I discovered Farm To Fork when searching for an ethical producer of pork products. Whilst I try to reduce my meat intake, largely for environmental reasons, when I do consume it, I prefer to try to find ‘happy’ animals – granted, they are not so happy when dead, but still, knowing that they have lived a cage-free life, gives me a little solace.
Local Thai, Pirin, a chef who lived in Aberdeen for 20 years, returned to her home town with her Scottish husband, Calum, where she bought some land where she has a ‘hobby farm’ in the North, managing around 40 pigs at a time. At around 6 months old they are slaughtered and turned into the most delicious produce.
According to Calum, back in 2004, the Belgian government gifted His Majesty, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 16 Pietrain Pigs, which are the bloodline of the porky goodness we share with you today. They are reared on a diet of special feed, grass, loads of fruit and veg and organic matter and LOVE every part of the banana plant.
You can buy direct from the farm where the goods are shipped in cooled packaging. Each item may be purchased by the 500g quantity, but recently they have also included a breakfast pack (447 THB for 3, or 1310 THB for 10) which contains exactly the ingredients needed for a gut-busting, Scottish fry-up. Just add eggs or tomatoes (or both!). All of the items listed below are available for purchase individually or combined in the breakfast pack.
They have also had a recent rethink on their packaging to help reduce waste, so have done away with the polystyrene liner trays (except for the breakfast pack), which is great to see!
One of the most exciting things Farm to Fork has recently developed is their haggis. As any Scot will tell you, it is a serious challenge to find any decent haggis in this part of the world.
Haggis sausage, contains traditional barley and packs a punch. Besides the pepper, the recipe includes a smidgen of cayenne to really add a kick. I’m pretty sure that uninitiated Thais would get on board with this one, being a favourite blend of offally goodness and spice! Its distant cousin, the black pudding, spiced with white pepper and herbs, is an absolute winner too.
Tatty (potato) scones, another luxury in this part of the world (essentially a blend of mashed potatoes, seasoning and flour, moulded into a kind of pancake) have a subtle hint of chives and are perfect straight from the toaster with a dab of butter. Great with a big breakfast, or perfect for a lazy breakfast-in-bed, on their own.
Their recently developed Lorne sausage (or square sausage as we Scots call it), is traditionally a hideous, toxic pink with questionable origins of the ingredients. Farm to Fork’s product is a different beast altogether and is flavoured with herbs and salt, yet similarly to the traditionally known Lorne sausage, is perfect for a hangover. Hubby made ‘accidental’ stovies out of some, which worked brilliantly. N.B. Stovies is a Scottish ‘dish’ which is basically a mash up of potatoes and whatever other leftovers are in the fridge.
Farm to Fork’s delicious middle bacon is salted and cold smoked over coconut husks and local mango wood, giving a lovely effect. Some of the yummiest smoked bacon I’ve had.
Farm to Fork has two different types of link sausage, one Lincoln and one Cumberland. Both use a little rusk but are packed full of meat with no discernible gristle or fat, almost dry. Both flavoured well but uniquely different, using sage and thyme. They make for a great sausage casserole or 'Toad-in-the-Hole' for a quick and easy dinner.
The quality of the produce from Farm to Fork is undeniably excellent, and whilst the prices are higher than you will find in your local supermarket, the slight extra cost is absolutely worth it, both from a flavour perspective and supporting an ethical business, that doesn’t have their pigs squashed into the cruel traps, used in commercial, mass farming. It’s also nice to be able to speak with the farmers directly, where they can answer any specific questions, or make special requests.
Farm to Fork is currently expanding their facility, so will be able to increase their porcine numbers, whilst developing more culinary masterpieces, yet to come. Watch this space!
All prices and information can be found below.
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