Two 'dairy sheep' producers have won the prestigious Brynle Williams Memorial Award, which recognises the achievements of young farmers who have found their way into the industry.
Bryn and his partner Becca Morris, both in their early 30s, keep a flock of around 120 East Friesian ewes, a breed renowned for the quality of their milk.
They farm on a council-owned smallholding, Fferm Wernllwyd, near Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, where they moved in early 2021.
Inspired by consumer demand, Bryn and Becca doubled the size of their original flock they bought from a farm dispersal sale.
They have also recently started looking for finance for a new food processing unit which will enable them to turn the ewes’ milk into a range of Welsh cheeses and dairy products from the farm.
The UK sheep milking industry is still relatively new, but this entrepreneurial couple are capitalising on this rapidly growing market, in more ways than one.
Having set up collaborations with other ambitious farmers, Bryn and Becca, with the support of the Welsh government's Farming Connect scheme, are already processing milk into a range of speciality cheeses.
Their Welsh ewes’ milk cheeses are ‘in the style of’ Feta, Halloumi, Blue and Manchego, and they recently launched ‘Ewenique Spirits’, their own brand of ewe whey vodka.
The couple have been awarded the Brynle Williams Memorial Award, which was established in 2011 to recognise the contribution of the late Brynle Williams to Welsh agriculture, both as an Assembly Member and a farmer.
The award celebrates the achievements of young farmers who have received a package of support from the Welsh government designed to help bring new blood into the industry.
Bryn said: “Critically, we received a huge amount of support from Farming Connect... [it] also enabled us to set up our first joint venture with well-known sheep’s milk producers Nick and Wendy Holtman, who own Defaid Dolwerdd in Crymych."
Now the couple have many more working partnerships under their belt, including two additional Ceredigion farmers who now supply them with sheep milk.
The couple say they are confident that they have a future as both ‘dairy sheep’ farmers and independent food and drink processors.
“My ultimate goal is to set up a co-operative of Welsh farmers who have similar aspirations and to help each of us grow our respective businesses," Bryn said.
The couple also credit the support of Food Centre Wales which has provided training, technical know-how and the processing facilities to turn the sheep milk into cheeses, ice-cream and lactose-free frozen milk.
