As I write, we are in the middle of our 2017 production run and have produced just under 40,000 Country Casseroles and Country Curries. The pheasant casseroles are being delivered to charities and the first batch of our new partridge curry is due for release this week. The factory is now in the process of making another 3 tonnes of curry which should allow us to feed another 10,000 people in need.
We have had some changes to the trustees of the charity with Charles Stone, one of our founding trustees, leaving the Board. We are extremely grateful to Charles for all his work and effort during our founding years. We have however welcomed three new exciting trustees who bring with them a wealth of experience:
Mark Firth brings experience of not only the food trade but also great contacts in the sporting world.
Chris Horne who runs GunsOnPegs brings significant communication and IT expertise and has also generously allowed us to lean on him and his team administratively.
Belinda Williams is the CEO and Founder of Yorkshire Provender and will bring much needed expertise to the Board in terms of our meals and retailing the food.
Tim Maddams has also become our “official” Food Consultant; having already designed our current meals, he is now working on a number of other recipes for us with the only mandate being that they are nutritious and delicious.
We also have a growing band of ambassadors spreading the word and raising funds for us and allowing the charity to grow at an incredible pace.
The main task at present is to get our new website up and running so that you can find everything you need there to help us and help you spread the word. It should be ready shortly and we will let you know as soon as it is. We have also spent a lot of time getting operational processes in place to ensure that we are able to meet the demand for our three new schemes and the growth of our charity and I just wanted to highlight them to you:
The Country Food Initiative allows shoots to donate money to help us purchase game meat, thus reduce the cost of our meals allowing us to produce more meals for people in need. Shoots that collect or donate more than £750 over the course of the season automatically become accredited shoots of The Country Food Initiative and receive a certificate to demonstrate their positive impact on society. Shoots that donate as many pounds as birds shot over the season will join a small and exclusive group of shoots known as “Leading Philanthropists”. They are the shoots making a real difference to the future of field sports. If you would like to participate in this initiative then please contact Tom Adams tomadams@gunsonpegs.com
The Corporate and Individual Supporter Schemes are being subscribed to at a growing pace and it is a case of everyone doing their bit to help. The corporate scheme requires a donation of £750 and the individual scheme requires a minimum donation of £40, although many generous supporters are giving much more. Both schemes will be on our new website shortly but in the interim please contact us at enquiries@thecountryfoodtrust.org to find out how you can participate, receive your very smart supporter’s badge and help us feed people in need.
If you are on social media then please follow us on Instagram and Facebook and ask others you know to do the same. We have a growing number of posts which will keep you in touch and hopefully amuse you as we move forwards to our goal of feeding a million people.
Best wishes to all and thank you again,
Tim