Lockdown leads dairy entrepreneur to revive farm to doorstep milk delivery

Other significant deals in the pipeline in the Republic of Ireland were also deferred.

“Our fast growing cheese business was badly affected by the closure of hotels and restaurants in the UK and Ireland, our two key markets, because of the virus outbreak,” Dean says. “It left us with limited sales to delis and other stores here. The pandemic also meant there was no point in continuing our drive to build sales in markets such as mainland Europe, the Middle East and Asia.”

Dean runs Ballylisk of Armagh Dairies on a 200-acre farm which has been in his family since 1820. It’s a five generation family enterprise firmly rooted in the fertile soil and lush pastures of Co Armagh.

The crisis also led to business being halted - hopefully only for a short period - with the iconic Fortnum and Mason food store in London’s Piccadilly.

“The situation meant I had to find a way of using our milk, safeguarding our dairy business and maintaining the jobs of our people,” he adds.

“I was also keen to do whatever I could to help the local community at such a challenging and indeed scary time for us all.”

His smart idea was to revive farm to doorstep fresh milk delivery, the type of daily service which had once been a feature in this predominantly rural part of Armagh but had largely disappeared with the growth of supermarkets.

He continues: “We were aware of many thousands of people, particularly the elderly and those unable to get out to food stores, in the area who love fresh milk and would find a delivery service a tremendous help at this time when they are being urged to stay at home for what could be a lengthy period. We decided to take a hard look at our resources to see how we could help to supply the elderly and vulnerable people and the wider community with our fresh and nutritious milk straight from our farm and without customers having to pay a milkman.

“We have our own daily supply of fresh milk from the herd, the essential pasteurising, cooling and processing machinery and the ability to deliver direct to doorsteps on a regular basis. It made sense for us to develop what we see as an important community service for the Portadown, Armagh City and Tandragee area.”

The milk is sourced from the farm’s 150-strong herd of pedigree Friesian cows, among the most admired in Northern Ireland for the outstanding quality of their milk.

The quality of the milk underpinned the impressive reputation of the Ballylisk’s Triple Rose triple cream cheese, the only triple cream cheese in the UK and Ireland, which has won a string of national awards for exceptional taste. He launched the new community service yesterday.

“It is a cashless service and the milk is being delivered without any contact with the shopper. Customers order the milk by phone in advance for delivery whenever they need it, pay by card and then pick it up on their own doorstep,” he explains. There’s also an order form on the Ballylisk website (www.ballyliskofarmagh.com) to be completed in advance by the customer.

Mr Wright says the important initiative “will help to maintain employment in the farm and processing plant and could lead to further job opportunities for the wider

community”.

“We have just started supplying whole and semi-skimmed milk in one and two litre bottles straight from our modern processing plant to customers within a radius of 10 miles of the farm. Feedback on the new service from local people has already been phenomenal. It’s exciting because it has exceeded our initial projections.

“We also have a recognised and respected brand, Ballylisk of Armagh, associated with the farm and particularly our award winning cheese products,” he continues.

“What customers can count on, above all, is premium quality, fresh milk with provenance processed by us and delivered straight from a local farm with a lengthy heritage in developing products for the community. Our branding shows we are proud to be an integral part of the Armagh community.

“We offer total traceability from farm to table. The farm is self-sufficient from growing its own grain and grass to feed the entire herd that we breed and milk on the farm.”

He hopes to continue the farm to doorstep delivery service when the crisis is over.

This, of course, will be influenced by the views of customers when they able to get out again to supermarkets and grocery stores. He’ll also be able to focus on breathing new life into the luxury cheese business which he launched in 2016 to widespread acclaim because of the originality and taste of his Triple Rose cheese.

“It certainly looks like Ballylisk is going to be busier than ever. It’s going to take some time, however, to rebuild our cheese exports,” he concludes.