Herefordshire farm expands after securing REG finance

A HEREFORDSHIRE dairy farm which diversified as a camping site and manufacturer of ice cream has expanded further after securing funding through the Rural Enterprise Grant programme.

Rowlestone Court comprises more than 300 acres and has been farmed by the Williams family since the 1930s.

Run by Mark Williams and his wife Mary, Rowlestone Court is still a dairy farm but is now farmed less intensively than previously.

In 2006, conscious of the declining price of milk and the impact of bovine TB on the business, the farm converted several of their 19th century buildings to enable them to diversify as a visitor centre.

One building was transformed into a shower block for campsite visitors and another was converted into a building where they could make and store farmhouse ice cream.

The farm now makes 36 flavours of farmhouse ice cream using cream and milk from the Rowlestone herd and sorbets using local fruit. This is sold wholesale through 29 local outlets, through the farm ice cream parlour and a barrow at farmers markets, shows and food festivals.

Rowlestone has now received £10,000 from the Rural Enterprise Grant programme to support the installation of potting equipment, a heat exchange system to control the production room environment, a walk in freezer for the ice cream and the creation of a visitor room for the farm.

“We were quite frustrated and concerned about the ever diminishing returns from milk production and when foot and mouth hit the country we had to think hard about how we went forward as a business,” said Mr Williams.

“Looking at other potential areas, we were aware of growing demand in tourism and the ice cream production.

“The support from the Rural Enterprise Grant has helped most of all by making the ice cream potting process much more productive which increases the amount we are able to make and the walk-in freezer increases our storage capacity.”

Funded under the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) which is managed by Advantage West Midlands and administered by Herefordshire Council, Rural Enterprise Grants are available for farmers and micro businesses developing and diversifying into food and drink, environmental technologies and tourism improvements.

Funding of up to 40% (or £62,500) can be secured towards projects that range from new processing machinery and supply chain equipment and improvements to tourism experiences.

Dorothy Coleman, REG programme manager, said: “In a relatively short space of time, Rowlestone has developed into a farm combined with a successful campsite and the ice cream production.

“This is a really great example of how farms can diversify successfully with the right support.”