Bryce Cunningham produces milk from his herd of 45 Ayrshire cows and buys and distributes organic milk from other farms as well. The business underwent a huge transformation in 2015 when the milk market collapsed and Bryce felt there must be a better way of farming, living, and helping people understand the true value of milk.
The response was to downsize their production and start bottling and distributing milk, locally and also to Glasgow and Edinburgh. Mossgiel also supply East Ayrshire Council and their milk is delivered by a fleet of electric vehicles where possible.
The effects have been good for the herd, the farm’s wildlife and environment and the people who live and work there. Calves stay with their mothers for the first four months of their lives, allowing them to wean naturally; soil compaction has diminished and the worm population has grown from four per square foot to over 30. The business also now employs 25 people split between the farm, the coffee shop, the office and the drivers.
The electric vehicles are part of Bryce’s aim to make the business carbon-neutral by 2025. To that end, he has also installed solar panels and a biomass boiler which heats water to run the dairy, pasteurise the milk and sterilise the glass bottles, which are key to the farm’s other goal to eliminate single-use plastics.