A 3D recreation of Chelsea Farmers' Market has gone online in the virtual world of Second Life.
It allows users to create a virtual version of themselves and browse the 33 stallholders.
They can see pictures of the produce, and watch video clips of the producers talking about their goods.
When customers decide to buy products, they are redirected to the firm’s web site to enter their credit card details as normal.
It's an interesting idea, and founder Marcus Carter claims it could make farmers markets easier to visit.
“It can often be hard for people to get to a farmer’s market, so we wanted to make it simple, and available all the time,” he said.
Live events are also planned, where producers will be available to discuss their goods and even demonstrate recipes.
It's a good idea, although putting it in Second Life is a risky strategy - as few 'normal' internet users use the service. However, Mr Carter admits this, and says he is working on a version that will be viewable from any web browser, which could be a winner - if it works well.
Despite this, in the real life Chelsea Farmers' market, traders seemed less than impressed with their new virtual equivalents.
“We don’t trade online at all, and we are all very happy with that,” said one trader at the market, just off the Kings Road, who did not want to be named.
“We are perfectly happy to have people come to see us, and that keeps us busy enough.”

www.vfmuk.com