Another First For Goodwood - First Racecourse To Go Organic
20/05/05

Organic meat from the Goodwood Estate's newly-converted organic Home Farm will be available on all racedays at Goodwood Racecourse this year.

Goodwood believes it is the first of the UK's 59 racecourses to offer organically-reared meat on its menu.

One year on from achieving full organic status, the Goodwood farm is supplying Goodwood Racecourse and its on-site catering specialists, Payne and Gunter, with freshly prepared organic beef.

Throughout the season, various beef dishes will be served in two of the course's restaurants, the Charlton Hunt and Horsewalk Carvery Restaurants, both of which are situated in the Members' Richmond Enclosure.

Covering 2,800 acres on this 12,000-acre Estate - host to the world renowned annual Festival of Speed and Goodwood Revival motor sport events - the farm includes beef, sheep, pigs, dairy and cereal crops.

It is the largest organic lowland farm in the UK and the only organic farm in Europe feeding all its livestock 100% with organic feed produced on the farm, ie nothing extra gets brought in to feed the animals.

The farm recently scooped first prize in the Southern Region in a nationally-run competition to find “Britain''s Most Beautiful Farm 2004".

Rod Fabricius, Managing Director and Clerk of the Course at Goodwood, commented: “With a reputation for firsts - we were the first racecourse to have BBC Radio commentary in 1947, the first to use a public address system in 1952 and the first to stage so called “Enterprise Fixtures”, we are delighted to have yet another one.

“This follows hot on the heels of us winning the 2004 Neil Wyatt Best Kept UK Flat Racecourse Award for the third time in six years (1999, 2003 & 2004).”

Michael Thomas, Payne and Gunter's General Manager at Goodwood Racecourse, commented “Head Chef, Leon Smith, and his team of chefs are delighted to add Goodwood''s new organic beef to their race-day offering for 2005. This will extend the choices available on our exciting menu selection and we are hoping to introduce more Goodwood organic products in due course.”

Goodwood's organic meat will also be available at this year's Festival of Speed (24-26 June) and Goodwood Revival (16-18 September).