Meet the producer – Jo and Alex Burrows, Coldeaton Jersey Ice cream
Jo and husband Alex live in Ashbourne, Derbyshire with their two children Finn and Ella, milking a herd of pedigree Jersey cows. Jo’s family have been farming for several generations and 6 years ago after the birth of their son Finn, Jo gave up work and started helping her father with milking twice daily.
The family have always been passionate about breeding top-quality pedigree show cows. But in order to make the milk pay, they needed to look at diversification outlets to add value to the super creamy gold jersey milk in order to sustain their family.
That’s how the Coldeaton Jersey Icecream came about. Having received some European grant funding to help give them the boost they needed to get set up, Jo and Alex started making ice cream, selling to wholesale, pubs, restaurants and local outlets.
They have a bank of original flavours including your traditional flavours, raspberry ripple, chocolate and strawberry as well as a few seasonal limited additions. As this side of the business has grown, and with the support of many other local producers, the duo decided to open a small on-farm shop selling bread, eggs, as well as their signature ice cream.
In the last 12 months amid the pandemic, the on-farm shop has been widely supported as people look to supporting local businesses and reduce their food miles too. As a result, the Jersey milk has been pasteurised and bottled on-site and is now available to buy direct. There are also plans for flavoured milkshakes coming in the Spring of 2022 as well as butter and cream.
What’s really exciting is that tomorrow – Thursday 6th January 2022 at 3.45pm on BBC1 Jo, Alex, Finn and Ella Burrows will feature with Jo’s Dad, John Stubbs, on the new series of the Farmers Country Showdown. Filmed last year on the farm and at the Ashbourne Show, the TV programme features a behind-the-scenes look at the family preparing the Jersey Cows and Jo’s family members showing their Shire Horses too – another family tradition.
When I asked Jo why she got involved with the TV programme she said ‘I wanted to show the general public a window into our daily lives, life on the farm and how we care passionately for our animals’. ‘We have unique, special bonds with each and every one of our cows and I hope that becomes apparent on the show’. ‘We thoroughly enjoy what we do and we are grateful for all the support we have received on our farming journey so far.’
You can find out more about where you can buy the ice cream here: https://www.coldeatonjerseyicecream.co.uk/buy-it
You can follow Coldeaton Jersey Ice cream on social media here: https://www.facebook.com/coldeatonjerseyicecream/
https://www.instagram.com/coldeaton_jersey_icecream
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