Organic Lamb

Wednesday was show day in Brisbane, but I have to say it wasn't the hardest days work I've ever done. I took a couple of my customers from Silverwood Organics lamb to lunch at an Italian restaurant at southport, the fantastic Fellini.

Silverwood is run by Andrew and Maree King and if I am accused to giving them a bit more time then I'll happily stand guilty. I've only ever talked to them on the phone but over lunch discovered that they have the same practical approach and attitude to food as I do.

In the middle of the drought things were so bad they had to put down most of their existing Merino stock. The wholesalers were offering to take the sheep at no cost, basically because they knew the primary producers were in such a hard place. Determined to break free of this cycle, they went in to Dorper sheep, a hardier, slightly larger breed that drops it's wool rather than having to be shorn. They also bypassed the wholesaler and sold direct to the public online.

I'm a big fan of this, because you can ask questions of the primary producer that your local butcher in most cases won't be able to answer. It's good gear too, evidenced by their blue ribbon at the Royal Brisbane show.

The lunch went down fantastically well. I've been mining JB for tips for eating out, as I rarely do it and on this he was spot on. I had a crusted rack of lamb, which led to Andrew and Maree striking up a conversation with the owner, which might lead to their lamb making it onto the plates at the restaurant.

So if you live in QLD and you like lamb, check these guys out, because primary producers like these deserve every bit of support we can give.



MF from the iPhone