THE owner of an East Lothian farm shop that only opened 18 months ago is celebrating being highly commended in Scotland’s ‘rural Oscars.’

Trudi Cueto, owner of the Carfrae Farm Shop, said she was delighted that her establishment had been honoured in the Countryside Alliance Scotland awards so soon after starting up.

The awards – now in their 17th year – recognise rural businesses across five categories, including ‘best local food’, ‘best butcher’, ‘best pub’, ‘best rural enterprise’, and ‘best village shop/post office.’

Although they do not have a post office on site, it was in the final category that the Carfrae Farm Shop was highly commended.

Thousands of nominations from around the country were whittled down via a public vote, with the final few being honoured at the Scottish finalists’ awards ceremony at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.

The awards were presented by Jake Swindells, director of the Countryside Alliance Scotland, and attended by a number of MSPs.

The winner of each category – Muasdale Stores in Tarbert, Argyll topped the one that Carfrae Farm Shop was highly commended in – will go on to represent Scotland in the national champions reception at the House of Lords in June, competing against other finalists from Wales, Northern Ireland, and England.

Judges were impressed by how staff at the Carfrae Farm Shop, near Gifford, went that extra mile for their customers, the range of produce they had, and the excellent setting with the shop located in a converted barn in the heart of the farm.

The barn had many uses over the years, from housing Clydesdale horses in the 1950s to a piggery and then a grain store.

Trudi Cueto, the managing partner at Carfrae Farm, said: “We are delighted to have been commended for such a prestigious award so early into the start of the business as we only opened up a year and a half ago and we are looking forward to building on the strength of the business.

"I am a third generation farmer at Carfrae Mill Farm and I am a member of Scotland Farming and Agritourism body and the farm shop is part of our diversification programme.

"It was fantastic to even be nominated in the first place, let alone being highly commended.

"We don’t know who we were nominate by so it came as a pleasant surprise and it is a tribute to our great customers and the huge range of local producers we stock such as Spice Witch from Prestonpans, Yester Farm Dairies and Kilduff Farm products among many others."

Mr Swindells congratulated everyone involved.

He said: "Running a business in a rural community isn’t easy, particularly in recent times.

"The evening was all about celebrating the valued role these rural enterprises have in their communities.

"The Countryside Alliance is proud to be honouring a group of people so clearly passionate about the goods and services they provide throughout our incredible countryside.”