There may in fact be cuter and more cuddly things than an armful of baby goat.
But it might take some searching to find them.
“There’s something about a baby goat, people just melt,” smiled Cheryl Haskett of Udderly Ridiculous Farm Life.
Simply watching baby goats run, jump, cavort and play is attractive enough, she continued.
“But being able to pick them up and cuddle and hold them is providing a really high degree of stress relief. People come stressed and they leave calm.”
Some degree of the reverse could be true for agri-entrepreneur dairy goat farmers developing and launching a unique line of artisan lactose-and-casein-sensitivity-friendly goat ice cream just prior to a pandemic. She and husband Greg’s marriage is literally one of a third-generation Oxford County farmer (near Bright), and an organizational corporate trainer, with a background in tourism.
Their concept sources their own milk to create a ‘better for you’ product outside of more traditional and therefore competitive niches such as goat cheese, with natural ingredients sourced in collaborative conjunction with other local producers.
There were easier routes Cheryl concedes, but not ones which allow standing out in the manner they were hoping to.
“I want people who appreciate good food and local food to know our heart and our soul and our love is in this.”
The Udderly Ridiculous line features six unique combinations painstakingly selected from 30 initial contenders: Coffee & Craft Brew (Kintore Coffee infused with Upper Thames Brewing Company porter); Lemon Cream (homage to Italian gelato using Ontario goat milk, cream and curd and real lemon juice); Peachy Mango Tango (featuring peach and mango pure); Vanilla Bean Lavender (vanilla with subtle undertones of English Lavender from Apple Hill Lavender Farm); Spiced Pumpkin (real pumpkin and a proprietary spice mix); and Wine & Dark Chocolate (74 per cent bittersweet chocolate combined with Legends Estate Ontario VQA Merlot).
Response was encouragingly positive throughout an ambitious 30-event promotional tour in which 80,000 samples were handed out, in conjunction with ‘foodie’ industry networking. Official recognition followed including a trio of ribbons from the 2019 Royal Winter Fair, and also a Canadian Grand Prix New Product award.
And then, as all their hard work was lining up, COVID-19 locked down their physical outreach. Udderly Ridiculous is certainly not alone in experiencing pandemic challenges Haskett emphasized, but there were days thoughts of hitting the pause button, even giving up intruded.
“Every day,” she laughed, trying to lighten incredibly difficult moments. “And even now, it still has a lingering negative impact.”
They have seen some businesses close, including a friend’s in March.
“She couldn’t keep going,” said Cheryl, whose shared dark humour with husband Greg is ‘failure is not an option.’
“We can’t afford to fail, so we figure out how to keep going.”
Part of that solution pivoted around realization if they couldn’t go to the people, they would endeavour to bring people to them and an on-farm store through a variety of ‘Udderly Ridiculous Farm Life’ options.
“People are getting a number of different experiences wrapped in stories and animals and place.”
Customizing farm-based experiences was easier than developing the ice cream line says Cheryl, given similar concepts exist, and secondly, demand was already there for options like goat yoga. Their challenge was ensuring guests had an enjoyable, educational, connective experience while honouring the farm, its history and Greg’s late father Alvin’s legacy in a comparatively intimate and meaningful manner.
“We want to be a responsible tourism operator versus as many bodies getting off a bus as you can get.”
Haskett credits the SW Ontario Tourism Unlocked and Inspired experiential tourism course for supporting their development and launch of a diverse suite of options (for the full range, check out the website https://udderlyridiculousfarmlife.com) including goat yoga, recess and cuddles, a seasonal option around spring ‘kidding’, extending into mid-May. The requirement for baby goats (kids) is a limiting factor, as is Haskett’s strict policy on limiting the goat cuddle experience, typically only once per day, a few days a week.
“If people want more, we just say no. If the animals’ health and well-being is put first, the experience they have with people is great and we won’t compromise on that.”
The farm’s alpacas form attractive and unique companionship for walks, experiences and picnics. The latter and Taste of Farm Life, an immersive discovery of food and farm through the people, animals and land, illustrate Haskett’s collaborative rural community approach. Her goal is to stock 50 other Ontario-based products beyond her own Udderly Ridiculous brand in the farm’s retail outlet, creating a hub for like-minded producers and consumers. Items on her experience-related menus and related narrative clearly reflect that principle.
Taste of Farm Life experience met SW Ontario Tourism’s criteria to be named a signature experience, and that body additionally announced in March that Udderly Ridiculous Farm Life had also won the Innovator of the given Cheryl’s previous experience with experiential learning and tourism.
“It was a huge deal,” said Cheryl. “A real significant honour.”
Those coming to the farm are as varied as the experiences they select. But if there is a common denominator, Haskett believes at the risk of sounding trite, they are looking for ‘joy.’
“If you think about it, people have been cooped up for two years listening to bad news, COVID, war… it’s just all the time. They’re enjoying fresh air, a chance to breathe, a sense there is still something good in the world.”
And that feedback, reflected in visitors’ faces or comments, is the piece that has kept Haskett going through the dynamic challenges of creating, pivoting and evolving a business model through a global pandemic.
“I thrive on other people’s experience, the look on their faces is part of my DNA.”
And while those intangibles don’t always show up in a bank account, they’re a form of payment that has helped keep Udderly Ridiculous on the runway toward brighter days.
“If I didn’t have that, I would have been done a long time ago,” Cheryl concluded.