Dawson Valley Free Range

Dawson Valley Free Range

Friday, April 26, 2013

Chevon available again....and change of delivery dates.


We will have some goat meat (chevon) available next delivery. It will be $60 for 5kg. The 5kg will be made up of a leg roast and chops/stew – if you would really like the flap/ribs to make this dish, please request them – or the shanks (there will only be four on one goat so this will be limited to how many goats we send over - and whoever requests them first)
 
I don’t have goat on the order form, so if you would like to order some, either email me or put it in the comments section on the online form (on the order page).

Goat is similar to mutton, although very lean. The best way to cook goat is to roast it or slow cook/braise it. It makes a really good curry or Moroccan style stew, so with winter on the way, it is definitely worth a try. I will hopefully get time in the next week to put some goat recipes on the Recipe page, but if I don’t please feel free to prompt me!! Incidentally it’s one of the most eaten red meats in the world (just not in Australia!). I love it, but there is only so much we can eat, and we have some that need to find a spot in a freezer.

PLEASE GET BACK TO ME BY WEDNESDAY THE 1st IF YOU WANT SOME GOAT FOR DELIVERY IN THE WEEK OF THE 12th MAY.

Also, please note that the delivery date for Rockhampton, Gladstone and Local/Theodore has changed – please look at the Ordering Page.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Free Range Chicken

We are really lucky to live near the best free range chicken I've ever tasted. Scott and Heidi produce organically raised chickens on their farm and we have been selling them with our orders for the past year. Now that we've gone online with our order form it's a bit trickier, so I thought I'd just let people know about them and you can order direct from Scott and Heidi (or just let me know what you'd like and I can add it into your order.) To make it easier for delivery, please tell them or us that you are getting both.

I've copied some information from Scott and Heidi onto this post. If you want more info about the chicken's contact them direct.


Ordering

Below is a link to our updated order form, thank-you to Tatiana for assisting us. Please fill out the form and press submit at the end, if there are any problems, please email me your concerns. We hope that we have ironed out the bugs but expect a few technical hitches in the first few weeks.

You will notice that our prices have increased by approx 25c/kg, our feed and freight costs have increased this year but we have managed to negotiate no change in processing costs for the rest of the year.

We expect that orders for the first few weeks will be greater than what we can supply but will notify those that we cannot fill your order the same week that you place your order.

 Changes in 2013

We have expanded our product range to include individual pieces as we have been often asked by our customers if we would provide such products. The pieces will be presented on trays, with the average tray weight between 350-500g. While the ordering form has pieces as per half kilogram, it may not be possible to obtain the 0.5kg size for each tray.

We have also removed our bulk discount this year as we aim to maintain a low purchase price that all can benefit from.

Freight

For our western customers, we will not be able to supply fresh chickens again this year due to pick-up on a Monday which is our first processing date of the week. Freight deliveries will be on a Wednesday. For all other customers, we will be able to supply fresh (if processing that week) or frozen, please indicate which is your preference when ordering. Local customers within the Biloela area, our services will remain the same as last year, either pick-up at our farm or we can delivery into town. For those that live outside Biloela, Theodore and Baralaba (i.e. Gladstone, Tannum, Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Emerald etc.), there will be a freight cost of 20c/kg for each order. Freight deliveries will be on a Thursday for these centres.

 Centre Coordinators

For each town, we are looking for people who would like to be our centre coordinators where deliveries can be dropped off. This role does not involve invoicing or handling money but may involve contacting customers to negotiate a suitable time to collect their orders. Because we now have a large customer base, this will save on freight costs if we have a single central drop off location. For larger centres, we may have two centre coordinators so that travel time is reduced. If you are willing to be one of these people, please let us know. We will be offering a discount off your order for all our centre coordinators. We will gradually role out this service in the coming weeks so initial orders can be still delivered door to door.

 New Customers

For existing customers that refer our products to new customers, we will be offering a 10% discount on your next order. For all new customers, can you indicate in the comments section at the bottom of the form who referred you to us? Please feel free to send our details to your friends and family if you wish to receive a great discount on your next purchases.

 Finally, thank-you to everyone that has been contacting us requesting our chickens, we aim to provide a healthy and quality product that is locally produced.
 

Monday, April 15, 2013

Orders closed for April

Well, I've finalised all the orders, the pigs are in Monto and I have finally finished sending out invoices! If you haven't received an invoice - please email me as that may mean you don't have your order in!!! Oh, except the side/whole pig orders - I'll send them out in the next day or so.....

We've been really pleased with the fact that our customers that keep coming back. It's been pretty tough for us to get established and trying to sort out some of the hassles of starting a new business. One of our problems has been trying to manage the fat, which I'm really glad to say that we are starting to sort out. So...thankyou to all those that keep coming back. We're glad that so many people agree with us that our pork tastes like pork should!

Thursday, April 4, 2013

April Orders

We’ve had a busy time on the farm.....Sows are farrowing, Growers are growing and the grass is exploding with the lovely rain and warmth we’ve had. We had a break over Easter (well sort of – you never really get break when you have a farm), but it’s now time to organise deliveries again.

We have had to revise our prices going forward. Our fresh pork prices will remain the same, however the ham and bacon price needs to be increased. We had an “oops” moment recently when we realised that we made a miscalculation when we were pricing our products. We didn’t take into account the difference between the boned out pork for ham and bacon compared to the fresh pork. So, I’m afraid that we will need to adjust our pricing.  A 5kg pack of Ham and Bacon will now cost $19/kg ($95/pack).

Discounts for referrals: We have decided to reward our customers who introduce us to a new customer with a 10% discount on their next order. There will be a place on the order form that allows new customers to put the name of the person who told them about us. Make sure you also let me know if you put someone on to us.

Delivery Dates for Dawson Valley Free Range Pork:

Theodore, Baralaba and Woorabinda
Delivery – Wednesday 17th April and Thursday 18th April

Biloela, Gladstone and Rockhampton
Delivery – Thursday 18th April

Dysart, Moranbah, Emerald and Blackwater
Deliver – Wednesday 24th April

 All Orders Close - Friday 12th April

 If you live in Brisbane or on the Sunshine Coast, just put an order in when you want to and when we have enough, we will schedule a trip down south. We can’t go that distance without having quite a large delivery, as we need to be able to justify the cost of the travel. We will aim to go down every 2 to 3 months, therefore the next likely delivery will be May/June.