MEET THE JORDANS TEAM
EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT JORDANS AND A LITTLE BIT MORE
From our commitment to the British countryside to our passion for delicious ingredients and healthy eating, you’re sure to discover something new.
THE TECHNICAL WIZARD
Paul Smith
Paul is most certainly a Jordans veteran, having started working for us in 1984! He had a rather odd interview ‘back in the day’, which comprised of a quick chat over a cuppa and site tour which included going to see his Mother-In-Law who dealt with customer complaints. He had a phone call the next day saying that because his hair was shorter than the other guy, the job was his!
But Paul isn’t only in our team today because of the length of his hair, he’s brilliantly brainy when it comes getting all the delicious recipes that Sophie creates blended, baked and packed perfectly to enjoy at your breakfast table – or actually wherever you fancy! He’s worked his magic perfecting our bakery processes for around the last 9 years, helping out with new products and machinery to ensure we can always produce the very best for you.
Since starting he’s had had a few roles (as to be expected in over 30 years!), but he enjoys the current one the most, as in his words ‘you never know what the next challenge will be’.
THE HAPPY HELPERS
Jo & Sophie
Question? Comment? Just a chat? Who ya gonna call?… Jo and Sophie! This friendly duo are here ready and raring to take your call. Perfectly picked for the job, these two are right chatterboxes and always happy to help you out. They love hearing from you, whether it’s a natter on the phone, an email or carrier pigeon, drop them a line! All the details you need are here.
THE FANTASTIC FARMER
Graham Birch
With the surname Birch, it’s not surprising our farmer Graham loves the British Countryside as much as we do! However he’s relatively new to farming, having bought the 2,300 acre farm in the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 2007. Prior to that he worked in the City of London as a Natural Resources Investment Manager (yeah, he had to explain that to us too!) – but with his role as vice-chairman of Rothamsted Research (the world’s oldest agricultural research institute) he knows, along with his Farm Manager Scott Bagwell, what it takes to make our oats awesome. All the oats he grows come to Jordans, however it’s a mixed farm which means half is dedicated to livestock such as Daisy and her fellow cow friends.
Being a Jordans farmer, Graham devotes over 10% of the farm to wildlife habitats which are carefully targeted at certain key species, such as several scarce bird species including corn buntings, skylarks, lapwings and barn owls. He’s also protecting some natural chalk downland wildflower meadows which are filled with pyramidal, purple and bee orchids each summer. All this dedication means there’s over 34 species of butterfly on the farm!
Graham believes people are important in farming, and without the energy and attention to detail of his farm manager Scott, they could never deliver such high quality food with such low negative environmental impact. When creating wildlife habitats, Scott puts the same amount of effort in as he does to growing the food crops and the results speak for themselves – in 2014 Graham was voted “Fair to Nature Farmer of the Year” by Conservation Grade. Scott Bagwell has also scooped prizes at the 2014 Dorset County Show for grain quality including “Best Wheat” and “Best Oats” (going to Jordans of course!).