Out and About - Winter 2021

Out & About feature

free range and have been responsibly reared.” Feeding is an important part of the process – obviously, you might say – but it’s important that they get the balance right. Edward explains that the turkeys are kept in groups according to their weight. “People want different sized turkeys and we have to make sure we can meet demand. The most popular weight is probably around 7kg, but some of them go up to 11kg. “We keep them in separate groups so that we can easily provide each of them with the right balance of food and water to achieve the best weight.” While most of the turkeys are female, there are a few stags – male – turkeys. The family explain that the meat is exactly the same now, although historically the male birds were a bit tougher. “The industry has learned so much about how to look after the turkeys and the best diet for them, you can’t actually tell the difference – although you do get more dark meat with a stag.” Similarly, although the Walters supply white turkeys, they don’t have very many. “Historically they were the fashionable birds to have,

A white turkey from the early days

because the meat was lighter, but again there is hardly any difference in the texture nowadays, but some people still like them so we keep a few.” I was curious to know if the turkey feathers could be put to use for anything? “There is one person who comes and takes a few bags away for their arrows – they practice archery and like to refresh their quills each year. And another lady takes some for craft classes with children. But mainly we use them for bedding for the cattle – it’s like they have their own duvets, nice and warm to lie on, so they do serve a purpose.” As we get closer to Christmas it will be all hands on deck, although like many businesses that

Edward Walters rely on seasonal manual labour, the Walters say there is a shortage of people available to work and it will mean longer hours for them. “It’s pretty manic in the two to three weeks leading up to Christmas,” says Helen. “We just have to put our heads down and keep going. It’s very much a team effort from the farm workers to the delivery drivers, everybody has their part to play.” Everything is done on the farm. The birds are prepared to go out to the customers on site – whether individual orders or butchers asking for batches – and dispatched packed and ready to sell. So what has changed in the 50 years since Phillip and Julia bought their first 500 turkeys? “The rearing of the birds hasn’t changed a bit,” they say. “It’s just that we’ve got a lot more of them!

“Preparing them for sale is probably where there’s been a bit of change because of developments in machinery that can help with the process. “ With nearly 10,000 turkeys to prepare and send out, they are glad of that help. “We’re proud of maintaining the tradition that our parents established,” says Helen. “We recently received 2 stars from the Great Taste Awards, so we know we’re still getting it right and, the best accolade of all, our customer come back to us year after year.” It looks like the Walters intend to supply Christmas dinner for families across the region and further afield for many years to come and in 50 more years, who knows how many turkeys will be roaming Bower Farm. n To find out more about Walters Turkeys visit www.waltersturkeys.co.uk

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O&A WINTER 2021