history

Purbeck Ice Cream was born as a result of diversification from dairy farming 23 years ago. My husband Peter, myself ~ Hazel and variable ‘help’ from our three boys of 6 months, 1 & 2 years’ ran a 60 Friesian dairy herd on 126 acres of lush green hillside directly opposite the historic remains of Corfe Castle in the heart of Dorset. The Isle of Purbeck is renown for its outstanding beauty with the result that during the summer months the population almost doubles with people basking in the countryside, idling away the hours on the beaches or pushing themselves to the limit on bikes up and down the hills surrounding us!

With the introduction of milk quotas we found it impossible to maintain the farm as a viable enterprise and had to come up with something pretty fast that we could do with our lovely milk that didn’t result in penalties for over production or tread on anyone’s toes by embarking on a venture which was already being done.

Along with the occasional pub crawl we had developed quite a passion for ‘ice cream crawls’ and it seemed a natural progression to make our own ice cream….but sooooo much better than anything we had ever come across on our ‘crawls’. We were adamant from the start that our ice cream should be utterly natural with no artificial additives and most certainly not coloured ~ who needs a ‘fairy liquid green’ in their mint ice cream….that was not for us. After we hit upon ice cream we beavered away finding out everything we could so we knew exactly what we were getting into….we were in for a few shocks along the way!

Off we went into production in a converted building next to the dairy, one of us milking and skimming some of the milk for double cream and the other batching up small tubs of Purbeck Ice Cream. We flipped a coin to decide who would drive off in our little van complete with chest freezer in the back and who would stay at home looking after the boys.

Here & Now ~ Our Commitment
23 years later we have turned the business into a nationally recognised top producer of farm made Real Dairy Ice Cream. We enjoyed the journey to become a recognized Investor in People in 2005, were re-assessed in ‘06 and ‘09, as we believe the team is the most important ingredient in our ice creams. Our hygiene and safety standards are reflected in the attainment for consecutive years’ of Sai Global Safe & Legal accreditation.

We have taken many strategic steps towards our ultimate goal ~ to be a Nationally acclaimed business, growing in size and prestige we are now recognized as a forerunner in the manufacture and supply of super premium real dairy ice creams and Spring water sorbets for the discerning. We make over 30 exceptional varieties with no artificial anything, no GMOs, all natural flavours, Gluten, and egg free, suitable for vegetarians and of course, no added colours or nuts of any description. We offer subtle flavours for the discerning, bold flavours for the WOW factor and exceptional flavours for the special occasion. Available in 80ml flight tubs, 125ml ‘spoon in the lid’; 500ml take home tubs, 2 litre, 4 litre and 4.7 Napoli catering sizes for scooping.

Little Steps
One step first came about at the end of 2001 when we were approached by Springbourne Fire Station in Bournemouth who asked us if we could make a ‘chilli’ ice cream for a Mexican evening. We always enjoy a challenge and set to work blending various concoctions to come up with a product to satisfy the hottest of Firemen! After trials we had a product not too mild and not too strong that it would take your head off but leaving you with a wicked giggle! The Mexican evening was a roaring success with the ‘chilli theme’ running throughout the party with foods, beers and our ice cream proving a real hit.

ChilliRED is a simply delicious product of Purbeck Ice Cream with minced red chillis. It remains cool on the tongue and kicks off on the throat leaving you laughing out loud at the stunning effect! At first you taste the pure milk and cream of the ice cream on your tongue where the majority of your taste buds are. After a short delay you think…..’Mmmmmm scrumptious, mighty fine ice cream with hints of chilli but where’s the kick?’ then you swallow and…’whamm, wow, gadzooks..hot, hot, hot….giggle, giggle!’ Because there are few taste buds in your throat the kick dissipates quickly and you are left with thoughts of how unusual a product ChilliRED is, cold and hot, sweet and savory, a whole new dimension of ice cream. 

When chefs tasted it they immediately went into raptures on what/where and how it can be used…little did we know just where this would lead. We have designed leaflets with a range of recipe suggestions and creative ideas based on our chefs ideas on how to make the most of Chilli Red be it lacing soups and sauces or gracing steaks and seafood.

Chefs Secret Weapon ~ Spice Rack
Following on from the hugely successful and versatile ChilliRED, the team were let loose to develop more outstanding and courageous flavours for chefs to use in their culinary delights chiefly as accompaniments to standard courses to add that little twist of flavour and excitement. New blends of ice cream were born with Cracked Black Pepper adorning steaks or strawberries, Lemon Grass lavishly loved by chefs with vision, Green Tea deliciously dotted on apples, pears or avocados, Stem Ginger harmonizing with Thai foods and Mixed Spice served with Duck or dim sum.

Sales
We supply throughout Dorset to our local customers and regionally to supermarkets of Tesco, Asda and Co op in the Dorset, Wiltshire, Hampshire and overlapping counties as well as The National Trust, very many prestigious Hotels & Restaurants including all the Hall & Woodhouse eateries, Wine Bars, many independent discerning food shops and delis and seasonal tourist attractions. A dedicated van goes into the heart of London to Somerset House, the Strand Palace, St Paul’s Cathedral, MCC Lords and more!

We have Wholesalers distributing nationally, specializing in foods of outstanding excellence. This has increased our distribution in both retail and catering establishments across the country.

USPs
Our products are superb, (I am a touch biased but it’s still true!) entirely natural with no added colour. A lot of ice cream is made with additional natural colour but we believe it to be unnecessary and therefore don’t use it!

We offer solutions to the problems encountered by chefs and retailers in supplying unique, refreshingly different, high quality products guaranteed to satisfy the most demanding consumer of today.

Our ice creams are available in lots of scrumptious traditional flavours featured as ‘Home Range’ and include Clotted Cream, Serious Chocolate and Champagne & Strawberry. We also make ChilliRED as our founder member of the Spice Rack and over a dozen Springwater Purbeck Sorbets all made with local fresh spring water and natural fruit juices, scoopable at –18 for quick and perfect presentation in this fast and furious world. In 2007 we launched Dorset Flavours ~ a range of flavours made with ingredients sourced from right on our doorstep. Dorset Clotted Cream is most excellent and makes an award winning ice cream whilst reducing food miles as well as demonstrating commitment to our local producers. The ‘look’ of the Purbeck Ice Cream brand speaks volumes encompassing innovation and originality, quality and good taste! This branding is now displayed across retail establishments and dining venues in the form of wooden A-Boards, vinyls, flavour boards, menus and recipe flyers, posters, flags, stickers and point of sale material.

Awards & PR
Purbeck Ice Cream have been gathering awards during the past 23 years in recognition of outstanding products judged on taste, quality, appearance, texture and innovation.

During 2010 we were voted by Dorset folk in the Taste of Dorset Awards as the Best Dairy Producer as well as the overall Dorset Dairy Champion, we scooped 2 UK Gold Great Taste Awards ~ the ‘Oscars’ in the world of fine food and drink for the delicious Vanilla Bean winning a 2 star Gold and the weird but wonderful ChilliRED gaining a flaming 1star Gold. These join previous years’ winners of the truly decadent Clotted Cream, the highly addictive Honeycombe Hash in 2009, and in previous years… Banana, Chrimbo Pud, Chocolate Orange, Mango Sorbet, Vanilla Bean, Crème Fraiche and Serious Chocolate. Taste of the West Product Awards for years up to 2008 include Stem Ginger, Cappuccino, Chocolate Orange, Strawberry, Mint Choc Chip, Gin & Orange and Honeycombe Hash.

ChilliRED has won many interesting awards for innovation in product taste, quality, versatility and sheer audacity!
It won the Winning Trophy Food & Drink Expo's Ideas to Dine For! Competition judged by Rick Stein and swept the winning trophy in the Milk Development Councils’ Award for Innovation in 2004.

We were highlighted as a major innovator with ChilliRED in the ingredient use sector of the Award for Ingredient use and Manufacture (AIM). We attended the Gala Reception and dinner at the National Motorcycle Museum to collect our trophy and celebrate in style!


Ethical, Environmental & Community Commitment
Dedicated to the environment, the Purbeck Ice Cream team takes every care to maintain the beautiful countryside around us by re-planting trees, maintaining hedgerows and providing animal friendly areas encouraging our suppliers to match our eco friendly ethos. Two traditional Dorset Apple Orchards have been planted and bird and bat boxes strategically placed to provide essential homes for first time flyers. We re-use, reduce and then compact and recycle our waste and are working hard to achieve 100%. In 2009 we measured our Carbon Footprint coming up trumps as a business that already goes above and beyond others with a plan in place to continually improve year on year.

We help to support local charities chosen by our team that are close to our hearts and home and this year we are giving regular donations of lovely Purbeck Ice Cream to the Youth Cancer Trust who offer youngsters across the UK with life limiting illnesses superb holidays in Tracey Ann House in Dorset and the Wessex Autistic Society both by donation and to welcome children to briefly shiver in the coldroom when choosing their Purbeck Ice Cream to take away and enjoy!

We are independently supporting the Jurassic Coast Trust by donating 5p for every Clotted Cream tub sold who are raising funds and working tirelessly to promote, educate and conserve our beautiful coastline as well as the Purbeck Film Festival who screen productions and films throughout Purbeck in cinemas, village halls and some rather odd and unusual places! 

Purbeck Ice Cream ~ On The Road
We have a new Marketing Mobile and beautiful purpose-built Purbeck Ice Cream Carts liveried in black and gold drawn and operated by Shelley and Joe. We attend many local and some National events and functions as well as making special guest star appearances at sophisticated weddings and upper crust parties to serve delicious Purbeck Ice Cream and Sorbets. Contact Shelley direct for information on how to boost your ‘do’ in advance as they do tend to get pretty booked up. shelley@purbeckicecream.co.uk

Website www.purbeckicecream.co.uk
The website is updated monthly with news and views on all things ice creamy including any new products on the horizon, awards and news under the title of ‘News Scoop’. We have put together a ‘Planet Purbeck’ page to keep you up to date with our ongoing commitment to the Community and environment, some superb recipes to keep the budding foodies challenged as well as some rather daft things under the heading of Purbeck ~ At work & Play!  We are on Facebook and on Twitter so, please keep in touch!


The Team
The Purbeck Ice Cream team, over half of us originally being Farmers, has developed along with our products with a passion for pure excellence ~ our motto. We are dedicated Investors in People recognizing the importance of each team player and the qualities they bring to the table. We improve our strengths with team meetings to knock about ideas and hammer out any frustrations and regularly celebrate life in the fast ice cream lane on team ‘bunfights’. Our team is to be congratulated as, without the spirit of enterprise generated between us we would not be able to produce such amazing ice cream. These meetings, I feel would be of further benefit held at a different location ~ the Bahamas perhaps. Fin Hazel Hartle      04/02/11
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