| 65 T T Alexia Anderson Sweet taste of success for honey producer Jess Curtis is the face behind the Branch Creek Honey brand and doubles as beekeeper. Branch Creek Honey - Outstanding Food Producers Awards 2024 REGIONAl DEVELOPMENT “I love being able to produce a product that has little impact on our earth and connect with our customers to share the journey that it has been on before, ending up on their plate.” Branch Creek Honey is celebrating sweet success after returning home with three gold medals from the 2024 Outstanding Food Producer Awards (OFPA). It was the company’s creamed, raw and comb clover blend products that impressed the judges. However, the accolades did not stop there for Branch Creek Honey with its raw clover blend going on to win the Champion Award in the Farro Earth category. The team at Branch Creek Honey was thrilled by its success, particularly to have its raw honey named champion, given its creamed and comb clover blend counterparts were typically more popular and well known. The OFPA is a prestigious event, judged by 23 experts who meticulously evaluate each product based on aroma, visual appearance, taste, flavour, consistency, and quality. Each comprehensive assessment accounts for 90% of the score, including a blind tasting to ensure impartiality. The remaining 10% of the marks are awarded based on the producer’s sustainability, environmental, and social practices, underscoring the importance of ethical production in today’s market. Jessica Curtis (Jess), the face behind the brand, doubles as beekeeper and honey extraordinaire while also working on her family’s station, also called Branch Creek, nestled in the Cardrona Valley, near Wanaka. She said for Branch Creek Honey, the recognition was a testament to years of dedication and refinement. “This year’s gold medals and champion award are a huge moment for both myself and the business. As a small business it provides our customers with assurance of our product’s quality against those larger in the industry,” she said. “We have been striving to achieve gold medals since we began entering these awards back in 2021 and over this time have been making little changes to our products.” She said credit must also go to “our hard working bees,” who each season bring in a honey that is slightly different depending on the season and weather. It was Jessica’s grandfather, Ray Anderson, who introduced bees to the farm for their pollination, to help the pastures regenerate. “His bees were always a hobby and I’ve grown up with fond memories of enjoying his freshly harvested honey and ‘helping’ him with his hives.” Jessica’s passion for farming has continued to grow, and over the years she has developed a deep connection with the land and a desire to preserve it for generations to come. As part of that journey, she welcomed the opportunity of beekeeping when she saw an opportunity to continue her granddad’s hard work and transform his hobby into something much more. She did a beekeeping apprenticeship to learn the skills and then took over her granddad’s existing hives, a move that has paid off in more ways than one. “I love being able to produce a product that has little impact on our earth and connect with our customers to share the journey that it has been on before, ending up on their plate. “I enjoy that while no day is the same, I get to be a part of the family farm and that my bees play a crucial role in the operation of growing feed and keeping our livestock fit and healthy.”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=