WE were delighted to be among the hundreds of local families who flocked to Riverford’s Upper Norton Farm at the weekend for the annual Pumpkin Day.

The weather stayed dry for the event, which showcased the goings-on at the Sutton Scotney premises, the third 'sister' farm of Riverford Organic Vegetables in Devon.

Upper Norton Farm, the location where the Janaways have farmed for generations, provides local, seasonal produce for the extremely popular veg boxes. Imagine getting all your veg requirements with no food miles to worry about!       

In addition to the vegetables, Riverford can supply countless other products from fresh milk to fresh free range eggs with your delivery. Owner Duncan Janaway, who works with his father and two brothers, told me that there are 8,000 chickens on site.

Whist simultaneously dealing with the grumpy three year-old, we were delighted to meet many of the retailers who work with the company and in the local area, including Laverstoke Park Farm – tasting their fruity raspberry energy drink - Hook’s Baker Boys and Montezuma chocolate.

The latter operates a very popular shop in Winchester which we’ve often enjoyed popping in to, and it was a fantastic surprise to discover that their bars can also arrive at your door along with your healthy order! The chocolate with lime and chilli enticed us so much that we ended up buying a number of bars as Christmas gifts.    

There was also a tremendous selection of cheeses and some Christmas puddings and buttery Riverford mince pies, any of which can again be added to your delivery.

Elsewhere, we made a pumpkin mask and a chilli string with volunteers Heather Pender from Basingstoke and Carol Bailey from Chandler’s Ford, and enjoyed a burger outside whilst watching Spinney Hollow make swords and fairy wands for a gaggle of excited children.

And we also watched one of the fun ferret races staged by the Hants and Berkshire group.

I got my hands dirty, too, digging for worms on site as part of Riverford’s Big Worm Dig – find out more online at riverfordbigwormdig.com.      

Tony Lee from Riverford said: "We had a record 1500 visitors on our 2013 Pumpkin Day, and it was a huge success all round!

“It was wonderful to see so many Hampshire families enjoying the farm and getting a real hands on feel and taste for what we grow here. Riverford is about more than proper veg; we are essentially a farm shop that delivers free to your door.”

We left loaded down with potatoes, soup, romanesco, kale and any amount of fantastic local produce, keen to get home to start cooking and consuming – and to research which veg box we would make most use of. 

What a revelation to discover that such a fine Riverford farm is less than 20 minutes from our home.