When Cheryl Haskett moved from Guelph to Bright, Ontario to join her husband Greg on his third-generation farm in 2014 she had no idea what to expect. In short, what she did find, was that farming is completely, 100%, no ifs, ands or buts…udderly ridiculous.
Discover a Feast On® Experience at Udderly Ridiculous
Here’s how this couple took humour and ridiculousness and spun it on its head to create on-farm experiences and a delicious gourmet product to celebrate farm life.
Oh, and the coolest part? They’re double Feast On® certified.
Shaking Things Up with Gourmet Goat Milk Ice Cream
Prior to Cheryl’s arrival in 2014, there had been some big changes at the farm when Greg and his dad, Alvin, decided to shift from beef and hogs to sheep and goats, then a further doubling down to go all in with goats. Little did they know, she would shake things up further.
After a large scare in 2017 when one of Ontario’s largest dairy milk buyers stopped buying from Ontario, Greg and Cheryl began looking at their business model, wondering how they could not only future-proof themselves but create something they loved.
Enter stage left, an ice cream business. After bouncing multiple ideas around, Cheryl and Greg landed on a major shift. They would use their extensive goat herd to craft premium, gourmet goat milk ice cream.
Understanding goat milk to be more easily digested and seeing a gap in the Canadian market, they were all in. Cheryl even went to ice cream school at the University of Guelph (among her and Greg’s many other degrees).
Voila! Udderly Ridiculous Ice Cream was born. Using their own goat milk and a variety of ingredients from local producers like beer from nearby Upper Thames Brewing Company, coffee from Kintore Coffee and lavender from Apple Hill among others, one crazy delicious product in several varieties was put on the market to huge success (ok we know there was a lot of hard work in there too). In fact, it even won a Canadian Grand Prix for Best New Dessert in 2020.
Think you’d like to try some for yourself? You can grab some of this Feast On® certified ice cream at their farm store in Bright or from several retailers across the province. If you’re shopping at the farm store, you can even use your Feast On® vouchers to purchase!
Bringing People to the Farm
As it did for many others, COVID created issues and opportunities. The Hasketts couldn’t go to the customers so they created a way to connect with customers on their farm instead. When Cheryl moved to the farm, her experience had taught her so much and there had been so many laughs along the way. She wanted to share that experience with others.
There were new sounds, new smells and definitely new sights to behold. Have you ever seen what happens when you throw an egg to a bunch of chickens? Or heard hundreds of frogs fornicating? Ahem. Cheryl will tell you all about it at during their suite of on-farm experiences, aptly named Udderly Ridiculous Farm Life.
Different from many agritourism experiences, the safety and wellbeing of the animals is the Hasketts’ first priority. Far from a petting zoo, Cheryl knew from the outset there would be limits to what and how much the animals would be fed and interacted with and that the experiences needed to teach people to live in harmony with Mother Nature not just use it for their own pleasure.
Starting with a signature experience called A Taste of Farm Life, the Hasketts began inviting guests out to the farm to walk the alpacas, play with the goats, meet the chickens, explore the farm’s rich soil, and enjoy a few surprise snacks along their way.
All the while, Cheryl would weave her stories into the experience and answer loads of questions about farming. The cool thing about this experience is that no question is off the table. With Cheryl being a former city girl turned farm hand, she aims to connect people with the land in ways they don’t usually have the opportunity to do.
From there, Udderly Ridiculous Farm Life began adding on other experiences. Goat Recess appeals to families and teaches kids how to interact with animals as they lead goats over obstacles and old farm equipment. Alpaca Picnics bring you right into the alpaca pen to share a gourmet, Ontario-sourced lunch with these gentle creatures and alpaca walks allow visitors to enjoy time reconnecting with Mother Nature all year long.
You can browse and book these experiences as well as goat cuddles, goat yoga and many others on their website.
Plan Your Visit
Certified as a purveyor and an experience, we recommend checking out this brand-new Feast On® partner for yourself! Visit the shop, grab some ice cream (as well as hundreds of other Ontario-sourced gourmet goodies) and book an experience. We think you’ll leave feeling refreshed and reconnected.
