How Wilson's Farm and Kitchen became a successful agri-tourism business

As a farmer, Robert has a keen interest in farming best-practice. He’s always aiming to tread the balance between sensitive ecological management of the land and turning a profit from the farm. 

They grabbed an opportunity in 2016 to diversify the business and to gain another form of income by bringing visitors onto the farm. This enabled them to show the public and farming professionals what they do. 

They opened the farm for tours, activities, bespoke dining experiences and also use it for pedigree cattle training.

Tell us how you developed the food side of the business?

In 2020, Lucy started a small venture selling high-quality ready meals. These were made using both their own and locally sourced ingredients.

Quickly, the farm started to become a small but vibrant hub for like-minded people wanting convenience food with exceptional flavour and integrity. 

This gave them the confidence to push on with further development and alternative offering for visitors.

The Wilsons have steadily built a strong and loyal customer following because they know that their customers are interested in food provenance and willing to pay for a quality experience. 

The focus on seasonal food with provenance made their offering stand out. Lucy’s catering experience meant that they had the skills to produce high-quality, distinctive food creating an authentic customer experience.

“The experience of dining in a communal setting is one our customers enjoy. It is an interactive and social experience, with Robert offering a compelling story of the farm, the ingredients, and the dishes and me running the kitchen.” 

Whats in the future for the business? 

Extending their events season is the focus for the Wilsons. They aim to run events for more months of the year and to expand their wedding offer and visitor number capacity. 

And they hope to be able to take more help from their staff as their event pipeline grows.