Farm shop is top prize winner
A farm shop in Corwen which is just 18 months old has won a top prize in the Welsh stage of the NFU's Farming Excellence Awards.
The House of Rhug has won the Farm Retailer of the Year category for demonstrating how it is bringing farmers and consumers closer together for the benefit of the local community.
The business is a partnership between Lord Newborough – owner of the Rhug Estate – and Philip Hughes who became involved in the business in 2000, with the aim of adding value to the estate's home reared organic beef and lamb.
The company now consists of a farm shop with full butchery counter and a café, but the start of the venture was not an auspicious one, as Philip explains.
"When we started there were no organic abattoirs available, no organically certified butchers
willing to take on our work and very few catering outlets prepared to take our product. So processing our product was a struggle," says Philip.
He decided to take matters into his own hands, making beef burgers for a car rally on the farm. It was a success, and spurred Philip on to encourage the local abattoir to provide an organic service. The next step was an on-farm butchery and the House of Rhug was born.
They now sell 1000 lambs and 150 head of beef and customers can buy direct from the farm, be it over the counter, via the internet at www.rhugorganic.com or by mail order. Such has been the success, that Rhug now offers a similar service to other farmers wanting to sell direct to the public, by offering a contract kill, maturation, butchery, packaging and distribution service.
Demand has been so great that a monthly farmers' market is now held on the estate, which regularly attracts over 2000 visitors.
Customer service is key to their success, explains Philip. "We do not let the customer forget that they are buying Welsh lamb and beef that is amongst the best in the world direct from the farm. Our customers offer us support and are willing us along in the same way that they are willing British farming along."
Philip is keen to bring farmers and consumers closer together. "Last year we launched our farm trail that is a self guided educational trail around the farm. Anything that can result in the great British public visiting our countryside and learning more about it and the quality food that it produces is a vital step in securing a strong future for our industry and the rural community as a whole," he says.
The House of Rhug now goes forward to the UK final of the competition. The winner will be announced next month.
For details on the mail order service and contract butchery, contact Peta Baxter on (01490) 413000 ext. 1.
