What an exciting month it has been so far! December is a very quiet time for arable farming, so the tractors are mostly parked up, implements are in bits having maintenance and repairs carried out and we all get to have a bit of down time.
The whole team had a fabulous day out last weekend at the Hardwick Hall Hotel in Sedgefield, supporting the Sedgefield Young Farmers charity tractor run. It was a wonderful event with over 90 tractors in attendance, all decorated with Christmas lights and decorations. One even had a snow machine which was super! We took three of our tractors, and Simon, Jake and I spent Sunday morning attaching lights and tinsel to every part of our tractors we could. They looked fabulous but not a patch of some of the entries, which were amazing. We thoroughly enjoyed the tractor run and it was lovely to see lots of people on the side of the road cheering and waving as we drove past. I think the icing on the cake for the day, is knowing that through all the Young Farmers’ hard work, they have raised thousands of pounds for MIND, the mental health charity. I am also told, the event made the BBC local news!
Back to the work side of things, we have not done a great deal of tractor work this month, however Richard and Jake had a few days leading manure for a local livestock farmer last week. We use this manure as a soil conditioner to fertilise our crops. It is always nice in the colder months to have a bit of tractor time and to be warm and dry, however, this unfortunately ended up being a couple days before the tractor run, so last Saturday, was spent jet washing tractors trying to get them all clean and shiny and muck free… so much for staying dry!!!
We have been super busy with turkeys and getting ready for the Christmas festivities this month. I am now in my second year of running this side of the business and love it. It is a lot of hard work, but so rewarding and enjoyable. We had our annual inspection from Durham County Council Environmental Health Department at the beginning of processing, and I am delighted to report that we have been awarded 5 stars for our food hygiene standards. This is the highest level that can be given, and it is so nice to see our high standards are recognised. Whilst we are still in the throes of turkeys for Christmas 2024, I am already planning for Christmas 2025: I am hoping to bring some new ideas to the table, which I will share in due course, so watch this space!
A quick reminder for Christmas Turkey collection days:
Collection Point – Murton Moor Farm, SR7 9TN – 23rd & 24th December.
Collection Point – Broom House Farm Shop, Witton Gilbert, DH7 6TR – 23rd December 10am till 3pm, however it is often very busy first thing, so you may want to go from 11am onwards to avoid the queue.
Collection Point – Browns Lakeside Larder, Kirkharle, NE19 2PE – 23rd December, 10am till 2pm.
We still have a handful of small turkeys left; 4kg and 5kg whole birds and some breast roast joints, so if anyone needs a last minute bird, please do give me a call on 07736 018822 or email; tanza@drydenfarms.co.uk.
Thank you to you all for your ongoing custom and support this year. We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and look forward to seeing some of you on the 23rd and 24th for collections.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
With best wishes,
Martin, Judith, Richard, Tanza & George