A solid foundation for a future in food
Photo caption (l-r) Gillian Webster and Leanne Duerden founding partners of
Mellow Meadow in Penrith
Two college friends celebrate their first year in business together as Penrith-based Mellow Meadow goes from strength to strength
Gillian Webster and Leanne Duerden met at Myerscough College, near Preston where they were studying for a National Diploma in Agriculture. Gillian from Burscough and Leanne from Lytham successfully completed the course and with a shared desire to forge careers involving food and farming, they both enrolled on a three year BSc in Agriculture and Crop Technology.
Gillian and Leanne graduated in 2004 with a 1st and a 2:1 respectively and started out on their hunt for employment.
"When we started at Myerscough we didn't really have a particular career in mind," said Gillian. "But we knew we wanted to do something that supported farmers and made people aware of the importance of sourcing and eating local produce, which hasn't travelled very far. We were approached by one of our old tutors about a business idea and, although that didn't work out, it was the inspiration we needed to go it alone."
Soon after graduating the pair came up with a business plan for Mellow Meadow, a company that would produce and sell oven-ready home made meals, sourced entirely from trusted and traceable local farmers and suppliers.
"We started looking for suitable premises and applying for grants to help us with our set up costs," commented Leanne. "Having a degree really helped secure premises and grant applications as people were impressed by our knowledge and took us seriously."
While they set up the grants and premises– a historic barn, which dates back to the 1800s - in Morland, Penrith they both returned to Myerscough College to work with special needs children.
In May 2005, Leanne and Gillian officially launched Mellow Meadow, an enterprise that in its first year had surpassed original expectations. Mellow Meadow foods are sold across 20 retailers, farm shops and delicatessens across Lancashire and Cumbria including Cranstons Food Hall and Westmorland Services and they've launched a website so customers across the UK can have Mellow Meadow meals delivered straight to the door.
Gillian and Leanne cook all the meals themselves and are involved with every stage of the process from selecting the ingredients to packaging and labelling the food cartons.
"Our aim now is to expand our customer base and start supplying more foods to retailers across the rest of the UK," said Leanne. "The meals really appeal to people who are interested in good food and who want to know that everything that goes into their meals is high-quality and wholesome."
