmCamps, you sleep on a real farm. Children see the animals, help out, play outside and discover where food comes from. An egg is suddenly not just an egg, but comes from the chickens in the farmyard. Milk is not just something from a carton, but comes from the cows in the meadow. That makes local food tangible. Especially for children. And that is exactly where the missions meet: FarmCamps and Farms Around bring people closer to the farmer, the countryside and the story behind their food.
Olga at FarmCamps
Olga has now stayed at FarmCamps twice: at sheep farm FarmCamps Mariekerke and at dairy farm FarmCamps Den Branderhorst. Two different farms, but both with a clear connection to local food. At FarmCamps Mariekerke, Olga especially loved the local products and the impressive farm shop. At FarmCamps Den Branderhorst, the strength was more in the experience: bringing the cows in from the meadow, a butter workshop, chickens in the farmyard and eggs in different colours. It beautifully shows that every FarmCamps farm has its own story. Sometimes the focus is on products, sometimes on activities or animals, but everywhere you experience farm life up close. Discover what luxury glamping at FarmCamps looks like.
Zelf lokaal ontdekken tijdens je FarmCamps vakantie
When you stay at FarmCamps, you are often right in the middle of a region full of farm shops, milk taps, roadside stalls and local producers. Sometimes you will find those treats on the farm itself. And otherwise, often surprisingly close by. Olga’s tip? Look at the area with fresh eyes. Ask the farmer what is for sale on the farm or nearby, open the Farms Around map and keep an eye out for signs along the road. It is often there, at a small strawberry stall, a milk tap between the meadows or a farm shop tucked away on the farmyard, that the best holiday memories are made.
Olga dreams of Farms Around becoming the go to guide for farm shops in Europe. So that wherever you are, from the Netherlands to Portugal, you can easily find your way to local products and the people who make them.
At FarmCamps, we believe in that connection just as much. Because the closer you get to the farmer, the more consciously you look at what is on your plate.
Ready to stay on a farm soon? Ask the farmer about products from their own farmyard, check the Farms Around map to see what there is to discover nearby and taste the region you wake up in.
Because the story behind your food is often closer than you think.
