The Lake District Back to the Land with Kate Humble

In Britain's beautiful landscapes,

traditional farming is battling to survive.

Making a living here has its challenges,

but those challenges are being met head-on

with invention, energy and passion.

A new breed of trailblazing entrepreneurs are turning

back to the land to reinvent old trades

and set up modern rural businesses.

Latest figures show that as many as 100,000 people

are leaving our cities and moving to the countryside every year.

'I've seen firsthand,

'having started my own rural business in Monmouthshire,

'the grit and determination needed to take that leap.'

And joining me is award-wining organic restauranteur

Geetie Singh-Watson,

who will bring her knowledge and passion.

I am really, really impressed.

We're going to be meeting

some of the modern-day countryside pioneers...

Come on, come on!

..whose love, skill and tenacity

are at the heart of this rural revolution.

-Oh-ah!

-This is a passion. I'm doing it cos I believe in the product.

'Every region and every season present new challenges

'and tonight, we're in the Lake District,

'following five innovative businesses

'through spring, summer and autumn...'

Hang on there, Simon.

'..as they make big life changes...'

-So, you're quitting your job.

-Yeah.

-Does that feel scary?

'..break new ground...'

If I told you the recipe, I'd have to kill you.

'..and do their bit to reinvigorate our great British countryside.'

Why did I do that?

Because you're English!

'The Lake District is remote and wild.

'Working the land here takes a pioneering spirit,

'but its steep fells and over 80 lakes and tarns have made it

'one of our best-loved landscapes.'

There are many people who come to places like this,

fall in love with the rural idyll and dream of staying here forever,

but what does it take to make a living from a land like this?

It's spring and I'm in the Northern Lakes, heading out past Keswick...

..to meet a woman who, 12 years ago, left her city job,

hoping to start a business from her passion for foraging.

It wasn't long ago that wild food would have been an intrinsic part

of any meal cooked in a rural kitchen

and, with over 160 species of edible plant growing in the UK,

there is plenty to choose from.

Jane has hooked onto the growing trend for food with provenance

and makes around 40,000 jars

of homemade preserves...

-Jane, good morning.

-Hello, good morning.

-Hello.

-That's Ruby.

'..selling to delis and restaurants nationwide.'

Here we are bundled up, as if it was midwinter, but it is spring.

Are there any real spring specialities that you look for?

-Well, dog, a dog.

-Yeah. THEY LAUGH

Well, particularly, I've come down to see

how the sweet cicely was doing - this one, Myrrhis odorata.

Cos we've actually got an order for some jam that has it in it.

Can I have a quick...?

Yeah, if you munch on it, it's got a lovely anis flavour.

-Ooh, it has, hasn't it?

-Yeah.

You cook things like rhubarb and gooseberries with it

and it's supposed to mean you use less sugar.

How have you learnt all this stuff,

because it seems to be a tradition that's been lost in some way?

My mum was a really good field botanist, so she started me off

when I was tiny, and I became an agricultural botanist.

So, I have always foraged.

When we came to Cumbria, I was looking around at all this fruit

that was going to waste and I just couldn't bear to see it.

And that's sort of what got me going.

-This is heavenly!

-Isn't it gorgeous?

I can see why you'd never want to go to a supermarket to get your food.

-Exactly.

-This is so much more beautiful.

We do an apple-based jelly with wild garlic in it at this time of year,

and we've got an order for that, so that's what this is for.

'Jane's background means she knows what plants to pick

'and which one are poisonous and to be avoided.'

Do you ever munch on blackthorn flowers?

I've had sloes - mainly in gin form, I have to confess.

Well, you're missing a trick.

-Ooh, that's wonderful.

-Bitter almond.

Is there a sort of forager's code, when it comes to picking?

Well, in theory, you can pick for your own use.

Obviously, if you're picking for sale,

that's a different thing altogether and you have to have permission

from the landowner or a licence to pick.

Do you just offer everybody a bottle of gin and say,

-"Can I come and forage on your farm?"

-Well, sort of, yes, yes.

That lovely sort of rural economy of a bit of barter

-and sharing resources.

-Absolutely, yeah, absolutely.

'Last year, the Lake District was hit

'by a record 340mm of rain in 24 hours.

'For many homes and businesses like Jane's, it was devastating.'

Come on in.

'She not only lost a newly-built commercial kitchen,

'but tens of thousands of pounds in business.'

We've brought you a basketful of goodies.

'Now Jane's team of five are having to work from her home

'and are just about managing to keep up supply.'

-This is the sweet cicely that you've been picking.

-Yeah.

-We've got that in a sterilised muslin bag.

-Right.

-And that's going into the rhubarb, ginger and sweet cicely jam.

-Yeah.

And then, the wild garlic that we've got in the basket

is going in the wild garlic jelly.

Do you guys come up with recipes? Do you come up the recipe? Who...?

-You, it's you.

-Yeah, we leave it all to Jane.

-Do you think she's mad or...?

-Yes, she's definitely mad!

-Jane's the inventor.

-Jane's the inventor.

'Basing a business on unpredictable wild crops...'

-Do you want to chop the wild garlic?

-OK.

'..Jane has had to invent over 150 different recipes.'

I think the thing that intrigues me about the idea of foraging

being a business is it's all very well making yourself

a few jars of wild garlic jelly,

but if you've suddenly got to make 300 jars,

how do you physically have the time to pick the ingredients?

It's very, very labour-intensive.

We don't have any machinery

for labelling or potting or anything, so...

Jane began selling locally, but very quickly,

her preserves were winning awards and demand was high.

That is a big transition moment, isn't it?

When you go from maybe selling to friends or giving stuff to friends

or selling to the village shop, to a big store, or wherever it might be.

Can you remember when you first got that kind of phone call?

Yes, and I was scared stiff.

And, in fact, I actually turned down a very nice supermarket

because I was frightened

that I wouldn't be able to match what they wanted.

I regret that to this day, I can tell you.

Because I'm not much of a businessperson,

I didn't take advantage of it.

You know, we'd win a three-star Great Taste Award

and I'd go, "Oh, right, OK, carry on."

And, you know, why did I do that?

THEY LAUGH

-Because you're English!

-Yes.

Ooh, those look delicious! Um... I mean, I...

You're sort of frustrating me. I kind of want to shake you.

You're employing people, you've got a beautiful product that sells.

-Yes, that's true.

-You've got a viable business.

-Yes.

-Are you hugely in debt?

-We're not in debt at all, really.

I'd say that was something to be proud of. And, if I may say so...

I hope you like that.

-You make a damn fine pakora.

-Good!

I'm a little bit confused by Jane's business.

It's been born out of her undisputed enthusiasm and expertise

in wild food, but I just get the feeling

that her passion for foraging isn't matched

by a passion for the nuts and bolts of running a business.

But that said, she's clearly worked very hard to get this business

off the ground and to keep it going. This isn't a hobby.

She's got staff to pay, she's got orders to fulfil

and she is entirely dependent on nature's bounty.

And that's quite scary,

because nature, this year, has been particularly unkind to Cumbria.

As the seasons unfold,

I hope the coming months allow Jane to build her business back up.

Geetie Singh-Watson set up the UK's first organic gastro-pub

in her 20s, so she knows all too well

the challenges food producers face making a living off the land.

Between 2014 and '15, income on farms dropped 29%

and they often have to sell their goods

for less than they cost to produce.

But there's passion and romance about the land

and there are opportunities to make a sustainable life.

Geetie's on the edge of the South Lakes, just below Kendal...

..to meet a traditional farming family

who are diversifying the business

for the future of their four children.

Four years ago, farmers Abi and Paul hit on a modern trend.

All right, Paul?

They invested £40,000

and converted their cattle barn

into a rustic wedding venue.

-Hello.

-Hi.

-How you doing?

-I'm Geetie.

-Hi, nice to meet you. I'm Abi.

-Hi, Abi.

-How you doing?

-I'm Paul.

-Paul.

-How you doing?

Great to see you. And this is, like, a proper farm.

Yeah, but in the winter, this is completely full of sheep.

So, what's been the most profitable aspect of the business for you?

Well, the beef and sheep were, in the start,

and then things dwindled away,

so we went into pick your own and that was very profitable.

But then, of late, pick your own struggled because in supermarkets,

these days, you can buy a strawberry 365 days of the year.

So, now we've gone into the wedding barn business

and that is proving quite successful for us, really.

-Well, I'd love to see...

-Do you want to come and see the wedding barn?

I'd really like that.

So, down here, we've got pick your own.

Some of the cows and calves are up on the hill up there.

It was Paul's sister who kick-started the new venture

when she suggested using the old oak barn for her wedding.

Welcome to the barn.

Oh, wow! That is amazing!

-Incredible space. It is utterly fantastic.

-We're very, very lucky.

It's a 15th-century cruck barn. It was used for grain storage.

All these trusses and purlins are original, aren't they?

-Yes, they are. The ceiling sells this venue.

-Yeah, it's beautiful.

Cos it is so lovely.

So, this is occupied half of the year at the moment with weddings.

-May to December.

-Why do you stop there?

We still need the space because we have over 1,000 sheep to lamb

from January onwards.

Do you think that's a selling point for people who are coming?

-Yeah, very much so.

-Right.

And I actually think that sort of adds to a bit of the character

-and the charm of it all.

-Yeah, definitely.

But there's also a massive lost opportunity,

-where you could carry on all year round.

-Oh, yeah.

But balancing traditional farming with the wedding business

is more than a full-time job for both of them.

This, believe it or not, turns into the catering area.

The market is huge.

The average British wedding costs around £16,000.

Are you potentially tapping into that market enough?

-Are you charging enough?

-Probably not.

I would imagine we are underselling ourselves slightly.

-We don't want to be greedy with it.

-But you're proving so popular.

Clearly you're regarded as pretty good value

-for people to be buying this.

-Yeah.

And, actually, what you're doing is fundamentally supporting

a really vital part of the countryside,

-so I don't think you should feel bad about it at all.

-No.

And you're providing a fabulous space for people.

Abi, Paul, his sister and his parents do most of the work

for the weddings themselves,

which are booked in every week during spring, summer and autumn.

We've come to help you, Paul. I'm going to put the optics up.

-What else is happening on the farm?

-There's clipping.

There's a pick your own running, and then we go into autumn,

tupping time with the sheep, the cows start to come in.

-And we're still milking every day.

-You must be exhausted!

-Yeah, and now, this year, we're up to 23 bookings.

-Wow!

-Including our own.

-Including our own, yeah.

-You're getting married here?

-Yeah, we get married in August.

-How fantastic!

-Thank you.

Abi and Paul are passionate about farming

and they've come up with some brilliant ideas

on how to use their land but, going forward,

they need to cash in on them in order to stay where they are

and really enjoy this farming business.

With a very hectic season ahead,

we'll discover how they juggle all the aspects of the business

and celebrate their own wedding in the process.

I'm travelling to Heltondale Valley,

where there's been a sheep farm on this spot for over 200 years.

It's run by a fifth-generation farmer, Simon,

and his scientist wife, Jane.

What they've come up with is a brilliant innovative use

of the natural resources of the farm.

Jane and Simon want to keep their way of life going for themselves

and their daughter, Arabella.

'So, they took two almost worthless products - bracken and wool -

'and after eight years' experimenting,

'invented the world's first wool compost,

'and they now sell 50,000 bags of it a year.'

-Hello, Jane.

-Hi.

-I'm Kate. Lovely to meet you.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Please come in.

-What a lovely shed! Oh, I do love this time of year.

LAMB BLEATS

They have a flock of around 500 traditional Lakeland breeds

and spring is lambing time.

Lambing going well this year?

Not as big a lambing percentage as I would have liked this year

and I'm putting that down to the weather that we had over the winter.

There's no security in sheep farming. It is pot luck.

I love this process.

Come on, little one. There we go.

KATE LAUGHS

I was talking to somebody yesterday, they'd taken their fat lambs

-a fortnight ago and they'd got £70 a head.

-Right.

They'd taken them this week and only got £50.

Oh, good grief.

Wool's not worth as much as it was,

and so I was looking at ways that we could diversify

and we have a lot of bracken on our fells

and I found a recipe for bracken compost in an old gardening book.

So, using bracken - the curse of all hill farmers - as a compost?

Yes, well, the book actually said there's fortune waiting to be made

-for someone who can harvest bracken.

-Right.

But actually persuading your husband

to take his new baler up on the fell and bale it

-is another matter altogether.

-THEY LAUGH

Environmental scientist Jane called on her academic background

to see the potential in bracken as a cash crop.

What made you think of adding wool into the mix?

Because it holds on to water. It's naturally hydroscopic.

-You know what a jumper's like when it gets wet.

-Absolutely.

And it has a slow-release nitrogen cos it breaks down very slowly.

So, if I were to take some of the wool from my sheep

and some of the bracken from our hillside, what's the recipe?

If I told you the recipe, I'd have to kill you, so...

There's no way I'm going to share that with you

and it really is quite difficult to get that wool into the compost.

There's lots of secrets in that as well.

-Simon.

-Hello, Kate.

-This looks like the business end of the farm.

-It is.

-So, this is bracken.

-This is last year's bracken.

-It's got all the goodness in it.

-OK.

It's full of potassium and minerals - everything we need.

Suddenly, for you, this is sort of an untapped source of gold.

To be honest, it took her five years to persuade me it was a good idea.

-So, it's...

-Funny that! I think she said something the other way round.

Well...I think I was more of a traditional hill farmer.

-Right, show me how this is done. I'm fascinated.

-Absolutely.

'In addition to using wool from their own sheep...

-Herdwick wool.

-I was going to say, this wool...

I mean, brown wool has even less value than white wool, doesn't it?

Yeah, but for us it's really good.

'..they now buy in 45 tonnes from local shepherds.'

-Can you guarantee a price for their wool?

-Yeah, we set a price.

The price for that's 40p a kilo.

But we harvest bracken off their land as well.

So, it's a win-win situation for you and the farmers in this area.

Yeah, everybody's got to make something out of it.

There's got to be a gain in every direction, if you like.

So, what happens now in there?

-Right, it's going to start mixing it.

-OK.

-Yeah.

-Thank you, Gordon.

-I've got to try and get the recipe out of you.

-You've got two barrels of bracken.

-Yes.

-One scoop of sheep wool.

-Yeah, it's like making a cake.

-THEY LAUGH

'Their unique compost not only taps into

'a growing environmental need for a peat-free alternative,

'they're also working to restore our depleting peatlands.'

-Gordon, can you take us down?

-Thanks, Gordon.

Is this business the result of that collaboration

between scientist and farmer?

We wouldn't be doing this without each other.

-No, no.

-So...

-So, you need to be particularly nice to your wife.

I generally am, yes.

But I do know that she's got the brains and I scratch my head a lot

trying to work out how to do things

but, you know, that's life, isn't it?

After grinding the mixture, it's left for up to six months.

The bacteria thrives and it breaks it down to make the end product.

How's it looking, Jane?

Ooh, it's nice and warm here, look. Have a feel of that.

KATE GASPS My goodness!

Ooh, I bet you come in here on a cold day, don't you,

-and bury your feet?

-Warm your hands.

An old gardener once said that you should be able to squeeze it

-and hold its form and it should break up.

-And it does that.

-Yeah.

And what would be the ultimate stamp of approval?

I think you can't get better than a gold medal at Chelsea.

-Is that what you're going for this year?

-I think...

Er, well, we've got growers that grow in this just by adding water

and if you can get a gold medal, you can't get much better than that.

Jane and Simon haven't just thrown out the traditions of this farm.

They've held onto those, but they have created a new, modern,

brilliant business from their heritage

and there's something very exciting about that.

And later, we'll discover

if this is their year for that gold medal at Chelsea.

Summer and sunshine have come to the Lakes.

This is a busy, bustling time of year,

when visitors come from all over the world

to savour the beauty of the countryside.

And with the visitors comes much-valued custom and income

for the local businesses.

I'm heading out to the west of Lake Windermere

to meet a woman who's tapping into this thriving tourist trade,

selling her products in local boutiques and specialist fairs.

It was to this very rural, very traditional Cumbrian landscape

that Mandy Marshall and her husband came to live,

having uprooted themselves from big city life in Manchester.

Two years ago, Mandy took her 20 years of retail experience

and dreamt she could start a business

producing handmade luxury bags from Herdwick tweed.

She's invested over £30,000

and now buys 750kg

of local wool a year,

paying the farmers double what they can get elsewhere.

Oh, Mandy, it seems like I've come at exactly the right time.

-Do you need a hand?

-Perfect, Kate.

-Crikey, it's quite heavy, isn't it?

-Yeah, they are. Seriously heavy.

-Where do you want them?

-Just there is great, thanks, Kate.

All right.

I hate to say it, but you're a girl from Manchester.

-I am a girl from Manchester, yes.

-Had you even heard of a Herdwick

-before you came and lived in the Lakes?

-No.

My daughters were going to university, I was coming up to 50.

It was, like, "What am I going to do with this next phase of my life?"

-And you've moved from big, vibrant, modern city...

-Yes.

..to live in a National Trust property.

Yes, and I was scared of the dark.

And they do dark well here in Cumbria.

They do dark very well, yes.

Mandy has thrown herself wholeheartedly into Lakeland life.

She lives in Beatrix Potter's marital home

and she's also determined the core ethos of her business

is firmly rooted in the story of this region.

The Herdwick sheep just epitomise the fells of Cumbria

and people love provenance now, don't they?

-I saw some Herdwick tweed.

-Right.

-It was about 60 metres.

-OK.

It was stacked up in a shop doing nothing,

so I basically said to them, "Can I buy that tweed?"

-Can I ask you how much?

-It was a few thousand pounds.

-So, it was quite a big punt.

-Oh, yes.

You've then got another big investment when you make the bags.

-I need to see one of these bags.

-I'll go and get you one.

She's brilliant. You know that a lot of people get to that stage.

The kids have left home, they're not quite sure what they're going to do

and do they just descend into a life of polyester slacks and a caravan

or do they do something a little bit braver and a little bit different?

And she has put together her Manchester kind of nous,

her retail experience,

and identified something that's really special about this area -

the Herdwick sheep - and turned it into a business.

So, those are of the original cloth.

OK. It is very, very beautiful.

'Mandy's investment paid off,

'selling out of the first batch of 40 bags in just three months.'

I knew I was going to run out of fabric

and what I wanted was to be able to buy fleece

from certain farms and turn it into tweed.

Some of the wool Mandy uses comes from farms

Beatrix Potter once owned.

It's spun and locally woven into bespoke tweed,

then hand-crafted at a Cumbrian factory.

I'm doing it cos I believe in the product.

I mean, it's experimental, it's a little bit pioneering.

-It's a little mad.

-It's definitely mad.

I have to be honest, I was scared to death of going meeting real farmers.

I just thought, "They're going to think I'm a complete idiot townie."

When I actually went for the first time to talk to a farmer,

I said, "How many sheep do you have?"

MANDY INHALES SHARPLY

It's like asking how much have you got in the bank!

But they were so enthusiastic and wanted to help.

This is a passion. These farmers, they love this area.

This is their life and you can't let them down,

so you've got to make this work.

You don't need to say anything else. You've just made me cry!

THEY LAUGH

You're amazing!

'What Mandy is doing carries many risks.

'She is responsible for every part of the process,

'from buying the wool to designing the tweed and the bags themselves.'

-You've put a lot of passion - not least money - into this.

-Yeah.

What's your sort of, your next stage? What's the crunch point?

When will you know whether this is a success or a failure?

It's all well and good believing that you've got a great product,

but it's whether somebody's actually going to part

with their hard-earned cash.

I need to try and do this and, if I lose it, then actually, I lose it.

But nothing ventured, nothing gained,

so I think we just have to see where it goes, really.

The coming few months will be crucial

and I'm looking forward to hearing how things work out

in the next stage of Mandy's story.

In summer, the Lakeland hills are dotted

with the indigenous Herdwick sheep.

FARMER WHISTLES AND SHOUTS

Will Benson's family have been farming

in this traditional way for centuries.

-HE WHISTLES

-Move back! Move back!

But in recent years, this wiry wool costs more to sheer

than what it's worth on the commercial market.

The whole area was a massive wool-producing area.

Even when my dad started farming, his wool would have paid his rent.

Will's business now has a future,

thanks to the wealth of new, innovative entrepreneurs

using the wool and meat in very modern ways.

At the minute, we're selling lambs to a restaurant in Grasmere,

some of our worser wool for compost,

and the better-quality wool goes off to a lady who makes handbags.

With consumers now paying a premium for products

like Mandy's bags, and Jane and Simon's compost,

this iconic Lakeland sheep, once again, has a value.

When we sell meat or wool direct, it gives provenance.

It's going direct from farm to plate.

They can have the peace of mind

that they know where that lamb's come from,

what sort of life it's had and how it's lived

because you're never going to get a meat

that's gone and lived more free-range

than on the Lakeland fells.

You're good dogs. Yeah, you are.

Geetie is just over the border, towards Carlisle,

where two young entrepreneurs are about to leave well-paid jobs,

head back to their home turf in the Lakes

and set up a brand-new venture.

It's incredibly hard for businesses to go from start-up to success.

And, in fact, 80% of businesses fail in their first year,

due to lack of planning and poor cash flow.

Old school friends Tim and Luke have spent the last year

perfecting their own blend of handmade muesli

and currently bake 60kg a week,

selling online and at local markets.

-Hello. Hi, I'm Geetie.

-Good to meet you.

-Luke. Very nice to meet you.

-Hi, both of you too.

-Welcome to the kitchen.

-Fantastic.

-And this is a community kitchen.

-It is indeed, yeah.

-And why?

Why muesli? How did you get into this?

We've always had little projects and enterprises since we were kids.

We have a Swedish friend who's a bit of a mad professor

in the kitchen and he used to make it the whole time,

worked out optimum proteins, fats, carbohydrates in the muesli.

And then I guess you took it on from there.

And then we realised it was just a phenomenal product.

It sounds like you've really got the entrepreneurial spirit.

We're going to put in 2kg of organic oats, Geetie.

Now, we want 810g of almonds.

Over the past year,

I've been able to commit far more time than Luke

cos I've been self-employed in the log trade

and I've also been living up in Cumbria.

I've got a job out of London,

consulting for a large company down there

so, you know, the odd weekend I've been able to come up and help.

My thinking is, in seven weeks' time,

my notice goes in and we'll start at the start of September full-time.

-So, you're quitting your job.

-Yeah.

And at the moment, this business is turning over...?

-Probably 11K over the last year.

-Does that feel scary?

Yeah, it'll definitely mean a hit to the salary

-for the first few months.

-For the first...

-Few months.

-Few months.

-You sound sceptical.

-THEY LAUGH

But the potential is out there.

We Brits are the second biggest eaters

of Breakfast cereal in the world. Only the Irish eat more.

I know that the breakfast market is absolutely worth a fortune.

I think there's a big gap in the market, as well,

for premium high-quality muesli.

That's kind of where we're aiming for.

Mm, really good.

-Here it comes.

-Mm, oh, that smells great!

The business, so far, has been built on enthusiasm and not a lot else.

All ready and off we go.

To keep investment low, they've been baking at this community kitchen

for just £10 an hour.

And they do the rest in a tiny room at Tim's parents'.

We package between 80 to 100 bags here in peak season per week.

I think that's brilliant.

It's a perfect way to start up on a shoestring.

And long-term, the goal is to establish

the business where they want to live.

I think we're pretty passionate about this area.

Even it's not local produce itself, it's buying into the local economy.

Just seeing this area thrive, I think.

It's a really interesting subject,

the ethics that you're trying to attract,

buy into the business, that are important to you, personally,

and then how that becomes part of your story.

We'll be back at their summer festival launch,

when Luke will be bravely packing up his London life and job

to make muesli full-time.

It's mid-August and for farmers

and wedding venue entrepreneurs Abi and Paul,

it's their busiest time of year.

COW MOOS

It is really stressful because we've still got viewings going on

for the wedding barn and the farm and the kids.

Yeah, it's really stressful.

With a wedding booked in every weekend

and livestock still to tend to...

Feeding the cows is a job that's done every day.

Takes about an hour every morning.

..they're working over 80 hours a week.

I'm waiting for the vet to turn up

because our billy goat's not very well.

Then I can shoot off and get my nails done.

And this weekend, they're hosting their own wedding.

Yeah, I'm happy with that.

I'll just have a few things to do in the morning

and then, once we're married, that'll be us for three days,

so we can chill out without the children and everything.

It'll be great.

CHURCH WEDDING BELLS RING OUT

Wow! This looks so cool. Look at it!

It's great, it's wonderful.

It's lovely to have the experience, I think,

after watching so many other couples get married.

-It's a bit weird, really.

-It's a bit surreal, to be honest,

-but, yeah, it's lush.

-Looks great.

Love it, love it.

On average, each wedding pulls in around £4,000

but by adding home-grown extras to the menus...

-This is OUR beef, by the way.

-Yeah.

This is our beef, home bred.

..it's bumping up profits for the farm side of the business too.

With just three days' honeymoon,

Abi and Paul will be straight back to business,

setting up next weekend's wedding.

When I met peat-free compost producers Jane and Simon,

back in the spring, their groundbreaking product

was being used to grow lilies at London's Chelsea Flower Show.

People that you meet down here are real gardeners.

-Feels like very good quality compost.

-Yeah.

It's a joy to talk to them, really. We get plenty of new customers.

-Yeah.

-Thank you.

-Thank you. Bye now.

What they were really hoping for was to win a gold medal.

I'm back to see how they got on.

Hey, lambkins, what are you all doing out?

-Hi, Kate.

-How are you?

-Very well, how are you?

-Lovely to see.

-I've got you on a busy day.

-You have. You come to help?

Well, I'm not shearing, for sure!

These guys look like they know what they're doing.

Now, the big question - how did Chelsea go?

-They got a gold medal.

-Yay, that's brilliant!

-That is absolutely brilliant.

-It was brilliant.

And have you already seen a noticeable impact from that?

-Yeah, it had a spike in the sales.

-Brilliant.

It does tail off in towards the summer when people aren't planting,

-but it works.

-How many are you shearing today?

We're only shearing about 120 today.

-Right, OK, but in total?

-500 sheep.

-500.

Are you having to think, "We're just going to up our production

-"by 10%, 20%", whatever it is?

-Oh, it'll be at least 50%.

-50%?

-Yeah.

We know how the trend is going.

-We know the push towards peat-free is coming.

-Yeah.

And the more gold medals we get, the more we'll sell next year.

That's fantastic. Right, well, we'd better clear up every bit of this.

Yes, please. It all goes into the compost. There's no waste.

'As well as using their own wool,

'they're buying in more from local shepherds this year.'

So, now that you've got this key ingredient, what about the bracken?

When does that get harvested?

-Well, actually, Simon's out there today.

-Oh, is he?

-He's made a start.

Which direction do I head in?

-Go out into the yard and up onto the fell.

-Brilliant.

Even though it's July, it still rains, on average,

every other day in the Lakes.

Luckily, bracken can be harvested in any weather.

-Hi, Simon. Lovely to see you again.

-Good to see you again.

It's kind of all speed ahead at the moment, isn't it?

I'm surprised that you're not cutting it later in the year

-when it's higher.

-Right, well, it's not going to get much higher.

-Really?

-No.

But at home, in Wales, you know, by sort of August time,

-bracken's up here.

-Yeah.

-You can't see a thing.

No, no, but we're controlling the plant.

So, each time we cut, it reduces its height.

We've turned it into a crop

-and we're letting the plant sustain itself.

-Yeah.

It's a really good atmospheric feeder.

-It draws a lot of energy in from the sun.

-Yeah.

And then, when we prune the plant off,

we've got all that energy and we turn it into compost.

Right, and that's the energy that you're harvesting,

-literally, for your compost.

-Yeah.

'Their plans to increase compost production

'means they'll need more bracken from this summer's crop

'and they're aiming to make over 2,000 bales in the next few weeks.'

Are you going to have tractors all over the fells, cutting like fury?

Yeah, we've got farmers who'll come out

-and they'll cut their own bracken, in some circumstances.

-Right.

-And we'll pay them to do that.

-Yeah.

And the beauty about that is they know their own bit of ground.

-Yes, of course.

-They know where the rocks are, nine times out of ten.

I'm feeling a little bit idle here and I love a tractor.

-OK, let's go and do some baling.

-Can we go and have a bit of a go?

I tell you what, the last time I did baling,

it wasn't in anything as swanky as this, I can assure you.

-Right.

-I love tractors!

-This is going to make you go forwards.

-Right.

-Let's have some revs on with the red lever there.

-That one there, yeah.

And then all we've got to do is watch out for rocks.

-I'm hanging on, don't worry!

-Hang on, hang on there, Simon!

-So, I just need to head down the middle of the row.

-Yes.

-It's, er...

-It's wrapping up, yeah.

-It's winding the wrap.

-Yeah.

-Hee-hee!

-Do you want a job?

-I'd love one!

I'd be the world's slowest baler.

-Look at that, Simon!

-There we go. That's a fantastic bale.

You never know, this might be growing a plant

-at Chelsea to win a gold medal.

-That would be good.

That would be very, very good.

Jane and Simon's enterprising spirit is what's made this business thrive.

By harnessing an environmentally sound idea,

they've secured a future, not just for their farm,

but other local farms too.

For preserve maker, Jane Maggs, autumn is peak foraging season.

These are my foraging raspberries here. I just leave them to it.

Her business had been slowly recovering

since the terrible Cumbrian floods

but, in the past month, it's taken another big knock.

So, we lost a big London order of about 5,000 jars,

which did mean a lot to us.

We had to gather ourselves together a bit.

I mean, it was all a bit disheartening.

The decisions to stock, or not, made by the big retailers

can mean the fortunes of small businesses

like Jane's change very quickly.

'So, then we were approached

'by another big independent in the south

'about whether we could make own-label products for them,

'but using hyper-local, old orchard, foraged Cumbrian fruit.'

So, it's this business of one door shutting and another door opening.

These are absolutely perfect.

Another few days and they might be a bit too soft.

'It'll be big and it'll be bigger, possibly, than the previous order.

'But unlike businesses'

who can just go and buy in,

I've got to pick it, so I'm running around madly

all over the county at the moment, gathering damsons.

Muesli entrepreneur Luke is heading back to the Lakes for good,

leaving his city salary and security behind.

I left London a couple of hours ago, left my job today for the last time.

Walking out the office was a good feeling though.

In the past year, the number of people leaving the capital

more than doubled - the highest spike for just over half a century.

I'm on my way back up to paradise, or the Lake District,

depending how you want to call it. Looking forward to getting home.

Um, yeah, it's exciting times, a new chapter.

With plans to treble production from 60 to 180kg a week,

they've bravely taken on office space.

We need to start bringing in orders as soon as possible.

We've both now quit our jobs,

so there's not any money really trickling our way.

-I think this month, basically, we need to be getting orders.

-Yeah.

-Let's go, man.

-Made it.

And today, they have a meeting set up with Cranstons,

a local food hall chain.

No, keep going, straight ahead.

Brokering a deal with them could provide the kick-start

the business needs.

I don't think I'm nervous. Are you nervous?

No, I think I'm kind of looking forward to getting on

and seeing what she says. It's more like

-you don't want to be disappointed at the end of the day.

-Exactly.

The retailer currently stocks three brands of muesli,

selling, on average, at around £3 a bag.

We sell at £6 a unit or two for £10.

-We know people pay that amount.

-Yeah.

We have a client mix right across the board,

so we're going to need a retail price

-just a little bit sharper, really.

-OK.

Our next step is, with all local start-ups,

we try and support them and offer a trial.

So, we have discussed a three-month trial.

But their enthusiasm and passion is encouraging.

It makes you more likely to stock them than not.

-Aiming completely in the dark...

-But enthusiastic.

Yeah, and came out with a few good lessons

-and certainly not a rejection.

-No, definitely.

With such positive feedback and a chance to trial the product...

-Do you want to try some, madam?

-Honey-toasted muesli.

..Luke and Tim push forward with a big launch

at the Taste Cumbria food festival.

-Hello.

-Geetie, welcome, welcome.

-It looks fantastic.

-You've set it up beautifully.

-Amazing, thank you, yeah.

-Are you selling lots?

-Yeah, it's been busy.

So, have you actually managed to meet up with any of the shops yet

that you're trying to sell to?

Last week was our first meeting with Cranstons.

We basically have a trial in their flagship store

and then from there, if it goes well,

then they would put Lakeland Mues in all of their stores.

It's £6 a bag, two for £10.

Would anyone like to try some muesli?

The bags go for £6 each or two for a tenner on the market stall,

but the code of practice

to sell at bigger retail outlets is quite different.

-So, this is the tropical and then this is the classic.

-That's amazing.

You have to have a set price that everyone's buying at, obviously.

You could sell it higher here but not cheaper.

You must never undercut your suppliers.

We need to work that through with Cranstons

and we said, "We want to invest in that relationship with you."

Yeah. Is there any point that you would sell to somebody

at a small loss in order to be able to be stocked?

My concern would be it sets a bad precedent.

-Getting your brand out there is the most vital thing right now.

-Yeah.

-Ladies, would you like to try some homemade muesli?

-Two of these then?

That's £10, please, madam. I'll just get your change.

£6 half a kilo or we're doing two for £10.

-Feels like we've basically flown by the seat of our pants so far.

-Yes.

-So, now it's the time where we kind of, yeah...

-Structure, planning...

-Structure, all those kind of things that we hate doing.

-Yeah.

-Exactly.

Look, if you're no good at it and you really do hate doing it,

-you need to find someone to do it for you.

-Yeah.

That's really important. And then you'll fly.

I have genuinely enjoyed meeting Tim and Luke.

They are great salespeople and, with a bit of planning and structure,

I'm quite confident they'll get their business

to where they want to be.

Back in spring, I met forager and preserve maker Jane Maggs.

Hello, everyone. These are the samples.

It's been a tough year, rebuilding her business which was hit hard

ten months ago by the Cumbrian floods.

She's managed to move back into the commercial kitchen

and she's now in the throes of pitching to a new supplier.

At nine o'clock tomorrow morning,

seven different samples have got to be winging their way south.

We've made four and I've got three to do.

It's going to be a late night, I think.

SHE LAUGHS

After a summer of setbacks,

this 1,500 jar order could be what keeps the business going.

-Are you getting any ginger?

-No.

-No.

Jane?

-Hello.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-Er, a bit frantic and...

Hello, it's lovely to see you. What are up to at the moment?

If you could stone some damsons first, that would be really helpful.

OK, I can do damsons.

Right, how's that? Am I looking OK?

That's the most flattering hat, I'm afraid.

There's no such thing as a flattering hat

in this industry, is there? Right, I'm in. There we go.

Now, this stoning we're doing today is for a new order

-which could be very big.

-Oh, right.

-It's for Gloucester Services.

-Jane, that's terrific.

-I know, it is.

-So, that must have been very, very timely for you.

-It was, yeah.

It sounds sort of - perhaps over-dramatic -

-but do you think it saved the business?

-Well, I hope it will.

I can't think of anywhere better who appreciates what we do.

In amongst the nerves, is it also exciting?

Is this why you do this business really?

Um, I do it cos I like...picking fruit.

THEY LAUGH

I mean, I started the business all those years ago,

to show you could have a business

that was sustainable, using local fruit.

-Yeah.

-The margins are small.

'Jane's commitment to promote local produce

'and the belief that we can make use of what nature provides

'is what will continue to drive her business forward,

'despite the ups and downs.'

-Thorny issue of money.

-Yes.

Have you made any this year?

Er, as of last month, we were just making a loss of minus 200 quid,

-I think, which is astonishing to all of us.

-Wow!

I mean, everyone's pulled really hard so, you know,

we might end up with a little profit, which is totally amazing.

So, this new client might be, not just the saviour of your business,

but also, actually, the thing that might get your message

out wider than anything you've done before.

I'm so lucky that they've offered me this, I really am.

It's just the right platform.

Coming to this month, I'm feeling better about everything.

-Do you know why you're feeling better about everything?

-No.

It's the smell of blackberries cooking on your stove.

-That always makes everyone feel better.

-That's true.

-Jane, it's been a real pleasure meeting you.

-And you.

In Cumbria, you either give up or you battle on.

She's a battler, her gang are battlers,

and that makes me feel

that Wild & Fruitful will remain Wild & Fruitful

for many years to come.

For farmers Abi and Paul,

their wedding barn business season is coming to a close.

It's been a busy year of change for the newlyweds.

We've got more exciting news from the farm as well.

It's going to get really busy during lambing time next year.

We're due another one, another baby ourselves.

-Congratulations!

-Thank you.

-That's wonderful.

We were due the twins in the middle of lambing time and, yeah,

-we've timed it really well again.

-That must be utterly exhausting!

Having hosted a record 23 nuptials over the summer season,

the barn will be turned back to housing the cattle.

There's about three months off

before this is going to be full of cows right here.

Yes, they're going to be eating out of this trough here.

No festoon lighting any more.

I'm afraid they don't get the pretty lights.

Like many struggling farmers, their pick your own,

milk and meat have yielded poor returns,

but the wedding side of the business could now be what keeps them afloat.

How is it looking for next year?

We have one date left in June

-and then there's one date left in September.

-That's amazing.

And when we finish wedding season,

we've a 50th birthday party and a lovely big wedding fair.

We're looking at bringing in different packages,

whether it be they just have a basic DIY barn,

where they do everything themselves,

or whether we then add in a photographer, catering,

that kind of thing, or whether they want the whole nine yards -

they just turn up, get married and everything's done for them.

So, if you do want to revisit your pricing -

cos we were talking about that before -

-that would be the opportunity for you to do it.

-Definitely.

For four months of the year,

Abi and Paul are missing out on lucrative bookings,

unless they can find somewhere else to house the animals over winter.

But to enable us to do that,

-the business would have to take another financial leap.

-Mm.

Because we would have to put up another building on the farm

to enable us to farm in that

and not have to do any farming in these buildings at all.

So, why do you even continue with the farming

when you've got this business that could make you plenty of money?

Our heart's in farming, isn't it?

-There wouldn't be anything to get up for, would there?

-We both love it.

I mean, farming isn't a job. It's a way of life we love.

It would be lovely for us to be able to take a step back

and managers to step in and for us to get on with farming

-and the wedding barn to be running itself, in effect.

-Mm.

And I think it's crucial now that we actually sit down

-and business plan it out and, if needs be, get some help in...

-Yes.

..externally, on how to take both businesses forward.

Sounds like a really sensible plan to me.

Don't get us wrong - we do enjoy it but the farm is where our heart is.

Yeah.

Abi and Paul, with their growing family,

have hit on a savvy way

of continuing with the traditional farming they love

but, through sheer graft and belief, they've built a new business

to be proud of and the farm has a more secure future.

-You're welcome back any time.

-Thank you.

-See you. Bye.

-Thank you, bye.

Mandy's dream to produce hand-crafted tweed bags

from local wool was brave and ambitious.

-Hey, Giles, how you doing?

-Hi, how are you?

-Good, thank you.

Come for your bags, have you?

Bags manufactured at a lower cost abroad dominate the UK market,

but it's people like Mandy,

that are supporting this traditional British trade.

That looks terrific!

Wow!

Every part of the process has genuine provenance -

taking wool from the Herdwick sheep,

weaving the tweed at a local mill

and, finally, making the bags at this local factory.

When Philip's cutting it, what's the most effective usage?

If you're doing a big thing,

-you need to do a small thing to fill in the gaps.

-Right.

But Philip will use it and we don't throw it away. All this stuff is...

No, no, no, I just was trying to make it ultra-efficient.

We know how expensive it is.

We do know how expensive it is, thank you.

-It looks lovely.

-Thanks for reminding me!

-I'm making the patterns from your picture.

-OK.

With the help of their expertise and skill,

Mandy's developed six high-end designs.

-It's lovely, isn't it?

-That looks amazing!

-Really nice.

-See you next time.

-Good luck.

-Thanks, Giles.

-All right.

-See you soon.

-Bye.

It's all gone really, really well.

It's sort of interesting to see it all actually coming together

and then, now I've just got to market them and sell them.

'To push the business forward,

'Mandy will need not only to sell her existing stock

'but, crucially, produce enough new cloth for next season's products.'

It looks like you're really, really forging ahead - new bag designs...

THEY LAUGH

Is this a sign that you are feeling really optimistic

that you've hit on a good thing here?

-I think I would have said so until about two days ago.

-Right.

We've sent off all the second lot of yarn

and it's been spun and it's been at the weaver's,

and then I've had a call to say

-that there's breakages on the loom.

-Right.

And so they don't know whether it can be made to work, basically.

They are going to try, on a different loom,

to see if, on that basis, it's working better.

So, if this absolutely doesn't work,

and if, basically, we've lost that chunk of money...

How much is a chunk?

Probably nearly £10,000.

So, I'm a bit nervous, really.

But there are two words that I would attach to you immediately -

proud and stubborn.

THEY LAUGH

-You can hit me if you like.

-No, it's fine.

But I don't see you as somebody

-who's going to want to give up easily.

-No.

-But, clearly, you do have a business brain as well.

-Yes.

People who are more expert in this are saying,

"Mandy, there is going to be a solution to this

"cos you know it can work."

So, you've just got to hold your nerve.

You have created something pretty magnificent

that is absolutely part and parcel of your adopted home.

Yes, oh, yeah, absolutely. And I'm really proud of that.

-You should be.

-And I have to just...

I have to hold onto that to keep going forward,

just move the obstacles.

-Yeah. You can move anything.

-Thank you.

'It's people like Mandy who keep these regions alive.'

But making a living here is no holiday.

The weather and the geography conspire

to making running a rural business a very tough challenge indeed.

But, for those with imagination,

for those with grit and guts and vision,

the Lake District can and does provide.