PROFILE Scarff’s Farms
Arable growers seize grape opportunity
Judith Tooth visits a Suffolk arable farm where a new vineyard is set for a sparkling future
public to Open Farm Sunday on 9 June. At last year’s event more than 600 people visited their Suf- folk farm at Combs, Stowmarket. “It’s good to open the doors and invite people in to see what’s hap- pening,” says Stuart. There’s a lot of local interest in farming and it’s a great opportunity to promote British agriculture.” This year, local producers in-
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cluding beekeepers, a brewery and a farm shop, are taking part along- side many of the farm’s agricultur- al suppliers, and the rural police team. The family is putting on a barbecue and the village church community is providing teas. The vineyard – at 8ha, one of the biggest in Norfolk and Suffolk – was established following a deci- sion to diversify the farm’s income. “We had to look at diversifying, to be less reliant on global mar-
new vineyard is sure to be an attraction when Stuart Scarff and his family welcome the
kets,” says Stuart’s son, James, who returned to the family farm to manage the new enterprise in 2016, having spent the previous 10 years working in field-scale vegetable production on the Suf- folk coast. “Chicken production was a pos-
sibility, but that’s based around the price of wheat and under the control of a few producers. “Dad had been interested in vineyards for two or three years, and went to a farm innovation ex- hibition at the NEC … that led to a year’s course at Plumpton Col- lege, one day a month, learning the basics of establishing and man- aging a vineyard. We could see the wine industry was a massive growth market and that supply wasn’t meeting demand: it was an opportunity for us.”
Establishment East Sussex-based Vine-Works produced costings for establish- ment of the vineyard, and went on to supply and plant the vines, install the infrastructure and pro- vide labour. Before that, though, Dr Alistair Nesbitt from Climate Wine Con- sulting – whose doctorate from the University of East Anglia was the first qualitative and quanti- tative analysis of viticulture cli-
James Scarff, who returned to the family farm to manage the new vineyard, and his father, Stuart.
Two weather stations record temperature and humidity at the growing point of the vines, as well as rainfall, windspeed and sunlight strength
mate suitability in England and Wales, and whose report identify- ing the most suitable 35,000ha in the UK for growing vines put Suf- folk and Devon at the top of the list after the Isle of Wight – was brought in to produce a climate report and identify high risk are- as for frost damage. “We chose a south-facing slope,
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It’s good to open the doors and invite people in to see what’s happening
Arable farming remains the foundation of the business, with wheat, oilseed rape and peas being grown this year
20 ANGLIA FARMER •APRIL 2019
of course, and one that was as close to the farm as possible for move- ment of machinery and ease of transport of grapes,” says Stuart. Next was identifying a market for their grapes. Long lists of win- eries were contacted and sever- al offers made before deciding to go with East Sussex-based fam- ily business Ridgeview – which went on to win Winemaker of the Year at the 2018 Internation- al Wine and Spirit Competition. Ridgeview was looking to expand and spread risk – the risk of frost is lower here than in Sussex – and they got on well. Wary of poor planting condi- tions following the very wet spring of 2016, the decision was taken to split the planting: 4ha in 2017 – a mix of Chardonnay, Pinot Meuni- er and Pinot Noir – and the same again in 2018. In hindsight, says Stuart, they could have planted them all at once: it rained as the
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