by Alun Edwards, FUW representative on the Education and Hill Farming committees
Social media can be a blessing and a curse, depending on its use. When media company Four Cymru asked if they could come and make a five-minute video focusing on sustainable farming for HCC, I never thought where it would lead. In no time at all, after it was broadcasted in 2020, it had been watched 275,000 times, a tribute to HCC's promotion and marketing skills for sure.
As a result of this, I quickly understood that the National Geographic television company was trying to contact me after seeing the video, eventually leading to a conversation over Zoom with a man called Doug Veith, who was keen to use the story of Welsh sustainable lamb in an episode of a series called "Uncharted". The series was based on the adventures of a well-known chef to remote places all over the world meeting food producers, and completing many challenges in the process. I asked who...oh, confidential, and had to sign a N.D.A.,"non disclosure agreement" that would be in place during the filming period. I was a little nervous by now, but I agreed! "Never turn down an opportunity" would be my father's advice every time!
The complications then began; could I send videos of possible places to land a helicopter? Can we come in April, yes ok, in the middle of lambing?! Where would a TV crew of over 30 be able to stay, not far from the farm?
Arrangements were made with a "fixers" company from Manchester to coordinate, but it soon became clear that they had no idea about Wales, and so Elan my daughter and Catrin my partner came to the rescue to get it sorted, and it didn't take long to hear that chef Gordon Ramsay would arrive here on the 7th of April 2021, and to make the area seem more secluded, he would do so by helicopter. What could go wrong?! Well after two preparatory visits in bright sunshine, that morning, it snowed! The director was in his element, like Robert Duval at the beginning of Apocalypse Now, shouting orders across the mountain to 3 camera crews, and the sheep scrambling everywhere.
The helicopter appeared with Ramsay hanging below it on a rope, and after several turns high over the Wnion valley, it landed, where the Welsh chef, Matt Waldron from the Stackpole Inn in Pembrokeshire was waiting to welcome him by cooking a breakfast of sausages, bacon and laverbread amongst the ruins of the old hafod. Great! The two chefs would challenge each other in the programme by creating interesting recipes using lamb, salmon, cheese, cockles and seaweed.
My task was to give Gordon a taste of a farmer's life, and I had already recorded calls in Welsh for him to work the sheep dogs, "cer yn d'ol" and "ffordd yma", with little success....but after a short interview about our hafod and hendre method of farming, unbelievably to me, the dogs worked like clockwork for him as he collected a group of ewe lambs from the field, and that famous swear word was not used once!
Following this, we were in the pen treating the rams' feet, and I think Ramsay's insurers were quite worried at that time, but fair play, he was more than happy to help even though he was worried about his knees. And I felt that, even though he was a world famous star, he had an interest and respect for our work and our way of life.
After three days, there was an opportunity to taste the dishes the two chefs had prepared on the shores of Llyn Mwyngil, Talyllyn. It was an opportunity for me to meet the other food producers and exchange experiences, and on the day, we were the judges.
Gordon Ramsay had cooked a shoulder of lamb from Caecoch slowly as a casserole, while Matt Waldron cooked a leg with soy sauce and laverbread...all this outside on the shore of the lake, and by a hair's breadth, and a bit of banter, Waldron's recipe was awarded the winner!
The series "Uncharted" has not aired here yet, but after it was broadcasted in the United States, we’ll see who will want to return to the old country to taste its delicacies. Certainly, the media can create very positive global links at times, with a bit of patience and wisdom.