Nestled on a beautiful Waharoa farm laden with blueberries, stands a Kōwhai tree.
Near that mighty tree, award-winning, tastebud-dazzling ice cream is lovingly hand crafted by former dairy farmers, Jan and John McIntyre.
Kōwhai Creamery ice cream was born out of blueberries, dairy, and curiosity.
“I just saw all these orchards making real fruit ice cream,” Jan said.
“And when I investigated, a chap from Auckland who sells me some of the ingredients came down and showed me how to make ice cream and it all started from there.”
Using the blueberries from their own orchard, the McIntyres then sourced their dairy supply from a farm just down the road.
The McIntyres love that Ben and Sarah Troughton from The Home Farm are deeply passionate about the land. At the heart of how the Troughtons farm is a quest for premium quality and land preservation.
The Troughtons do things differently and it was the ‘different’ that the McIntyres wanted for Kōwhai Creamery. Through ethical, eco-friendly, biological and sustainable farming methods a perfect match was made.
Jan said she never expected their ice cream to be anything more than a hobby when it first started, but since they set up a sterile environment in the garage and started dishing out their ice cream in 2015 they’ve won 11 awards at the New Zealand Ice Cream Awards.
When they first planted blueberries they thought it could be a good way to transition out of the dairy industry as things weren’t quite panning out for them on that side of things. And now the bold move is paying off.
Blueberry isn’t the only flavour Kōwhai Creamery dishes up these days. They offer a delectable range of over 20 flavours including sorbet (dairy free and vegan) and yoghurt gelato as well.
“We are farmers more than anything and this was just going to be a side thing where I could sell ice cream in Waharoa, but people love it and it grew… it’s growing,” she said.
You can now find their ice cream in boutique outlets and restaurants throughout the Waikato and beyond. The couple said they were currently looking to expand their sales by stocking the many delicious flavours in supermarkets in the future.
For more on the Kowhai Creamery story and for a full list of products and where to find them check out the website here: http://kowhaicreamery.co.nz