Business meeting taken over by feathered participants: chickens dominate discussion
In the picturesque countryside of Leicestershire, UK, lies Fosse Meadows Farm – a shining example of a successful free-range chicken farm. Co-owner Jacob Sykes and his partner Nick Ball shared their journey with workshop participants, offering insights into the key business strategies that have propelled Fosse Meadows to the forefront of the free-range poultry industry.
The farm's success story began with 50 chicks in a shed, and today, it boasts thousands of free-ranging chickens, 3,000 turkeys, a few sheep, and a dog. The chickens are slow-reared to full maturity (to 81 days), allowing them to live a stress-free life and produce high-quality meat. The selling point of Fosse Meadows produce is its free-range and slow-grown nature, with the chickens having access to wild flower pasture and hedge rows.
Fosse Meadows emphasizes free-range poultry farming set in natural, rolling green fields, aligning with consumer demand for ethically raised, grass-fed meat and poultry. This approach appeals to health-conscious and environmentally aware customers. The farm also maintains a reputation for high welfare farming practices, which helps build trust with retail and hospitality partners that prioritize animal welfare and quality supply.
Business operations benefit from local partnerships and leveraging Leicestershire’s rural brand identity, adding authenticity to their farm products. The proximity to historic and green sites like the ancient Fosse Way and natural meadows supports a strong brand narrative of tradition and sustainability.
Fosse Meadows also diversifies product offerings, such as grass-fed lamb bones, indicating a strategy of product range expansion within free-range and grass-fed categories to meet varied customer needs. Though public leisure use of "Fosse Meadows" refers mainly to the country park and natural area, the farm’s connection to the local community and landscape appears important for marketing and brand engagement.
Independent agronomist Charlie Curtis offered advice on farming operations from the perspectives of large corporates and government policies during the first Core Business Workshop held for the "Farm for the Future" programme. He emphasized the importance of using common sense, being methodical with paperwork, and taking time for oneself in a farming business.
The produce from Fosse Meadows is popular at various markets, particularly in London. The farm handles the slaughter and packaging of their produce, ensuring quality control from farm to fork. The next RCF/PfL Business Meeting for the East Midlands region is on Friday 24 November at the Allerton Project.
In essence, the key lessons learned from Fosse Meadows Farm include prioritizing animal welfare and pasture-based systems to meet market demand for ethical and premium food, building strong, trust-based relationships with buyers by delivering consistent quality and transparency in supply, using local heritage and rural location as part of storytelling and brand positioning, diversifying within natural farming product lines to increase resilience and appeal, and leveraging social media and partnerships in the hospitality chain to enhance reputation and reach. These strategies underpin Fosse Meadows Farm’s ongoing success as a sustainable free-range poultry producer in the UK.
- Fosse Meadows Farm's success in the business world is not limited to free-range poultry but extends to other food-and-drink products, like grass-fed lamb bones, demonstrating a strategic approach to product range expansion within the free-range and grass-fed categories.
- As the farm's producecaters to health-conscious and environmentally aware customers in the lifestyle market, its emphasis on high welfare farming practices, free-range poultry farming, and pasture-based systems aligns with consumer demand for ethically raised, grass-fed meat and poultry, thus strengthening its reputation in the finance sector.
