Family business: Glenilen Farm, dedicated to ‘doing it right’
Valerie and Alan Kingston of Glenilen Farm, who have built a very successful fresh dairy consumer products business.
Like many a worthy plan, the original idea for Glenilen Farm began at a kitchen table.
Valerie and Alan Kingston were both from farming backgrounds, and when they married and settled down at his family farm in Drimoleague the idea that there might be a viable business in fresh dairy products began to take root.
Having studied Food Science and Technology at UCC followed by two years volunteering in Burkina Faso, Valerie began experimenting with milk from the farm and producing cheesecakes and soft cheese for eventual sale at the farmers market in Bantry.
"We became accidental entrepreneurs," Valerie explained of the kitchen table project that subsequently grew into what is today a substantial local enterprise. "Alan thought I was mad spending £100 on two big pots from Roches Stores, but they started our business. We were working out of the farmhouse kitchen until 2002 and I had three children during that time. It was so busy that we even set up a swing in the kitchen and would be pushing the kids as we blended."
Any lingering scepticism Alan might have entertained toward the viability of the enterprise quickly disappeared when that same £100 came back with interest from farmers market sales over a single bank holiday weekend: "That’s when I really took notice, to see what could be made from a small bit of milk. Farmers in Ireland produce this incredible raw milk from their grass-fed cows, but most never see what it’s made into.
"To see the little pot with yoghurt in it was amazing, it was hard to believe it was my cows producing it. I didn’t want to go to the farmers market initially but I really got a taste for it. Dealing directly with consumers and hearing their feedback every week gave me more excitement than the money."
Ironically, Valerie’s original choice of career path had no connection to either yoghurt or business: "I wanted to do physiotherapy, but only got enough points to do Science at UCC", she recalled. "In the end, I made the best of it."
The food journey that began tentatively at the kitchen table a quarter century ago continues today through ongoing product development resulting in an ever-broadening consumer offering. Glenilen Farm was the first to launch yoghurt in glass jars and has the first kefir product on the Irish market, which includes 14 live cultures.
Their product range includes a ‘Gut Health’ yoghurt, Natural live yoghurt, 0% Fat and kids yoghurt. "Valerie revolutionised our thinking and made us look at things outside the box," Alan says.
Additional lines include cheesecakes, country butter, clotted cream and lemonade.
"We are very focused too on the constant evolution of the brand and the desire to add goodness to the products. We are constantly looking at ways to innovate, while staying focused on using simple ingredients."
Glenilen Farm currently processes up to 100,000 litres of milk weekly, churning out a quarter of a million pots of yoghurt every seven days. The brand is stocked by Tesco, Dunnes Stores and SuperValu in Ireland as well as Waitrose and Sainsbury’s in Britain.
The couple hired their first employee in 2002, the same year they built their first dairy on the farm and moved from selling at farmers markets to supermarkets and stores.
They upgraded their facilities with a significant investment in 2008, moving from direct delivery to a centralised distribution model. All products — which include yoghurts, cheesecakes, butter, cream and cottage cheese — are based around Drinagh-supplied milk.
Glenilen Farm now employs 50 people, with 80% of the trade in retail and 20% in food service, mainly in top end hotels and restaurants.
"We have had great support locally from people who saw potential in the product, such as John Field in SuperValu Skibbereen and Eugene Scally in Clonakilty. I well remember our first delivery there, when we got a red duplicate book and were shown how to write our first invoice."
Glenilen Farm began selling into Northern Ireland in January 2021, with that market now accounting for 10% of sales. Currently stocked in Tesco, SuperValu NI and a range of independents, Glenilen has plans to grow this further over the next three years.
"We started exporting to Northern Ireland in January last year and we are now growing in that market. We are delighted to have our brand available across the island of Ireland, and have developed some key relationships with partners in the market and are seeing business grow from strength to strength."
The Northern Irish market accounted for 40% of Glenilen Farm’s total export revenues, with clotted cream the top seller. Some 50% of the sales into Northern Ireland are made up of the glass jar range, which is synonymous with Glenilen Farm and was the first yoghurt launched.
"The success of the glass jar yoghurt range in the Northern Irish market could be attributed to the interest by consumers in sustainability and the ability to re-use and up-cycle the glass jar."
Alan and Valerie are passionate about sustainability and have invested in solar panels, rainwater collection and heat recovery systems, planting native trees and using only locally sourced milk.
"This is a big focus for the company and something that will be at the core of what we do for many years to come."
Origin Green is Bord Bia’s sustainability programme for the food and drink industry, helping Irish businesses improve and communicate their sustainability initiatives with customers and stakeholders for full transparency.
"We are proud to have obtained Gold Membership within the programme, which is reserved for companies whose sustainability efforts excel in several areas, including packaging, emissions, raw material sourcing, waste reduction, water efficiency, health and nutrition, energy efficiency, and social sustainability."
Sustainability is in the background of every decision made for Glenilen. "We are just going endeavour to do the best we can and we are very conscious of the land for the time we have it and being able to pass it on to the next generation in better condition. We do energy recovery, solar panels, water harvesting and planting trees. The farm is a great place for sustainability initiatives."
Growing up on their respective farms, Valerie and Alan were raised to be conscious of their social responsibility and impact on the environment. "Doing what’s right comes naturally. We can’t change the world, but we can change our small corner, and we take great care to do our bit right here in West Cork.
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