The land used by the Community Farm is owned by local farmer, Luke Hasell. Luke believes organic farming is the future and has been farming organically since 2004 – he wants people to be able to ‘shake the hand that feeds you’!
In 2005, Luke established The Story Group with Jim Twine when they both inherited neighbouring family farms. The farms cover an area of 550 acres around the Chew Valley and they breed north and south Devon suckler herds. The aim was to provide great tasting, fresh organic produce direct to the consumer. In 2010 poultry experts Bill and Emma Yeats of Lowerstock Farm joined The Story Group. They have developed their own breed of chicken called the Bishops Vale which is sold exclusively through The Story Group.
In 2008, Luke and Jim, along with Phil Haughton of the Better Food Company, established organic growing and the concept of The Community Farm on 22 acres of prime agricultural growing land. In November 2010, the Community Farm launched their community share offer inviting members of the public to invest in the farm. By the end of March 2011, 409 people had invested an incredible £126,000 in the farm, helping make the Community Farm a reality.
This investment has enabled The Farm to take over the established veg box scheme, organic growing and wholesale business of the Better Food Company
Luke says:
“I have been farming for the past seven years following the death of both my parents. I left a busy London life building supermarkets and distribution centres to come home and run the family farm. We became organic in 2004 because organic farming is the future of agriculture and therefore was an easy decision for me to make. I started The Story Group meat box scheme in 2005 in an attempt to sell more of the farm’s produce direct to the consumer.
The Community Farm is a project that is very close to my heart and one that I am determined to make a success. The future of food and farming is an exciting prospect and if we can involve the community and enable local people to buy fresh organic produce whilst being directly linked to the place in which it grows, then the future generations may grow up respecting these issues far more than we do now.”