Bringing Tourism and Farming Together

Siân Ellis meets CLA member Philippa Hughes who went into farming when many were getting out

"We went back into farming at a time of mass exodus. It was largely madness!" Philippa Hughes admits half jokingly, before explaining, "Even though we desperately wanted to farm, we always anticipated that the only way we could make it work was to underpin it with some other financial angle. Coming into it from tourism, we have seen that in order for farming to continue in some form or another in this country, you're going to have to increasingly see tourism leading it. There are lots of ways in which farming and tourism can work more closely together."

For the last 11 years Philippa and husband Sebastian have run Holne Chase Hotel, a 16 double bedroom country house hotel near Ashburton, just inside the Dartmoor National Park. Philippa comes originally from a hospitality background and is a Director of The Dartmoor Tourist Association, while Sebastian was raised on a farm and spent his early career working in agriculture. It was two years ago this August that the couple bought nearby Holwell Farm.

"We had been looking for a property of ideally 20 acres to keep horses on, but when we came across Holwell we were blown away by the prospect of what we could do with it," Philippa says.

The 500-acre farm had been in decline for several years and had no boundaries capable of holding livestock. But the Hughes entered into the Environmentally Sensitive Area Scheme with Defra, which enabled them to fund the resurrection of drystone walls, fencing and hanging gates. They stocked the farm with predominantly saddleback pigs and they also have a herd of Belted Galloway cattle with bull.

"We wanted rare breeds and no-one else on Dartmoor was breeding pigs," Philippa says. "They were the most viable option for us. We didn't have time to invest in a herd with a long turn around and pigs' gestation period is just three months, three weeks and three days. Also, because much of the land was in a state of decay, pigs have been excellent at rooting undergrowth and cleansing the earth to make it suitable for grass grazing."

They decided to underpin the farming business by "going the holiday cottages route", converting granite stone farm buildings dating from the early 1900s into four self-catering units. Set between the famous landmarks of Hay Tor and Widecombe-in-the-Moor, with panoramic views of sights like the Becka Valley and Hound Tor, the cottages are ideally located for rural escapes and have proved instantly popular.

"The buildings were structurally sound and not listed, which kept the cost of conversion down," Philippa says. "We worked closely with the National Park Authority to identify what would be possible to do with the farm. Because we did that from day one, we had more chance of planning permission.

"It still wasn't easy and we split the opinion of the National Park. Those who opposed the cottages wanted to see the buildings retained as they were - and if they decayed further, that was inevitable. They didn't want to see any real, viable, sustainable diversification. Fortunately, others were more visionary and more practically oriented; they could see the potential of bringing income into the National Park via tourism. Also, they saw that what we did could be a good showcase for how to make farms viable in the future."

The Hughes have additionally built a new house on the site of an old bungalow, erected some new farm buildings, and they have put in an application to convert two remaining barns into holiday cottages. A pretty substantial programme in less than two years.

Whilst underpinning their own farm enterprise with holiday cottages, Philippa believes that collaboration and co-operation with other local businesses is key to making things work. "You need to identify your own strengths and weaknesses, be happy to work in collaboration and not always see others as competition," she says. "For example, we're on a very high farm here and it's great for farming calves to be reared and grown. Then they can be sent down to our neighbouring farmer in the valley, where it is easier to finish them."

The Hughes are making the most of many synergies between farming and tourism, too, establishing mutually beneficial networks among local businesses. They provide locally sourced Welcome Packs in the self-catering cottages and promote Dartmoor Breakfasts of local eggs and bacon in Holne Chase Hotel. Their recent spring menus in the restaurant have been carefully thought out to feature mainly fare that has travelled no more than six food miles, with the balance of perishable produce - fish, fruit, vegetables and herbs - having travelled a maximum of 25miles.

"Increasingly, people who come to stay do appreciate the effort put into sourcing local produce," Philippa says. "There's a growing momentum of interest in traceability and consistency of quality. However, people don't always seem to cope with the idea of seasonality. For example, people ask why there isn't spring lamb on the menu. Most of our lambs aren't born then and aren't available until summer. So you have to change perceptions and educate people, where you can, into new names for things, like 'heather lamb' - it's finished up on the heather and has a lovely, sweet flavour."

Dartmoor Tourist Association aims to set up a web link for its 300-plus members - businesses ranging from accommodation providers and restaurants to corporate training organisations - to provide monthly bulletins from farmers with any offers they have. "It's to help everyone capitalise on seasonal highs and lows and to encourage tourism providers to celebrate the seasons," Philippa says. "That all encourages visitors to make the link between food and landscape." She also sits on the committee of Slow Food South West, launched at Holne Chase Hotel in 2003, which promotes regionality.

Holwell Farm's pork is sold through 'Tor to Tor', a delivery service Philippa runs direct to Dartmoor residents, pubs, restaurants and businesses, and as far afield as Plymouth. Three other local farms have joined the venture. Customers can buy not only half animals, but also small joints and cuts. In time, the Hughes want to establish their own cutting room at Holwell Farm (they are currently reliant on the local abattoir), to develop specialist butchery like boned and rolled joints, smoked products and different flavoured sausages.

Tor to Tor also sells produce through the monthly Widecombe village market which Philippa and like-minded colleagues have recently initiated. The market has been well attended by both residents and visitors to the area. "It features a range of Dartmoor branded products, from speciality breads, local meat and fruit juices to Dartmoor pottery," she says. "It's all about brand awareness and giving people something they can take away that is genuinely from Dartmoor."

In the last 11 years, Holne Chase Hotel has built up a niche market catering for people who expect high standards of accommodation and food - and also want to bring their dogs. Around 55% of guests bring canine companions. Philippa is now applying the same principle to Holwell Cottages and she hopes to expand the concept to include guests who want to bring horses.

TV cameras recently captured much of the development on Holwell Farm, after a producer lunching at the Hughes' hotel was struck by their chutzpah and energy in plunging back into farming. "When the series, Forgotten Farm, was broadcast on ITV West Country earlier this year, it broke viewing figure records," Philippa says. "It brought to the fore a lot of rural issues and we're hoping there will be a second series incorporating a lot more."

As to further plans at Holwell, Philippa says, "The only long-term plan is to stay and genuinely farm here as long as we can, and bring up our family giving them an understanding of what life is about in a place like Dartmoor."

Forgotten Farm is repeated on Discovery Real Time, 9pm Saturday nights for 10 weeks from the beginning of June.

More information:

Holne Chase Hotel Dartmoor Devon, Holwell Farm Cottages Dartmoor Devon

email info@holwelldartmoor.co.uk and info@holne-chase.co.uk

Tel. for both 01364 631471 or fax 01364 631453

© Siân Ellis