Unprocessed milk gives new lease of life to farm
Afarming couple has turned to selling raw unpasteurised milk to help save their farm. Robert and Kath Granville were almost forced out of business by the low price they were receiving for their milk. At its lowest, the price they were paid by their buyer plummeted to 9.75p a litre.
The prospect of losing the Gelligaredig herd that Robert’s family established at Gelli Farm, Bridgend, in 1945 resulted in sleepless nights – but it was that wakefulness that was to be their saviour.
“It had been suggested to us that we should look at selling raw milk from the farmgate and when I couldn’t sleep I spent hours on the internet researching what that might involve,” said Kath, who is a trained home economist.
Now a vending machine dispenses raw milk produced by one of the last remaining pedigree Ayrshire herds in south-east Wales, helping to secure the future of that herd.
With support from Farming Connect development officer Catherine Smith, the Granvilles registered with Farming Connect and accessed business planning with Russell Thomas of Kite Consulting, funded through the Farming Connect Advisory Service.
“Russell could see a niche for what we had in mind and his business plan demonstrated that we could make it work with the number of cows we had,” explained Kath.
After a series of Food Standards Agency tests, they were licensed to sell raw milk on their farm at Cefn Cribwr, near Bridgend.
The couple invested £14,100 in a vending machine, established a retail area at their farmgate and opened for business.
Daily sales have since averaged 55 litres, with customers within a 30-mile radius paying £1.20 for a litre of milk or £2.20 for two litres, compared to the 18p per litre the Granvilles currently receive for their bulk milk sales.
“We get a very broad cross-section of customers, people from different ethnic backgrounds,” said Robert.
“Some of those customers buy it to make cheese, clotted cream and yogurt, but many others just buy it to drink or to pour on their bowl of cereal.”
The milk is sold fresh from the vending machine daily.
“The tank in the vending machine holds 200 litres so there is going to be some milk left over, but it doesn’t go to waste – we feed it to the calves,” added Robert.
Gelli Farm’s location on the side of a busy road and close to the M4 has been important for sales.
“If the farm was down a long lane and in the middle of nowhere, I don’t think it would have worked,” Robert said.
Social media marketing has played an important role in the Granvilles’ venture, and this is one area where the couple’s three daughters, MaryJayne, Beth and Kate, have been able to offer support.
“The girls have been fantastic, they have taken care of all the social media side of it,” said Kath.
“They love the farm and it is because of them that we have really fought to keep the business going.”
There has been growing interest in raw milk in recent years, with advocates claiming it contains more natural antibodies, proteins and bacteria than pasteurised milk.
However, food safety experts warn there are health risks from contaminants such as campylobacter, and all raw milk sold must carry a health warning advising that it should not be consumed by vulnerable people such as the edlerly, young children, pregnant women and people with reduced immunity.
There are strict controls on the production and sale of raw milk. Producers must be registered and their holding, including milking premises and dairy, must comply with hygiene rules. Raw milk can only be sold direct to consumers by registered holdings at the farmgate or in a farmhouse, at a farmers’ market or from a milk round.
The herd must be healthy and the milk is tested by dairy hygiene inspectors every three months.