Tag Archive for: farm shop

Morton's milk bottle

Morton’s Milk – “Producing high-quality milk for the local community seemed like the perfect fit”

Profile

Brand Name: Morton’s Milk

Name of owner(s)/manager(s): David and Gillian Morton

Product(s): Morton’s Milk

Location: Morton’s Milk Farm Shop – Auchinbay Farm & the Ayrshire Food Hub

For the creamiest scrambled eggs, frothiest cappuccinos, and silky-smooth milkshakes, farm-fresh milk makes all the difference. Morton’s Milk from Ochiltree, East Ayrshire, is home to 260 free-range dairy cows, milked three times a day, guaranteeing freshness and fantastic flavour. Established in 2020, this family business has succeeded through the pandemic, owing to a clear and close adherence to their belief that “quality is key”.

Morton's reusable glass milk bottle
There’s something vintage about a glass milk bottle

Tell us a bit about what you do

Morton’s Milk is a family run business situated in Ochiltree East Ayrshire. Situated at Auchinbay Farm, we milk 260 dairy cows, three times a day. Our cows are free-range and graze on lush green grass for around six months of the year. The milk produced is pasteurised onsite and is non-homogenised to give our customers a great taste experience. Morton’s Milk Farm Shop sells our semi-skimmed and whole milk through a self-serve vending machine system along with a fantastic range of fresh local produce and tasty, sweet treats.

How did the business come about?

As a family we have always been interested in diversifying. We live in the heart of the Ayrshire Milk field, producing high quality milk for the local community seemed like a perfect fit. As Gillian has worked in the food industry throughout her career, she has always been keen to open a farm shop. Combining farm fresh milk and locally-sourced quality produce was the perfect combination. Morton’s Milk Farm Shop then became a reality through our acceptance of a Scottish Leader Grant.

What traits have been essential to the success of your business and why?

Quality is key. Providing customers with our “Simply Delicious” semi-skimmed and whole milk along with selling the very best produce from local suppliers in the farm shop.

Morton's Milk vending machine
David at Ayrshire Food Hub with one of their vending machines and some fresh milkshakes

What is your daily work schedule?

The farm shop is open from 7am-9pm daily. Our cows are milked at 3:30am, 12 o’clock and 7pm. Pasteurisation of both whole and semi-skimmed milk is done daily and then placed in our milk vending machines at both our Farm Shop and the Ayrshire Food Hub Farm Shop.

What challenges have you faced?

Being a new business during the Covid pandemic provided challenges in ensuring both our customers and family were safe. 

What do you like most about what you do and why?

Providing high-quality products to the local community and receiving fantastic feedback from our customers makes all the hard work worthwhile. Morton’s Milk Farm Shop and our vending machine system are new concepts. Customer’s love shopping in a different way!

Milk vending machine at Ayrshire Food Hub
Gillian delivering milk first thing in the morning

How does Scotland or Scottishness affect your work?

It is key that the Farm Shop stocks the best of local Ayrshire produce, along with quality products from across Scotland. Currently we stock products from 26 Ayrshire suppliers.

What serving suggestions would you give to customers who have bought your product?

Milk is best served chilled.

Find out more about Mortons’ Milk and their amazing products at:

https://mortonsmilk.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/mortonsmilk

Ayrshire Shop Sign

The Doors are Now Open

Last week we opened our farm shop doors to the public for the very first time!

We are so pleased to say that we have been very busy serving a lot of happy customers. The feedback we have received has been incredibly positive. We are also grateful for customers’ suggestions of other products.

It has been great to find out what our customers really love. Our gorgeous fresh strawberries have been flying out the door, and we have had to make some emergency calls to restock our cheeses!

What’s really promising is the amount of return customers that we’ve seen. There really is no better compliment than a customer who looks forward to coming back to see us. This has just stressed the importance of talking to customers. It has helped us understand what they are looking for, and how shopping with us fits into their day.

Another thing that has proved important (as we knew it would), is the connection between a new venture and the communities round about it. We have had customers from Kilmarnock, Ayr, Galston, Darvel, Hurlford, Mauchline, Cumnock, and everywhere in between.

Hearing good things coming from each of these communities has been hugely encouraging, and it has let us know we are reaching the people that we are trying to reach. We want to serve these communities and become a part of their weekly (if not daily) lives.

Farm shop

The farm shop has allowed us to focus our ideas in relation to the café. We will start serving breakfast rolls from the farm shop, along with tea and coffee, for those customers who are on the move or wanting to pick something simple up before work.

Following this, we will get the café open in around a month’s time. This is when our incredibly talented chef will be able to show off our local ingredients in the most delicious and imaginative ways possible. From hearty dishes like steak pie or fish and chips, to other, equally satisfying bites like our chef’s-cut burger.

The café will serve up Rocket Monkey coffee, created in a small, artisan roastery in South Ayrshire. Deep, rich and delicious – the coffee is just one of the products that we are championing at the Hub. And thankfully, we have so many other products to be proud of here in Ayrshire.

Stocked shop shelves

Not Long Now…

The shelves of the farm shop are being stacked right this minute, the outside space is getting a good working over, the kitchen is ready to get up and running, the coffee machine is being put through its paces by the staff. It’s fair to say we’re on the home straight!

Although we had planned a grand opening where we would be able to have a real celebration, the current situation has put paid to that idea. We look forward to the days where we can see you all in person in a thriving yet relaxed setting. Our cosy café or sun-drenched outside space will provide the perfect setting for just that.

Opening the Farm Shop

In the meantime, we are very excited about our community-run farm shop opening this Wednesday (28th). There you can buy all sorts of amazing local produce. Kitchen staples and indulgent treats will all be available. Fruit and veg, jams and chutneys, cereals, chocolates, cheeses, biscuits, and everything in between.

The Team is Growing

We have also taken on new staff, which feels like a big step in the progress of the Hub. After all, they will be a huge part of the project. Some will be waiting tables and serving customers in the shop, others will be out and about in the community continuing our work within the local area.

With our team growing, we will be able to achieve a lot more. This growing team and the Hub building will provide a local amenity that simply wasn’t there before. Opportunities for more people within the community has gone along with the promotion of social integration within that same community.

By paying us a visit, you will see, not just how much our project has developed, but how much the Ayrshire food scene has developed.

We can’t wait to get open and start serving the community like we had always planned.

Address

Crossroads, Hurlford
Kilmarnock, Ayrshire
KA1 5JQ

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We have been successful in being awarded a grant from the Ayrshire Rural & Islands Ambition Fund (ARIA) for maintenance. Our plan of action as to how we will spend the maintenance fund, is needed repairs to small areas of the timber floor in the Café to prevent trip hazards and repair damaged areas to the walls of the Café caused by chair backs and hangings on the walls to freshen up the appearance of the Café and the environment for our customers to enjoy even more.