Festival of Speed might win Goodwood global acclaim - but the secret of the estate's success lies in its Sussex soil

Harry Holt is not your typical farm manager. But then, Goodwood Home Farm is not your run of the mill agricultural enterprise.

He exudes not merely a passion and enthusiasm for the farm – but a vision too.

As with horseracing and motor sports, Goodwood doesn’t seek to be a participant. It always strives to be the best – and to reimagine the future through innovation rooted in quality.

"The estate is just under 12,000 acres of which 4,000 acres of that is farmed organically. Among the enterprises here we have a dairy, we have a beef herd, we have pigs, and we have a sheep flock as well,” he explained to me on a visit to the farm.

"All breeds here are native and as well as that we're also looking towards the future with technology. So we follow the heritage-led innovation idea, keeping hold of those traditional breeds but also pushing forward with technology using robotic milking machines at the dairy, using collars for the cows to detect various health traits and to enable us to improve their welfare. And also to create this flagship farm where other farmers and anyone with anything to do with food or the countryside can come and learn what is possible within the industry.

"At the very core of everything we do here is quality. So we want to produce the best whether that’s the milk, the cheese, the meat. We don’t want to produce as much as possible – it’s all about the quality. That’s something that is true for me and everybody who works here.”

Roy MacAskill is the food production manager at Goodwood Home Farm. Speaking at the counter of the farm shop he echoes that ethos.

"The farm has been organic since the early 1990s. Farming has taken place here over 300 years. Currently we produce beef, lamb and pork. Our beef is Sussex Red which has been farmed her for over 200 years; the lamb is South Downs which is one of the oldest varieties and breeds in the UK and again has been farmed here for over 200 years. Pork is relatively new, we have been doing that for about 25-30 years, and that’s saddleback.

"As I said, our meat is organic and therefore there are no antibiotics and no hormones – no nasties in there. In addition to that we have our own dairy herd which is Dairy Shorthorn. We bottle, pasteurise and produce our own milk and cream. We also sell raw milk here at the farm shop on a Friday afternoon.

"We also produce a range of four different cheeses which are made on site. Our cheese room is literally 20 metres away from where we milk our cows so food miles are non-existent.

"We have our own brewery. We currently make a range of three different beers using malted barley which is grown on the estate.”

Goodwood Gin is also an important addition.

Roy demonstrates the latest technology used for making the estate’s organic sausages. Requirements can fluctuate widely throughout the year depending on whether they are providing sausages to some of the flagship events which attracts thousands upon thousands of visitors.

But if technology is helping to shape the future – so is the very ground on which we are standing.

From Goodwood’s perspective it all starts with the healthy, nutritious soil.

“Our careful approach to farming is sustainable, sensitive to the environment and above all results in delicious, high quality produce. We work closely with the Soil Association who monitor our systems regularly and we also raise native breeds to produce the best tasting meat and dairy.”

The results are not just available to taste at the Festival of Speed or Revival. The farm shop is the perfect showcase as is their award-winning restaurant Farmer, Butcher, Chef.