8th Dec 2011 - 00:00
Abstract
A group of Prestige London chefs recently visited an organic turkey farm to see how their Christmas turkeys were being cared for in the run up to the festive period.
Led by Mark Parfait, head of food development for Prestige London which is part of Sodexo, the chefs from sites across London were treated to an insight into the importance of good farming practices – both on the flavour of ingredients and Sodexo's ability to trace products to their source.
This Christmas, Prestige London will cook and serve 300 turkeys – all of which will be sourced from Lotland Farm in Ashford, Kent. The visit was part of Parfait's training and development plan for chefs across the Prestige London business.
Each year, the farm raises some 10,000 turkeys to meet the seasonal demand at Christmas. Nearly half of them are sold to Rare Butchers of Distinction – a Sodexo supplier and proud owners of London's oldest retail butcher, Allens of Mayfair, which supplies meat to the top chefs and restaurants in London.
Farm owner, John Howe, gave the chefs a full tour of his farm, starting with the holding pen where the young poults are kept for the first two weeks of their life through to the open field where the turkeys are free to roam.
Prestige London head chef at Brit Insurance, Sunil Varma said: "You really get a grasp of how the farmer at Lotland Farm values the quality of life of his turkeys and can see just what the term 'free range' means in a place like this. It was a great experience and I feel I now know so much more about the turkeys I will be serving over the Christmas period."
Mark Parfait said: "The visit provided our chefs with invaluable insight into the life of a free-range, organic turkey and it was great to see how well the turkeys we will be serving to our clients and customers across London are being looked after."
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