1. Franklins of Thorncote
John Franklin's remarkable small poultry farm stands out from all but a few of its peers. All criteria, from husbandry through to butchery, are met to ideal standards. The birds are slow-grown over a period of six to eight months depending on breed, twice the time given for intensively reared turkey to reach a weight suitable for slaughter. The birds roam free on pasture, foraging for grasses, herbs and grubs, important elements for flavour. They are slaughtered on the farm's own abattoir - no need for transport means stress to the bird is low - then dry-plucked and hung non-eviscerated (with guts in) for crisp skin and meat with extra flavour. Bronze turkeys, Legarth White geese, Hubbard chickens and ducklings all available. Supplement feed is grown on the farm. John Franklin is also an expert butcher. He makes a delicious three-bird roast: a boned goose, stuffed with a chicken, a pheasant and apricot stuffing (£16.90/kg); oven-ready geese £9.50/kg; Bronze turkeys £8.20/kg. He can also send Christmas boxes of vegetables grown on nearby farms and produces eggs, pork and wild boar.
Trumpetons Farm, Thorncote Green, Bedfordshire; 01767 627644
franklinsfarm.co.uk
Mail order
Last orders: 12 December
2. Sheepdrove Organic Farm
Peter Kindersley's beautiful farm is home to a commendable organic system for poultry and other livestock. It also has its own abattoir, and Kindersley has devised a system for cleaning the water supply as it leaves the slaughterhouse by running it through a reed-bed system. All poultry is farm-bred, and the chicks enjoy a happy early life in small huts with cute 'conservatories' so they can peer out into the outside world at an early age and enjoy the sun on their backs without getting cold. Traditional Norfolk Bronze, Norfolk Black and Bourbon Red turkeys roam and forage the farm's fields from two weeks old, and are given added natural supplements. Growth is slow: the Heritage breeds take over seven months to reach full weight. Oven-ready Norfolk Bronze £11.50/kg; Heritage £12.49/kg. Also available: geese £14.99/kg and duck £11.99/kg. Kindersley also produces beef, lamb, pork at Sheepdrove.
Lambourn, Berkshire; 01488 674700
sheepdrove.com plus butchers shops in Maida Vale, London, and Bristol
Mail order
Last orders: 7 December
3. Peele's Turkeys
Frank Peele rescued the Norfolk Black almost from extinction in the early 1930s and the farm is still run by his daughter Pat Graham and her son James. Both have continued to farm the Norfolk breed traditionally, using their farm-produced feed: wheat, oats and barley. The turkeys are kept in small huts overnight, then released into open yards with grass during daytime. The body shape of Norfolk Blacks is different to other breeds - their backs are longer and chests slimmer in appearance - but there is plenty of deeply set breast meat on the birds, which have a distinct savoury, gamey flavour. As with Norfolk Bronze, there will be a few stubs of black quills left in the skin even when oven-ready - they tend to 'cook out during roasting' and have no impact on flavour. Cambridge Bronze and Bourbon Red turkeys are also available from Rookery Farm. 4kg turkeys cost £8.55/kg; 7kg birds cost £8/kg.
Rookery Farm, Thuxton, Norfolk; 01953 860294
peelesblackturkeys@fwi.co.uk
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Last orders: 10 December
4. Marks & Spencer
This year all turkeys sold by M&S will be free-range and British, and sourced from dedicated farms in Northern Ireland, Pembrokeshire and East Anglia (the name of the farmer can be found on the packaging). The above will be available in all food halls but they will also be offering a special reserve, organically reared, Devon Bronze turkey. These will be slow-grown and fed a natural diet. In a bid to deflect criticism over packaging, the organic turkeys come in biodegradable wrapping inside a cardboard box. All come with giblets, a bunch of herbs and cooking time tailor-made to the weight of each individual turkey. £12.69/kg (ordering essential).
0845 603 1603
marksandspencer.com
Last orders: noon 12 December
5. Seldom Seen Farm
Seldom Seen Farm has held its strong reputation for high standards and delicious birds for over a decade for good reason. The goslings on Robert and Claire Symington's farm hatch in May and feed on grass and home-grown wheat and potatoes throughout the summer. Their meat is a wholesome golden colour and flavour is deep and herby. All birds are hung non-eviscerated for 10-14 days, and they are dry-plucked - essential for a crispy skin. Cost £8.60/kg. A three-bird roast is also available: a boned goose stuffed with a boned chicken, stuffed with a boned pheasant and layered with spiced pork-and-orange stuffing - £15.30/kg. Goose fat available in 1lb jars, for roasting the potatoes.
Billesdon, Leicestershire; 0116 259 6742
seldomseenfarm.co.uk
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Last orders: 5 December
6 Red Poll Meats
Sebastian Hall's organic Norfolk Bronze and Norfolk Black turkeys are fed naturally and reared slowly, running outside on grass pasture in daytime from June to December. Feed is supplemented with wheat and other grains. Hall is insistent that the poultry spends as much time outside as is possible, saying it is not enough for 'free-range' farmers to simply open the side of a barn. A turkey's instinct is to stay inside, he says. The turkeys (and some geese) are hung non-eviscerated for 10 days then dry-plucked by hand. Free-range non-organic birds are also available, reared to the same standard as organic but fed a natural but non-organically certified diet, from £9.25/kg. Oven-ready organic Norfolk Black turkeys, £11.95. Hall also farms the rare-breed Red Poll cattle, a dual-purpose breed that can be used for meat and dairy production. (He only has a limited supply, so call.)
Hacheston, Suffolk; 01728 748444
redpollmeats.co.uk
Mail order
Last orders: 21 December
7. Weatherall Foods
Ben Weatherall is the favourite game supplier to many London chefs, counting Mark Hix, Jeremy Lee and Rowley Leigh among his clients, but he will also deliver to private customers. The game is sourced from shooting estates in Yorkshire and Scotland, and is processed at a high-tech plant that is fully compliant with modern hygiene regulations. The game is only judged to be saleable if it is in perfect condition, so there are no smelly birds or meat heavily bruised with shot (expect to find the odd bit, though). For Christmas Weatherall can put together a useful Festive Box, containing a plucked and dressed pheasant, partridge and mallard. A venison steak, venison sausages and diced game mix for braises and pies, costs £74. Orders can also be tailor-made; contact for prices.
Irongray, Dumfries; 01387 730326
blackface.co.uk for Mail order
Last orders: 20 December
8. Rhug Estate
Lord Newborough's home-farmed Norfolk Bronze turkeys are reared in an exemplary organic system, spending their lives foraging outside and fed on home-grown feed. They are slaughtered on site at the farm's own abattoir, reducing stress, and hung non-eviscerated and dry-plucked. All packaging for home delivery can be recycled. The farm's beef, gammon and game is also recommended. Turkeys cost £11/kg. If you are in the area, drop in to the estate's own transport café, before picking up your Christmas groceries, where you can eat a sumptuous organic burger or a full 'Welsh' breakfast in a cabin on the side of the road.
Corwen, Denbighshire; 01490 413000
rhug.co.uk
Mail order
Last orders: 10 December
9. S J Frederick & Sons
A family farm that has been in operation since the 1800s, specialising in free-range, French farmhouse-style Label Anglais chickens reared on their own farm in Roydon, near Harlow, Essex. The chickens are long-bodied with strong, muscular legs and their meat takes its exceptional flavour and distinctive colour from a natural diet that is rich in maize. 'Special Reserve' chickens have a plumper, more 'English' shape and a lighter taste. Turkeys also available. Mail order price: £10.75/1.4kg chicken (minimum order four).
Roydon, Essex; 01279 792460
labelanglais.co.uk
Mail order
Last orders: 11 December
10. Waitrose
Most ducks reared for the mass market are either kept in horribly cramped conditions without access to anything more than drinking water, and even farmers who let their ducks roam free can give them the free-range label when they have never been able to swim. It is a denial of natural behaviour and one of the crueller aspects of poultry farming. It is good to report, then, that Waitrose has addressed this issue, introducing naturally kept ducklings, reared in East Anglia, that roam freely with access to grass paddocks. All ducks have a pond to swim in and there is tree shade in every field which is apparently another essential element to duck happiness. Available whole and oven-ready; breasts, legs (on the bone) and in fillets for stir-fries and curries. Duck livers also available. Waitrose also sells welfare-friendly goose, guinea fowl and quail.
0800 188884
waitrose.com
Last orders: 15 December
