A CUMBRIAN business has been put on the map - thanks to a UK-wide campaign championing farmers at their most essential ingredient.

McDonald’s has highlighted the Lakes Free Range Egg Company at Stainton, near Penrith as their longest standing UK supplier of free-range eggs.  The campaign was launched at the start of October, with an interactive map which enables customers to see where the ingredients have been sourced across the UK and Ireland to make their iconic favourites, illustrating just how close they are to the farmers and growers that produce them.

David and Helen Brass, co-owners of The Lakes Free Range Egg Company, feature on the map and are highlighted as supplying McDonald’s with free range eggs for almost 20 years. They were involved in supplying content for the map and have also featured on radio talking about the campaign.

The new Map My McDonald’s interactive tool allows customers to see which quality, fresh ingredients are grown in their region, and to meet some of the 23,000 British and Irish farmers that supply them.

The map has been created as a new study shows that residents in the North West care more about local farmers and locally sourced food following lockdown. Over a third (39 percent) of residents now say that supporting local farmers and growers is important to them, while over two fifths (42 percent) say they want to eat out more to support local food providers and farmers.

The YouGov poll of more than 2,000 British adults also found that almost half (46 percent) say their appreciation for locally sourced food has increased since lockdown, with eggs (61 percent), potatoes (58 percent), beef (56 percent) and milk (56 percent) taking the top spots for ingredients residents in the North West most want restaurants to source from local suppliers.

David and Helen Brass, who featured in TV and radio interviews added: “It’s brilliant to know that so many of the nation’s favourite McDonald’s menu items are sourced from British and Irish farmers like ourselves.We’re proud to have supplied the free-range eggs that are cracked for McDonald’s breakfasts for nearly 20 years, and our work together never stops.  “Over the last two decades we’ve worked closely to innovate and continually improve our business, including planting native trees across 20 percent of the ranges on our farms to provide cover for our hens – this protection improves their wellbeing and egg quality.”

Nina Prichard, Head of Sustainable and Ethical Sourcing at McDonald’s UK & Ireland, said: “Clearly, the nation is hungry for homegrown food, which is no surprise given the high quality of ingredients that are produced by farmers and growers across the UK.”