.png){kind=small}
As a hectic and experimental season draws to a close, I reflect on the ups and downs and contemplate the idea of building a farm shop. Meanwhile, I make ambitious plans to get the kitchen extension complete in time for Christmas dinner.
With just a couple more weeks to go, the first season of veg boxes will soon be coming to an end, and I have to admit a sense of relief. We only managed a relatively short 16-week season, but it's been more than enough to test my nerve and challenge the strategies. I would really love to say I've been living the dream; however, the reality has been one of long hours on the farm, battling endless problems, amidst a part time job scrubbing toilets and picking up litter – but the dream is tantalisingly in reach. The veg bags have, in fact, been a great success, and the feedback has been nothing but positive. But, in reality, very little profit has materialised to justify the efforts, and this is of course essential to maintain and grow the venture long term. One of the issues has been the demands of my part time job, which has kept me from giving it all, and I am effectively caught in that classic chicken and egg situation where I need to put in the hours to build the business to a profitable point, but also need a regular source of income to tide me over while I do so. That said, I am also mindful that my eclectic collection of roles has its benefits, and it has to be said, I enjoy the various interactions and demands this entails.
On the farm I have inevitably made numerous mistakes over the last few months, although I know from experience that it's not the mistakes, but how you deal with them that define your successes. After all, we all make mistakes, the critical factor is whether we have the wisdom to notice and the courage to change, and I regularly remind myself of this mantra. All in all, though, it's been a successful first year under the circumstances, and an awful lot has been achieved. From the confines of an air conditioned office working a predictable 9-5, I have progressed to a field harvesting vegetables in glorious surroundings. I have learnt how things grow and how to sell the things that grow. I have carved tracks and terraces, shifted over 80 tones of compost, and harvested countless kilograms of good quality organic fruit and vegetables. I now spend my farm days planting seeds, chasing sheep, waving at tractors, harvesting vegetables, and waving at some more tractors. The goal of ridding my life of emails and meetings has been achieved, well almost. So, on that basis things are going in the right direction. When I think back at my previous employment, I often recall the quote "let go, don't be dragged", and I'm glad I let go........... I just need to brush myself down, take things to the next level, make it permanent and make it pay.
Of course, it was also inevitable that the first year I choose to take on this unusual horticultural enterprise, would also be one of the hottest and driest ever recorded. I had envisaged myself clad in waterproofs and wellies, battling the Welsh rain through a typically wet and windy summer, but instead ended up prancing around in a Sombrero and a pair of flip flops. The unusually dry weather has proven particularly difficult, exposing the irrigation shortcomings early in the season and prompted more unplanned, expensive and time-consuming infrastructure tasks to automate the watering process. I was finding myself spending more time watering the plants than anything else, and was continually stressing that the inefficiency of the hose would dry the borehole up in the process. This has, in many respects, epitomised this first year as one of troubleshooting, worrying, amending and evolving. It's quite simply been a dummy run, an experiment perhaps. This has been particularly true with the CSA model, where the process of harvesting, packing, and then driving countless miles down country roads to finalise the deliveries has proven time consuming, costly and labour intensive, and prompted a radical strategy rethink. I can see the merits in this approach, but struggle to overcome, not only the logistics, but the lack of consumer choice and limited reach such a model offers. Consequently, the idea of a farm shop has gradually evolved, and combined with other complementary direct selling routes, is the general direction of travel for next season. This realisation was further encouraged by a recent trip to France, where I stumbled upon a large supermarket specialising in fresh veg. It was like a sweet shop for healthy adults, with the delicious produce carefully displayed with love, respect and dedication. In return, the shoppers (me included) were evidently mesmerised by the choice and quality, excitedly conjuring up recipes as they loaded their trolleys. Wouldn’t it be great to aspire to something remotely like this at Pili-Pala Farm? To reinforce this concept, I have also forged a good relationship with a local organic co-operative who supply wholesale fruit and veg. Primarily, this was intended to inject a bit of diversity into our own veg boxes and relieve some of the pressure, but has inadvertently opened up all sorts of options in terms of offering the local population a range of quality organic veg at wholesale prices, whilst simultaneously selling our home grown produce to achieve the profits. There are, as ever, a plethora of obstacles and issues with this, but I certainly feel it's worth exploring, and so far, the reaction to the idea from our customers and followers has been a positive one. It's something people want, and I am really keen to celebrate local food, in the most authentic and honest way possible.
One thing I have been particularly encouraged by over the last year, has been the interest this small regenerative farm has generated, and can see the appetite for change in our food systems. As well as individuals, we have enjoyed some group visits through the season, such as the wonderful students at Derwen horticultural college (https://www.derwen.ac.uk/latest-news/growing-partnership-with-pili-pala-farm/) and the dedicated members of BRACE, a local climate awareness organisation (https://www.brace.cymru/2022/06/%F0%9F%A6%8B-an-excellent-visit-to-pili-pala-farm/). Such interest has, not only been flattering, but helped drive me through the challenges and focus on the next task, in the knowledge it has broader implications.
Off the farm, I have continued my work in the town, which now includes the flower displays. Although not without its challenges, the floral aromas are a welcome distraction from the daily task of cleaning the municipal bogs. I have also been cracking on with the renovations at the smithy, where the kitchen extension is taking shape thanks mostly to the efforts of my brother-in-law, who also happens to be a builder. However, finances mean I will be picking up this “grand design” from here on, and my aim is to get the kitchen watertight by the onset of winter, and finished in time for Christmas dinner - although Kevin Mcloud is not invited. I have made good progress with the window fitting and plaster boarding, and am eager to get fully stuck in when the veg boxes come to an end and time is freed up. It has, in fact, been incredibly exciting planning and building this amazing family space, as its going to transform our living environment and really make the smithy feel like home. I am so looking forward to the day I can cook in a kitchen space large enough for me to not catch my top on the cupboard knobs every time I squeeze past them. Or, to have to simultaneously mop flood water from the earth floor as I stir the pasta.
So, as we start to round up the first year on the farm, I have loads to think about, and even more to do...sounds familiar.
Comentarios