ORGANIC produce grown locally may soon appear on the shelves in Marks & Spencer stores in Yorkshire.

The company is involved with the ADAS-operated Stonechair organic farm at High Mowthorpe, near Malton, where some of the land is now fully converted. It is planned to have the first organic produce on sale in York, followed by other local M&S stores as more becomes available.

M&S is also looking at the possibility of inviting some of its local charge account holders to visit Stonechair to see how the food is produced.

Mr Hugh Mowatt, M&S national organic produce technologist, explained the plans last week during an update on how the farm was progressing.

The growth in demand for organic produce was steady but immediate leaps in demand could follow food scares on television or in newspapers.

"That does influence it, but I think people generally are becoming more concerned about where there food comes from and, as a result, organic is here to stay," he said.

The problem was getting consistency in standards and supplies. Computer ordering systems required minimum amounts, below which the goods could not be processed.

Mr Mowatt, who worked on mixed farms in Hereford and the Fens before joining M&S, advised producers to find a market for their produce before even planting it. "Before you grow anything, whether meat products or arable, you must focus on where the market is.

"I get phone calls each month from people who have a crop ready in a couple of weeks, asking if I can take it, but if we have not planned it into our programme we have to say no."

It was also important to choose a product which was right for the farm. "We did try courgettes on a small scale at Stonechair but it was not the right thing to do," he said.

M&S were keen to find areas which would make them different from other high street shops and that included organics. "Organic is a special story and British is special," said Mr Mowatt, who said they were keen to feature farmers with a story to tell in their magazine.

The conversion to full organic status had been a hassle for two years but it had to be gone through. Stonechair was a success, and would continue to be so, as it brought farmers and the retailer together so they could understand each other's needs.

l Welcoming plans by Tesco to increase its organic food sales to £1bn within five years, Mr Patrick Holden, director of the Soil Association, said he hoped the company would buy British. Supermarket price cutting and lack of loyalty was driving British farmers to bankruptcy