It all started in the late ‘90s. Judith had spent the past two years adventuring around New Zealand, Australia and Canada. On Australia’s Magnetic Island, she met Clive. Somerset must have seemed far away – until her father gave her the opportunity to take over the family farm.
“I had no qualifications in agriculture, and in fact I don’t think that I had ever been in the milking parlour!” says Judith. Never put off by a challenge, she got stuck in, learning from scratch how to milk the cows. A while later, she married Clive, who was a graduate of agricultural college. Together they dreamed up Brown Cow, and developed Perridge Farm into the multi award-winning organic powerhouse it is today.
Now Naomi, their youngest daughter, is repeating history some 35 years later. Naomi spent seven years travelling the world, then working in the NHS in Liverpool, before returning home in 2020 to take on the challenge of learning to milk the cows. Thankfully, she’s got a brand-new milking parlour, able to milk 160 cows in two hours; the same time it used to take Judith to milk just 35 cows. And yes, Naomi also makes the yoghurt.
“Not only are there 180 ladies in the herd, but the team that run and manage the farm are all ladies too – girl power!” says Judith. The cows really live the life. They are milked just once a day each morning, before wandering out to grass, chewing their cud and looking rather smug for the rest of the day.
“They have access to field upon field, laden with at least 18 different species of ancient grasses and herbs that root deep in the soil,” says Naomi. Their diet makes their milk extra rich and creamy – and having such diverse natural food means there’s no need for added concentrates.
With an ethos of less-and-better milk, the Brown Cows in question live long, healthy lives. The additional benefits of this sustainable approach to farming can be seen all over their 89 fields, each surrounded by hedgerows teaming with wildlife, flora and fauna. The milk from these happy, grass-fed cows is what makes the Brown Cow Organics yoghurts so good. Never homogenised, and lightly pasteurised, it’s rich, thick, and packed full of flavour.
All in all, it’s no wonder Brown Cow Organics has won such a fantastic shower of awards, including multiple Great Taste wins, Compassion in World Farming’s ‘Good Dairy’ award, Champions in Sustainable Farming Award, Boom Organic Food Awards and various TV appearances along the way.
