Goose Valley Farm in south Galway is currently taking orders for Christmas.
All birds ordered will be cleaned and packaged, ready for the oven on Christmas Day. Collection day is set for Saturday, December 23. Craig will also be giving tours of the farm (bring your wellies ). You are welcome to join the team at Goose Valley for a cup of tea, nibbles, and traditional Nova Scotian eggnog.
Goose Valley Farm is run by the Fahy-Browne family. Father Craig is originally from Nova Scotia, while mother Anne hails from Galway. Craig and Anne moved to south Galway in the summer of 2016 with their three children. Purchasing a house between Kilcolgan and Ballinderreen, the family also took advantage of an offer to buy a three acre field located beside the home.
In March this year, Craig and the family planted 2,200 trees across two acres of the field through a Government forestry scheme. The forester suggested a number of methods for keeping the grass down around the trees, which is an obligation under the scheme. Options include manual cutting or herbicides. As an off-the-cuff remark, the forester suggested geese because they eat lots of grass, but not trees. And thus Goose Valley Farm was born.
The geese are all grass fed, and graze on two acres of pasture land near Ballinderreen in south Galway. From May to September, their only diet is grass and water. Since September, the geese have been topped up with locally sourced rolled barley, fallen apples, and pumpkin.
For more information or to order your goose, call (089 ) 4558985 or visit www.goosevalleyfarm.ie
