Family adds value to Guernsey milk

01-10-2009 | Sandra Taylor

The introduction of a quota system in the UK proved to be the impetus the Moore family needed to look at ways they could diversify out of milk.

In 1984, faced with a cap on their production, the Yorkshire family felt the only way they could continue to run a profitable business was to add value to what they were producing. After exploring several milk-product options, ice cream seemed the ideal choice so they invested £15,000 (NZ$37,510) in an ice-cream machine and made their first batch of vanilla and strawberry ice cream.

Today the family produces 2.5 million litres of ice cream every year from their herd of 120 Guernsey cows.

The cows run on 86ha in the picturesque Yorkshire Dales and are milked robotically, producing 23 to 24 litres/cow/day for a herd average of 7000 litres/cow/year.

Robert Moore and his wife run the business, although it was Robert's parents Brian and Brenda who were instrumental in getting the ice-cream business up and running. This was not without its challenges.

While the government was encouraging farmers to diversify, the local council in the area the Moores were originally farming in were not so open to change.

They refused to let the family open a shop in which they could sell their ice cream. Five years and £5000 of legal fees later, the family gave up the fight and moved to a larger farm in a different area.

During that time they had been selling their ice cream to wholesalers, but Robert says it became apparent they needed to cut out the middle man and sell the ice cream themselves.

Coming off 28ha, Robert describes the shift to the larger farm as massive, but it was the best thing they ever did.

They had to convert the former sheep, beef and arable farm into a dairy unit and build an ice-cream parlour.

Robert says they sought publicity wherever they could and had a policy of never saying no to journalists. Their reputation grew. Now, as well as selling ice cream from their farm, they supply 400 outlets every week and make ice cream for another brand which is sold in Tescos.

"Our rule is we supply anyone who will pay for it."

The Moores whole brand is based around the milk they get from their Guernsey herd and any shortfalls in their own supply is filled with imported Channel Island cream.

Recipes have been designed around the Guernsey milk and this, says Robert is what differentiates their ice cream from others on the market.

Once they have devised a recipe, Robert says they stick with the original ingredients and don't ever look for cheaper alternatives.

Over the busy summer period they try to keep a fortnight's worth of ingredients on hand because in the past they have found suppliers cannot keep up with their demand.

"When the sun's out we have to go for it here."

Their ice cream is at the top end of the market price-wise, but Robert says they are not over-priced compared with others on the market.

The skim milk, a by-product of the ice cream-making process, is sold fresh every week and they also rear their own veal, although Robert says there is not a massive market for veal.

At the moment they are getting more money for live three-month-old calves and nine-month-old Guernsey bulls.

The cows calve all year round but the majority calve in spring and to ensure fat and protein levels are consistent (fat 4.9 and protein 3.4), the cows are fed supplement all year.

In summer the cows are on a diet consisting of two-thirds concentrate and one-third grass and when they are housed in winter or in wet weather they eat 35 to 40kg of feed mix.

Last year was particularly wet, which meant Robert had to feed the cows a lot more concentrate.

The family grow 21ha of maize every year on rented land for silage; yields range between 6-8t/ha. They also grow 32ha of grass silage.

Five years ago, at a cost of £80,000 each, the family invested in two robotic milking machines, mainly because they couldn't get staff to milk cows. While this was double the cost of a new milking shed, Robert says that once the cost of labour is taken into account the machine comes into its own.

The machine has worked well and in five years they have had only three breakdowns.

With the robotic milking machine, the cows just walk in and out of the shed at whim. Straight after calving cows can be coming in for milking up to four times a day, but the average for the herd is 2.8 milkings a day.

Effluent is spread on to their own land as well as their neighbour's and they also apply a compound fertiliser topped up with some nitrogen.

To help maintain pasture quality, sheep from a neighbouring property are brought on to the farm every year.

Silage paddocks are renewed every eight to 10 years, otherwise any damaged pasture is patched up by harrowing grass-seed into the affected areas.

Robert spends his week working on the ice-cream business while weekends are spent working on the farm.

In order to grow the business further he has the option of either increasing cow numbers or increasing yields through feed management.

Having recently invested £250,000 in freezers and tub-filling machines, Robert says they could double their business with the equipment they now have.

Being in an area of full employment, they have had problems finding staff, but they now have a policy of offering their full-time employees extra hours before they take on extra labour.

Robert's wife, Diane, oversees the day-to-day running of the business and both of Robert's teenage children work part-time in the business. They are expected to fill in time sheets like all other staff and while both are interested in working in the business in the future, they have to prove their worth.

Every three to four months Robert meets his accountant and an adviser to evaluate how the business is going and to talk about future directions. In the next five years Robert intends to carry on working as hard as he does now. After that he says he wants to have a choice about whether he continues to work such long hours.

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