We interviewed Philip to find out more:
Tell us a bit about yourself and your business!
We are Conway Farm Produce Limited – growers of speciality produce for restaurants and retail or grocers. We grow a range of crops through the year giving seasonality to restaurants and are in constant contact with them as their menus change, updating them when new crops are coming ready for harvest.
We also supply a range of \’Living Salads\’ for restaurants to have fresh salads in their kitchen ready to cut and serve. The range includes: – Pea Shoots – Nasturtiums – Red Amaranth – Shiso – Red Vien Sorrel – Coriander – Red Mustard – Basil – Salad Bowl Mixture. We aim to have these available year-round by using indoor growing methods.
What made you decide to become a grower?
I am from a family of growers going back over three generations. I have always had an interest in fresh produce and studied a BSc degree in Horticulture in Strathclyde University.
I worked in England for a number of years in salads and vegetables in both Production and Marketing roles, before moving back home in 2001 and it was then that we started growing a range of fresh herbs and speciality vegetables.
What are you growing on the farm this summer?
We started the season in March with Asparagus which ran until the end of May. We had baby turnips and mixed radish for a few weeks during the spring. During the summer from now on we will have:
Range of Living Salads – Courgette Flowers – Globe Artichokes – Courgettes – Mixed Coloured Baby Tomatoes – Heritage variety Potatoes (Violetta / Pink Fir Apple etc) – Curly Kale – Cavolo Nero Kale – Coloured Kale – Kohl Rabi (Green & Purple varieties) – Mixture of Coloured Baby Beetroot – Crown Prince Squash – Pumpkins
Is your company engaged with sustainable methods?
We are aiming to reduce food miles by producing crops locally. For example the asparagus we grow reduces the need for imported crop coming from around the world from places like Peru or Mexico which are thousands of miles away.
Our courgette flowers reduce the need for crop travelling from Holland. We also support local restaurants and grocers by giving them a fresher product which reduces wastage at all points of the supply chain.