News - Ice Cream Company Branches Out
Objective One press release
A well known family run dairy business on the Lizard is expanding rapidly supported by several strands of Objective One investment.
Roskilly's, at St Keverne, is best known for its delicious organic ice cream. But it is increasing its range of products to ensure year round business and has just launched a new product - organic, pro-biotic yogurt. The yogurt, which comes in natural, gooseberry and raspberry flavours, was showcased at last week's Organic South West show, in Bristol.
The company received direct Objective One investment in 2004 (£166,000 of European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund with a matching amount from Defra) to build larger production and storage facilities and buy equipment. It has also received support from Objective One gateway fund Organic South West to develop products, including fudge (launched in 2005), Jersey milk (launched in April 2007) and the new yogurt. Other products include clotted cream, jams, apple juice and chutneys.
And now Marco Spiezia has been employed as Sales and Marketing Executive under the Unlocking Cornish Potential project, which places graduates with businesses in the region and provides support for up to one year.
"Part of the reason I am here is to spread knowledge about the business," explained Marco. "Roskilly's is well recognised in Cornwall but only for ice cream. That is good because it means people know we have a quality product. But we have a lot more products which people don't know about."
Marco is also tasked with expanding the business within Cornwall as well as ensuring core customers remain satisfied in an increasingly competitive market.
"The more time I spend with customers the more I realise there are two different markets - Cornwall and elsewhere," Marco added. "Outside Cornwall the word 'organic' can be used as a marketing tool as it means well made and healthy. In Cornwall however many people are more sceptical about organic food so our key words are 'made on the farm' and 'made locally'.
"What we do here is truly simple. We have always tried to make ice cream like you would at home so there are no stabilisers, colourants or preservatives - you just don't need them. Cornwall is changing and people from London and elsewhere are coming down and buying property. Why? Because they remember their parents coming here for holidays and they remember the tastes of food so we try to keep our products like they used to be.
"The yogurt is a great example of that - using our Jersey milk we have managed to make it zero fat but it tastes extremely rich."
David Rodda, Cornwall Agricultural Council spokesperson, said: "Roskilly's is an example of a farming business that embarked on adding value to their milk as a form of diversification when it was not common to do so. The fact that they continue to grow and develop their business and continue to innovate via the introduction of new products is an encouraging sign and an example to others. By engaging with the UCP initiative they are proving that the farming and food industry has a lot to offer graduates and is a positive career choice."