Bostock Brothers Organic Free Range Chicken turns ten
Bostock Brothers Organic Free Range Chicken celebrated a ten years in business yesterday, complete with a chicken-themed cake at New World Victoria Park.
The colossal chook-shaped creation surprised and delighted supermarket shoppers, who were able to ‘pluck’ a slice as they perused shelves for their weekly groceries in Auckland’s CBD.
In a statement yesterday, Bostock Brothers said that since inception in 2014, founders and brothers, Ben and George Bostock, have been at the forefront of innovation and industry firsts.
“Not only are they New Zealand's only producer of organic free-range chicken, raising their flocks on retired apple orchards in Hawke’s Bay, the pair have become synonymous with quirky campaigns that showcase their organic brand difference.”
“It was only late last year the brothers invited the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra to their chicken farm to perform ‘Chook Symphony No. 1’, an original piece by Kiwi composer Hamish Oliver. Attuned to the chooks’ musical tastes, the composition shined a light on ethical farming practice and was launched on Spotify, in the hopes other farmers would play it to their birds and enrich the lives of their flocks.”
The statement said that Ben and George Bostock continuously strive for excellence, challenging conventional practices. “Their birds live longer, happier lives and the duo is the only chicken producer in the country to air-chill their product in place of using chlorinated water.”
George Bostock says: “We do things differently here at Bostock Brothers and this 10-year milestone was another opportunity to think outside the box and reflect on what’s been a mammoth, organic effort. We’re so proud of all we’ve achieved and couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than with a delicious, giant-sized chicken cake, for some of our best-loved customers.”
Crafted by Auckland cake maker Angela Chelton and her team at Sweet Bite Cakes the life-like chicken cake is a whopping 2m wide and stands 1.9m high.
"When I got the call from Bostock Brothers asking if a huge chicken cake was doable, I recall laughing and saying ‘how big are we talking?’. I never thought this one would come to fruition, but our team is always up for a challenge, and we’ve been long-time fans of the brothers and brand, so have been thrilled to be part of this project.”
“The cake took approx. 250 hours, many late nights, and a team of skilled bakers. We used over 19kgs of sugar, 12kgs of flour, 10kgs of butter and 100 eggs, of course opting for organic ingredients where possible.”
Ben and George Bostock thought it was only fitting that the cake cutting should take place at New World Victoria Park, acknowledging the store's support over its ten-year journey.
Reflecting on how far they’ve come, Ben Bostock says: “I had an outrageous idea in 2013 to create a commercial chicken operation. I’d been working in the meat trade and while I wasn’t a poultry professional, I could see a big gap in the market for a more ethical choice.”
“I really wanted create something different to the industry standard, and growing up organic thanks to my parents, John and Vicki, who pioneered the movement in Hawke's Bay, my path was set, though not without its challenges.”
Last month Hawke’s Bay App reported that Bostock Brothers was set to be sold to industry giant Ingham’s in a multi-million dollar deal.
In an announcement to the Australian Stock Exchange, Ingham’s said it intended to acquire 100% of the Bostock Brothers organic chicken business in New Zealand for NZ$35.3 million.
