CREAM O’ Galloway will reopen this weekend after it was taken over by a farmer from Yorkshire.
Paul Hodgson owns Brymor Ice Cream near Masham in North Yorkshire – but he comes from this region.
His new ownership deal has been agreed in principle pending completion later this year.
It’s a good fit for the two ice cream firms with the award winning Brymor products having been made on at High Jervaulx Farm for 40 years. Like Cream o’ Galloway, which is 20 years old, it has a farm-based ice cream parlour, café and visitor attraction alongside ice cream and sorbet manufacturing, of a wide range of flavours. And it’s a homecoming for Paul, who grew up on a farm outside Balmaclellan. He said: “We are delighted to be collaborating with the team at Cream of Galloway, and I’m pleased that re-opening the visitor centre secures the jobs of the current members of staff. Many people have had wonderful and happy times at Cream o’ Galloway Visitor Centre over the years, and long may this continue.
“Cream o’ Galloway is a fabulous, cherished, and loved ice cream, and we are looking forward to increasing the stockists for it. Production of ice cream on-site has already increased, and the visitor centre will re-open on Saturday October 14.
“There are numerous synergies and similarities to Brymor in North Yorkshire, which is also a quality farm-made ice cream. We are looking forward to building upon the excellent legacy created by David and Wilma Finlay. On a personal note, it is particularly exciting to come back home to Galloway.”
It was just three weeks ago that the visitor centre closed, on September 17, after founders Wilma and David Finlay stepped back from the business.
Now their ice cream will continue to be made to the same recipe and range of flavours.
Cream o’Galloway general manager Jane Malcolm said: “This has been an extraordinary couple of weeks, with sadness about the closure of the visitor centre quickly replaced with optimism about exciting new possibilities for the business.
“I’m looking forward to working with Paul to explore growth opportunities for the ice cream, and we are delighted to be able to re-open the doors to the visitor centre once again.”
Rainton Farm, where Cream o’ Galloway is based, and its sister business The Ethical Dairy, remain owned and managed by the Finlay family. Milk from the pioneering cow-with-calf dairy farm will continue to be used in the manufacture of Cream o’ Galloway ice cream.
