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Ginsters Cornish Wheat - Sustainable agriculture

This is an exciting and unique opportunity. Over recent years there has been a growing need for food processors, such as Ginsters and farmers to work together. Ginsters have developed what is probably the only supply chain of its type in the UK.

Mike HamblyChairman - Kernow Grain

As a philosophy, Ginsters involvement with primary food producers makes good business sense as it connects them with their source, develops their food values and helps to create unique quality advantages as a food manufacturer.  It also fits with the ethos of their parent company, Samworth Brothers, which has a policy of supporting the local communities in which it operates.

Processes

With the removal of direct subsidies for crops and the move to the Single Farm payment (2003 Common Agricultural Policy reform), farmers, now more than ever, require connection to a market offering dependability year on year. 

As part of its brand proposition ‘Cornish Through & Through’, Ginsters had developed a policy of sourcing its key ingredients such as beef, potatoes, onions and swedes from local farms in the south west. As a natural extension of this strategy, the company wished to use milling wheat grown in Cornwall to produce the flour for its pastry products. However, when initial enquiries were made it was found that access to milling wheat in Cornwall was non-existent.

Up until the Second World War milling wheat had been grown for the population of Devon and Cornwall. This proved that it could be possible to reinstate this crop, given appropriate incentives and the application of modern supply chain thinking. 

The local dimension is an added benefit, encouraging greater collaboration with the end user and helping the supplier to become more competitive in the marketplace. In 2006 Ginsters purchased 2800 tonnes of authentic Cornish wheat. There is now a total of 1100 acres of wheat being grown for Ginsters, across nine different farms, with the potential to expand further.

Impact

  • Ginsters believes that schemes such as this make a big difference to their primary supply base and associated benefits.
  • Ginsters continue to develop key areas of supply across the region, benefiting Ginsters and their key supply partners.
  • Working with Cornish farmers Ginsters has encouraged reinstatement of wheat crops providing a guaranteed market for the produce.
  • Not only does growing wheat locally make good business sense but it also provides a potential new source of economic regeneration in Cornwall.
  • Ginster's next target is to reach 4000 tonnes over the next two years. Currently 35% of Ginsters ingredient requirements are sourced in Cornwall. Ginster’s target is for 50% to be locally sourced.

See also