Lord Newborough, Owner of Rhug Estate near Corwen, north Wales, has been announced as Slow Food Cymru / Wales’ Person of the Year for creating the first drive thru on a farm in the UK.
Nia Williams, Director of Slow Food Cymru / Wales, nominated Lord Newborough for the unique award. She said, “Rhug’s drive thru is as far from fast food as it can be. We salute the work Lord Newborough has done. He’s looked at the large fast food chains and thought – do you know what – I can’t join them but I can beat them. This fits in completely with the whole ethos of the Slow Food movement. Lord Newborough is Wales’ answer to Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food in Italy.”
Slow Food is a global, grassroots movement with thousands of members around the world that links the pleasure of food with a commitment to community and the environment. It was founded in 1989 in Italy by Carlo Petrini in response to the fast food chain, MacDonalds, opening near the Spanish Steps in Rome. For more details about the organisation visit the website: https://www.slowfood.org.uk/sc…
Lord Newborough, Owner of Rhug Estate said, “I am honoured to have been chosen for this award. In this busy world we live in I recognise that not everyone has the time to stop and enjoy a delicious meal in our Bistro or at the take away, so the new Drive Thru complements the facilities we already. It provides an easy solution to the hungry traveller who wants to get back on their journey on the busy A5 where we are situated, without delay. Thanks to all those who have supported us since we opened the Drive Thru in the summer, we’ve had a lot of positive feedback from customers.”
At the heart of Rhug is Lord Newborough’s commitment to an organic lifestyle. Rhug Farm is self-contained and a true ‘field to plate’ operation applying the highest standard of sustainability. Using the most sustainable farming practices Rhug prides itself on superior tasting meat products from the north Wales countryside. The organic farming enterprise extends to two farms and has grown over the past 20 years to nearly 8,000 acres. Organic beef, lamb, pork, deer, bison, chicken, turkey, goose, and game when in season, are reared on the farms. Rhug Farm Shop stocks almost 3,000 products from local suppliers and small businesses. Of course, this also includes the sale of our own products. The Bison Grill is located just next to the farm shop and creates dishes that are made with seasonal produce using Rhug’s own products where possible. For those who are on a much needed pit-stop, we have our On The Hoof takeaway service. This takeaway isn’t your average roadside burger van, nestled next to our award-winning farm shop, we use our own organic meat and as much fresh produce as we can, to create an unforgettable experience on-the-go. In line with Rhug Estate’s sustainability policy all the packaging used at the Drive Thru is compostable. Everything from sandwich containers, hot drinks cups, stirrers, cutlery and the straws.
Lord Newborough is pictured receiving his Certificate for ‘Person of the year’ from Slow Food Cymru / Wales’ Director, Nia Williams.