Dec 13, 2017
Tonight I'm heading east across the country to Skeyton in Norfolk to talk to turkey producer Rob Morton @mortonsturkeys
We talk about how Rob's Grandfather moved down from Scotland to the farm in 1941 to establish a dairy herd, and how the farm's changed in the intervening years, and hear about his life growing up with 4 brothers.
We hear about how he discovered an affinity for poultry, initially with geese, before pretty soon moving into turkey production, with two traditional breeds - the Norfolk Black, and Norfolk Bronze, and we discuss the various characteristics of the two breeds.
We discuss the production methods on the farm, how they're reared over a slow 6-month growing period, how they're free to range outdoors from an early age, how they're fed on locally produced feed, and right through to being humanely dispatched and processed in December for the Christmas market. We also talk about the Himalayan Salt Chamber that they've invested in for hanging the birds.
We talk about how they direct sell all their produce, from their award winning turkeys to their smokehouse duck breasts, from their fantastic website freerangeturkeys.co.uk and social media like Facebook and twitter, and how they deliver nationwide right up to December 22nd, before closing the farm gates to last collections on Christmas Eve for a well-earned rest!
All this and much more. It was fantastic to talk to such a forward-thinking and innovative farmer as Rob, and learn about how our Christmas turkeys are produced in the UK. Check it out folks..