TIME 11 AM - 3PM
Last week, was the National Gluten Free Awareness Week, and
Patsy Pimlott, Educational Co-Ordinator of Park Hill Farm, Hales, was surprised
to find that there are no gluten free co-ordinators listed for either Cheshire
or Shropshire; with the North Stafforshire group being the closest listed to
Market Drayton.
With this is mind, and having a family member who is
coeliac, Park Hill Farm has decided to make their OPEN FARM SUNDAY EVENT, on June
17th, substantially gluten free.
Gluten free,
vegetarian, and non-vegetarian picnics
are available to pre-order in advance of the event. Where possible, the picnic will contain
Park Hill’s own ingredients, and any bought-in ingredients will be gluten free.
Patsy said “having a
coeliac in the family is not a rare occurrence today, with more than one in every
thousand being the possible figures for coeliac diagnosis. Going out for the day can be a nightmare for
parents of young children, as so many places are not aware of the cross
contamination issues, such as breaded fish being cooked in the same oil as
chips.
“This year’s Open Farm Sunday is also FATHERS’ DAY, and so we thought it would be a nice touch for
families to be able to treat dad on the day to a picnic.
“With this in mind, following our own very traumatic
experience at the Titanic Exhibition in Belfast ,
we decided to support the Gluten Free
Awareness Campaign with Park Hill’s Open Farm Sunday Event. The
farm has been praised for the work it does with the community, and as the
current COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE NATIONAL
AWARD WINNERS FOR ENTERPRISE, it seems this is one further way we can give families
a happy time”.
Open Farm Sunday is a national day across the UK ,
and so far, more than 200 farms have pledged to open their doors to the
public. A major attraction to Park Hill’s Open Farm Sunday event is the “Cake,
Bake and Take” stand. Ex-nurse,
Sheila Pimlott, helps families mix the cake ingredients (all produced in farms
in the UK ),
explaining where flour comes from etc, and then each child bakes their own
cakes to take home. This year the flour will be gluten free, and the cake stall will
have a gluten free selection as well. As usual, Park Hill will be opening the
farm with families not incurring an entrance fee.
Patsy is also interested in hearing from other coeliacs who
would be interested in forming a group in the Market Drayton area. Further information for the Open Day can be
found at www.parkhillfarm.blogspot.com
and messages can be left on the new Park Hill Farm Face Book page, BOTH OF WHICH WILL BE UPDATED REGULARLY.
Information
Patsy and John Pimlott are involved with
Park Hill Farm
- the current holder of the Countryside
Alliance National Award for Enterpise.
Winning this award for the way
they farm their traditional breeds of cattle and pigs; the meat they sell at
the farm shop, and the high quality educational visits and free open days they
offer to the public.
Currently, the farm is in the last 4 of the Midlands area RSPB Award.
The farm is 130 acres of grassland, and its hedgerows, ponds
and farm animals will all be playing a part in their Open Farm Sunday.
Patsy and John Pimlott have one daughter, Amelia, who is 11
and she has been a coeliac since the age of 3.
Contact Details
Patsy Pimlott
PR and Educational Visits Co-ordinator
Park Hill Farm
Hales
Market Drayton
Tel 01630 652178
(new) Face Book page
Park Hill Farm
Twitter @ppimlott
EMAIL beef@parkhillfarm.co.uk
Web blog www.parkhillfarm.blogspot.com
John Pimlott
Farmer/Events Co-ordinator
as above
Tel 07966 460312
Coeliac UK
can be contacted through
Open Farm Sunday can be contacted through
I find the awareness isn't too bad in Stafford... I mean comparably... I am not coeliac myself but as you know from our meetings at the farmers market, my research into nutrition has caused me to avoid gluten like the plague (there are so many deleterious properties and its simply not worth it for overall health).
ReplyDeleteHaving lost over 7 stone myself and improved/cured all my health problems I have found gluten/vegetable oils/msg to be some of the most troublesome ingredients in our diets today. Unfortunately there is little to no awareness for general health, only for acute reactions (while of course I support awareness for both).
Petros :)
ps. one of our best resources for health is most definitely farms/shops like you guys who are aware of the issues. thank you