In full flight

Doing things differently is paying off — again — for a Hawke’s Bay chicken farm

IN 2020, GEORGE and Ben Bostock took out the Supreme Champion award for their organic, free-range chicken, which tasted “like chicken used to taste”.

Th is year, they’re back again, scooping up the Paddock Co-Champion award with Middlehurst Delivered (right) and the Outstanding Sustainability Champion award.

In this year’s awards, the Bostocks won five gold medals for their size-14 whole chicken, chicken drumsticks, chicken nibbles, chicken thighs and marinated butterfly chicken.

The judges said the latter was “juicy, meaty, moist and delicious, with a good seasoning distribution”.

“Pastoral care” seems to be the best way to sum up how the Bostocks care for their antibiotic-and hormone-free birds. They have the right to roam on organic Hawke’s Bay apple orchards, eat maize grown on the property and sleep in specially designed solarpowered chalets.

The Bostocks have fully opted out of the prevailing fast-food production model, and it shows in the quality of their product, the welfare of their livestock and a genuine focus on sustainability that includes packaging the birds in fully home-compostable wrapping.

“Bostock Brothers is paving the way for a new type of farming that doesn’t compromise on values and gives back to employees and their community,” the judges said.