McDonalds Open Farm project kicks off

Maiden Castle beef farm in Dorchester was the first McDonalds supplier to open its doors to the public last week as the food chain seeks to highlight top quality British produce ahead of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Barrangary Farm near Glasgow opened its doors to the public this week.

Farmer Richard Hoskin, from Maiden Castle, was keen to tell visitors why British farms were ‘great’.

“We aim to minimise our impact on the environment and be as self-sustained as possible, so we grow our own grain which provides the feed for our cattle.

“We have also introduced our own breeding programme which enables us to create consistently high quality cuts of beef whilst maintaining high standards of animal welfare,” he said.

McDonalds sources 55 per cent of all its food from 17,500 farms across Britain and Ireland and makes sure 100 per cent of all beef, pork, eggs and milk are local.

The famous US chain is set to serve millions of meals to athletes and the general public during the Olympic Games.

Nick Hindle, a member of McDonald’s UK’s leadership team, said: “The farms supplying the Olympics are standard bearers in terms of exacting quality and welfare standards and we will promote the best back to all within the farming community.

“We want people to see the pride they take in growing and rearing high quality produce.”

The farm visits are part of a wider programme to share best practice across the farming community. In addition, McDonald’s will:

• Formally share best practice from farms supplying the Olympics with the rest of the farming community
• Feature farms supplying the Olympics in national television advertising
• Continue to support agricultural shows and awards that reward and recognise the best 
• Work with a range of organisations to use the Olympic Games as a global shop window for British and Irish produce

Members of the public can enrol for farm visits at www.mcdonalds.co.uk/openfarms

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