How a drive-through shop is saving one spud farm from the fallout of Covid-19 restrictions

Asupplier of speciality potatoes to restaurants all over Ireland has set up a ‘drivethru’ Spud Shack at the farm where they are grown, in response to the Covid-19 epidemic.

Maria Flynn of Ballymakenny Farm in Louth began growing purple potatoes and heritage potatoes as a hobby.

She found a niche market and her potatoes have been used by some of Ireland’s most famous chefs.

But Covid-19 has changed everything.

“My business has come to a standstill because my lovely chefs have quite rightly taken the decision to close restaurants right over the country, and I support them fully,” she says.

She had plans for a Spud Shack in one of the farm sheds as a place where the public could see and buy the potatoes.

And in response to Covid-19 those plans have been fasttracked and the ‘drive-thru’ version was born.

“I brought it forward because of Covid-19. I want to keep people safe so they will drive in, they put their order in and we will direct them to where to drive around (the yard) so they do a loop and I will put their potatoes in for them on the way back,” she says.

Payment will be contactless and until the machine arrives, she will do an honesty box.

All hygiene guidelines and social distancing protocols are followed.

“We are hand-digging the heritage and speciality potatoes every day here on the farm,” says Maria.

“I would love for people to come and try them it is a great opportunity to get the general public trying them and eating them and I would love feedback on them.

“My priority and drive behind this is to let people try our heritage potatoes that the chefs have been using for the last number of years.

“We do need to look for a silver lining in this, and the silver lining is we are pressing the reset button. We are more thoughtful, hopefully more neighbourly.”

Some of her first customers were the ‘Gastro Gays’ Patrick Hanlon and Russell

Alford, who are food ambassadors for Boyne Valley flavours.

Russell says: “If there is a positive out of this, it is that we have an appreciation of what is local again.

“Over the last 4-5 days we have heard nothing but things about restaurants closing, and Maria is a supplier to restaurants.

“There are many producers in the same boat who have been growing things for months and months on end and are stuck with stock and have no restaurants to go to.

“It is up to us to do what we can including buying a box of potatoes.”

Patrick adds: “This has shown that under everything there is a human connection. It is showing human connection is essential and we are helping each other again.”

The full Spud Shack experience is still planned for later in the year.

Initiative:

Maria Flynn of Ballymakenny Farm has opened a ‘drivethru’ shop where the pulic can buy potatoes from her farm

Heritage:

some of the colourful and unusual potato varieties grown on the farm; (below) the drive-thru spud shack’s first customers were food bloggers Russell Alford and Patrick Hanlon of the gastrogays.com

We are hand-digging the heritage and speciality potatoes every day on the farm. I would love for people to come and try them’