‘Trailblazing’ Peacock Farm in Muston run by family wins Grantham Journal Business Award

A family-run farm won an award after taking steps to champion local produce and educate the public about agriculture.

Peacock Farm, in Muston, won the Judges’ Prestige Award at the Grantham Journal Business Awards in 2022.

The farm, run by Donya Donger and her family, produces oils, vinegars, honey and more, and has its focus set firmly on sustainability and being kind to the environment.

The award goes to a stand-out finalist chosen following a discussion by all judges on the panel, and is then handed down the following year.

Peacock Farm was praised by chair of judges Nigel Rivers, of sponsor Pentangle Engineering, for “blazing a trail” in what is often considered a traditional sector.

Donya explained what it meant to win the award and how the farm had adapted recently.

How did it feel to win the award?

Truly surprising! But it felt fantastic to be recognised for our farm diversification. Farming is facing a lot of challenges at present and being at the forefront of food production, it is important people see the work that goes into making food.

Why do you think the business stood out to the judges?

I think it was our passion for what we do. We are a traditional business, but like all farms, have come to realise that we need to modernise and diversify to progress. Educating and showing the public how farming works is a really important part of that and not only benefits our business but helps the environment and our communities – we do that through talks at schools and clubs, as well as free open days at the farm.

Tell us a bit about what you do as a business.

We have an arable farm that produces wheat, barley, beans and rapeseed. We use the latest technology and techniques to do this as efficiently as possible, such as using GPS which is accurate to a centimetre to guide the tractors. We then looked at how we could diversify by producing more on the farm using the resources we already had.

We started pressing rapeseed to make oil and sold that locally. We introduced beehives on to the farm to help pollinate the crops and harvested the honey they produced. We produce fruit-infused vinegars using my grandmother’s recipe that are a brilliant addition to many meals.

We also champion local produce from other businesses by selling it in our honesty shop on the farm and showcasing them in a range of Christmas hampers we sell.

What challenges have you faced and how have you adapted as a result?

As for just about every business, the impact of Covid, the war in Ukraine, and the cost-of-living crisis has meant the price of all raw materials have gone up, while people’s pockets have been squeezed so they have less to spend.

We’ve strived to find ways to keep business costs down and lessen the impact on our customers and continue to provide excellent value.

We’ve tried to use the challenging times to promote some of our services such as returning your bottle of oil to be refilled, rather than buying a new bottle – it’s cheaper and helps the environment.

What are your plans for the coming year?

Our aim is to continue to grow and develop our brand. We want Peacock Farm to be known for producing delicious food and for our values of being family-oriented, caring for the environment, and educating people about our industry.

We’ll definitely be doing more school visits and farm events.

How have your staff/team contributed to your success?

Hugely! We are a family-run business and have a small number of brilliant employees who have joined us. Every single member of the team cares about their job and what we do – and that’s why we are successful.

You see that at the farm events we run. They are not a requirement of working for Peacock Farm but everyone on the team comes along and chats to the public to share about what we do.