New Source of Good West Country Meat

Delivery Vans, Local Produce, and the Rise of Beacon Farms

The White Van Nation – and a Thought for British Produce

Delivery vans… The world is filled with them. Drive through the rural West Country today and you will see far more white vans than any other vehicle. On a journey to the Blackdown Hills this week I counted more than 20 on a 40-mile round-trip. And I thought: wouldn’t it be wonderful if those vans were filled with British products and produce rather than stuff made in China.

Beacon Farms – A Westcountry Family Producing Quality British Meat

I was on my way to interview a young man who, with his brother and sister, produces and purveys some very good British produce indeed. And their company, Beacon Farms, does use a delivery company to transport the best of English meat to homes across the land.

So a small number of those thousands of vans might – just might – be carrying first-class produce from this country. If James Vining and his siblings have their way, that number will increase.

Because these three young people have big ideas. Good, solid ideas that I know most readers of this newspaper will applaud.

Back to Basics – Traditional British Farming

In some ways their basic idea is to wind the clock back. There was a time in the not too distant past when the only meat sold in this country would have been raised locally and, most likely, it would have been raised in a wholesome, old-fashioned way. By which I mean: on grass, in meadows, on permanent leys…

How often do we hear older folk saying food doesn’t taste as good as it used to? It is not mere nostalgia – a lot of food really doesn’t taste as good – cheap meat produced on an industrial scale being a prime candidate. So it is hugely refreshing to learn that three young people are working hard to expand a business based solely on the idea that meat should be produced the proper way.

Grass-Fed Beef and Naturally Reared Meat from Devon

The “proper way” means – not in giant sheds or feedlots where animals are fed concentrates from goodness knows where, but out in the West Country hills and dales where we grow the best grass anywhere, and therefore the best meat.

The story goes like this: James, Will and Charlotte Vining come from a family that has been involved in both farming and the meat trade for generations. Growing up, they loved spending time on their grandparents’ Devon farm and visiting their father’s local butcher shops. They especially loved eating the locally grown meat he’d bring home.

Not surprisingly, they always wanted to be involved in farming and the world of meat production – but university degrees, high powered jobs and the like, got in the way.

From Family Farm to Nationwide Meat Delivery

Then, five years ago, there arose an opportunity to rent a farm in south-east Devon and raise meat for their dad’s local butcher's shops. Growing this new business part-time while they held down other jobs, they eventually came to the realisation that they were producing more of their particular specialist style of high-quality beef and lamb than their father’s business could sell.

So they reached out to a handful of other farmers (producing high quality pork and poultry, as well as wild venison from Exmoor) and created Beacon Farms, along with a website which now sells their collective produce UK-wide.

In just a year, this new business has been going from strength-to-strength, which is why I found myself sitting on a straw-bale somewhere in the middle of the Blackdown Hills talking with James Vining. And I’d immediately describe the 29-year-old as driven and dynamic – passionate about the business he is now expanding after spending the first part of his working life as a mechanical engineer working with artificial intelligence.

What Is Beacon Farms?

To start with, I asked James to describe in a nutshell what Beacon Farms is all about.

“We are a nationwide retailer of naturally produced, expertly butchered meat, delivered frozen with next-day delivery. The idea is to connect the public with the best sources and time-honoured craftsmanship that creates the highest-quality meat.”

The Beacon Farms Ethos – Slow Food, High Welfare

So, when he says “the best,” what criteria do he and his siblings use, given there’s so much low-quality meat available, including imported products? Was “grass-fed” a key factor?

“Grass-fed is a popular topic right now, and it’s a big part of what we do. However, it's not the only thing. The grass-fed aspect is really about what I call ‘naturally-reared’. We prioritise sourcing from farmers who use low input systems and work with nature to produce high-welfare, naturally-reared meat.

“It’s about a low-input, high-quality output model – what many people would call slow food. This means the animals are given time to mature naturally in their environment. They’re not intensively farmed or shut away for their entire lives – and they have natural diets.”

A Family Heritage of Butchery and Farming in Devon

“Our family has been farming and butchering for multiple generations. Farming goes back as far as anyone can remember, on both sides. My father has a successful butchery business with some local shops, and we grew up on the family farm. We always wanted to get into farming in our own way. Five years ago, an opportunity came up to rent a small farm, and my brother and I took it. We started rearing beef and lamb for dad’s local shops, and the demand grew. However, that demand was capped by the physical shop location.

“We had been lucky enough to enjoy this quality of food our entire lives, and we saw that it wasn’t always available elsewhere. So, we asked ourselves, ‘Why are we limiting ourselves to this one area?’

“We created Beacon Farms for two reasons. First, we believe we produce really good food that everyone should have access to. Second, the mass market for farming is predominantly focused on the supermarket supply chain. Supermarkets incentivise farmers to produce as much food as possible, as fast as possible, at a certain price. This business model doesn’t necessarily lead to the best quality for the end product or the environment.

“Beacon Farms was created to fill that void and connect people with slow food – real, naturally-produced food that is blast-frozen. This is a key aspect of what we do. The meat is frozen without preservatives or artificial ingredients. The temperature is rapidly dropped from zero to minus 17 degrees, which keeps the ice crystals in the meat very short. This doesn’t affect the texture or taste, and it allows consumers to buy in bulk, stock up their freezers, and have the convenience of high-quality meat without worrying about expiry dates.”

Red Ruby Beef – A Devon Native Breed

James and Will started their beef production with Red Ruby cattle. “We wanted to create the best beef, so we chose the native breed, Red Devon, which has been voted the best beef in the world. It’s a great fit for us because it’s native to Devon and thrives on our extensive, natural system. Most importantly, it produces incredibly rich, flavourful meat.

“We use the butchery owned by our family. Our website showcases what we do: we combine outstanding sourcing on the farm with the skill of a highly experienced butchery team. The meat is prepared professionally, dry-aged, cut into the right portions, and then blast-frozen at its optimal point. It arrives at your door the next day, or on a selected day, in a recyclable box with wool lining.

“A big part of our future is finding other producers who fit our ethos so that customers can come to Beacon Farms, trust where their food comes from, and feel connected to the source. We connect people directly with the farmer and what’s happening on the farm.

“It’s going really well,” says James. “We’re regularly distributing parcels to customers everywhere, from Cornwall to Edinburgh.”

A Vertical Supply Model – From Field to Freezer

It has been done before – there are other internet-based outfits in the UK running meat businesses along similar lines. But few – if indeed any – have such a vertical supply model, which means the three Vinings have control and can apply their expertise to every part of the process from the pastures to the finished box that customers receive.

The siblings are immensely proud of their regional West Country heritage, and with all those generations behind them, and with their obvious passion and intelligence, Beacon Farms looks set to become a major player in a trade which sees the highest quality meat being delivered to our homes. More white vans on the road, perhaps, but carrying the best Britain has to offer.

👉 Visit Beacon Farms to find out more.

Photos: Nick Hook