Jimmy Doherty | |
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Born | Ilford, London, England | 24 May 1975
Occupation(s) | Farmer, conservationist, television personality and academic |
Known for | Jimmy's Farm , Jimmy's Food Factory, Jamie & Jimmy's Food Fight Club, Food Unwrapped , Jamie & Jimmy's Friday Night Feast . Builds on Wheels |
Spouse | Michaela Furney (m. 2009) |
Children | 4 |
Jimmy Doherty (born 24 May 1975) is an English television presenter and farmer. A childhood friend of Jamie Oliver, Doherty is known for the show Jimmy's Farm , detailing the operation of the Essex Pig Company that he and his wife Michaela Furney own in Suffolk.
Born in Ilford, Doherty moved to Clavering in Essex at the age of three. [1] A childhood friend of Jamie Oliver, he attended Clavering Primary School and then studied at Newport Free Grammar School. Whilst at Newport Grammar School Doherty ran a magazine called 'The Natural Choice' sparking his love of nature and animals.
From the age of 13 he worked in the tropical butterfly house at Mole Hall Wildlife Park in Saffron Walden, assisting with the menagerie of different animals ranging from otters to chimpanzees. Doherty left Mole Hall, aged 24, to focus on his academic commitments.
He has a degree in animal biology from the University of East London [2] and studied for a PhD in entomology at Coventry University's zoology department. [3]
Doherty served for five years in the Royal Corps of Signals.
In 2002, he appeared as a friend and guest on Oliver's Twist in the episodes "Painting Party in 2002 "Flash in the Pan" in 2003.
He then trained as a pig farmer, where, in 2002, he met runner Furney, when Channel 4's filming for Jamie's Kitchen took it to the Cumbrian farm where he was working. [4]
After returning to Essex to run his own farm, Doherty and Furney set up The Essex Pig Company using free range meat production practices. Doherty gained the funds to set up the farm using the proceeds from his first book On The Farm which formed a diary of his farming ventures.
The Essex Pig Company, based in Ipswich, Suffolk, raised various rare breeds, most notably the endangered Essex, and now the Berkshire, Gloucestershire Old Spots, middle Whites, and Norfolk Horn sheep among many others.
People were eager to visit the farm to see the native domestic animals and buy fresh produce so, Doherty and Furney opened the doors to the farm in 2002. To enter the farm a sign read 'Jimmy's Farm' and when BBC Two followed their efforts with a series of fly-on-the-wall documentaries [5] the name stuck.
In 2008, Doherty presented a series for BBC2 called Jimmy Doherty's Farming Heroes which aired from July 2008 to August 2008, followed by various other series and single documentaries for the BBC. Notably, Jimmy's Food Factory, in which he demonstrated the industrial techniques used in the production of processed foods, ran for two series on BBC One. When the Controller of BBC One at the time, Jay Hunt, left to become chief creative officer at Channel 4 at the end of 2010, she signed up Doherty to present exclusively for Channel 4. Doherty's last series for the BBC, A Farmer's Life for Me, was broadcast in February and March 2011.
Since 18 June 2011, Jimmy's Food Factory airs as ProSieben BBC Spezial – Jimmy's Food Factory every Saturday on German TV channel ProSieben. [6]
In 2011, Jimmy's Farm 'Cambridge Sausage' was named in the top 10 sausages in the UK by The Independent . [7] The sausage contains 93% pork from the farm and the recipe dates back to 1917.
In December 2012, Jimmy and Jamie Oliver presented the Channel 4 series Jamie & Jimmy's Food Fight Club. Since 2014, Doherty has co-presented the prime-time Channel 4 series Jamie & Jimmy's Friday Night Feast alongside Jamie Oliver.
Doherty and the team ensured conservation was at the forefront of their decisions and created areas at the farm for nature to blossom. As well as a flair for farming Doherty holds a passion for non-native species and, with a great team behind him, the farm applied for zoo status to help endangered species further afield. On 5 October 2016 Jimmy's Farm was awarded its zoo license from the local authority and Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park was born. The first three exotic species they welcomed were Reindeer, Tapirs and Meerkats.
In 2016 Jimmy became the youngest ever President of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust a charity closely linked to his work and passions. In 2019 he became a patron of the British Beekeepers Association. [8] He is also the patron of the British Hen Welfare Trust.
In May 2019 Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park became accredited by the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) who represent the best zoos and aquariums in Britain and Ireland that pride themselves on their excellent animal welfare, education, and conservation work. In July 2021 Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park became the first recipient of the Rare Breed Survival Trust's new Rare Breeds Approved Associate accreditation. [9] This has been awarded in recognition of the farm's excellence in education about the importance of Britain's endangered native livestock and equine breeds and its work to conserve their unique genetic characteristics.
Jimmy and Michaela Furney were married on 22 August 2009. The reception was held at their farm, Pannington Hall in Wherstead, Suffolk. [4] [10]
They have four daughters, born between 2010 and 2018. [11]
In August 2014, Doherty was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue. [12]
Doherty has close links to Ipswich Town Football Club and follows their campaigns. In 2013 Jimmy's Farm created an Ipswich 'Super Blue' sausage named in honour of The Blues. The sausage, like all their sausages, was made with pork from the farm and this one included stilton and garlic.
Intensive pig farming, also known as pig factory farming, is the primary method of pig production, in which grower pigs are housed indoors in group-housing or straw-lined sheds, whilst pregnant sows are housed in gestation crates or pens and give birth in farrowing crates.
Cumberland sausage is a pork sausage that originated in the historic county of Cumberland, England, ceremonially part of Cumbria. It is traditionally very long, up to 50 centimetres, and sold rolled in a flat, circular coil, but within western Cumbria, it is more often served in long, curved lengths.
Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) is a campaigning and lobbying animal welfare organisation. It campaigns against the live export of animals, certain methods of livestock slaughter, and all systems of factory farming. It has received celebrity endorsements and been recognized by BBC Radio 4 for its campaigning. It has grown to a global movement with partners and supporters concerned about the welfare of farm animals.
The Gloucestershire Old Spots is an English breed of pig which is predominantly white with black spots. It is named after the county of Gloucestershire. The Gloucestershire Old Spots pig is known for its docility, intelligence, prolificity, and hardiness. Boars reach a mature weight of 600 lb (272 kg) and sows 500 lb (227 kg). The pigs are white with clearly defined black spots. There must be at least one spot on the body to be accepted in the registry. The breed's maternal skills enable it to raise large litters of piglets on pasture. Its disposition and self‑sufficiency should make it attractive for farmers raising pasture pigs and those who want to add pigs to diversified operations.
Bernard Matthews Foods Limited is a British farming and food products business with its headquarters in Great Witchingham, Norfolk, England, which specialises in turkey products.
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The Newmarket sausage is a pork sausage made to a traditional recipe from the English town of Newmarket, Suffolk. Two varieties of Newmarket Sausage are made branded with the names of two different family butchers. Both are sold widely throughout the United Kingdom. In October 2012 the Newmarket sausage was awarded Protected Geographical Indicator of Origin (PGI) status. The flavourings used in a Newmarket sausage are black & white pepper, salt, thyme, parsley and nutmeg.
Jimmy's Farm is a British television series set in a working rare-breed farm, tourist destination and wedding venue in Wherstead, Suffolk. The series is produced Fresh One Productions and first broadcast on BBC in 2004. Owner Jimmy Doherty set up the Essex Pig Company, a rare breeds piggery on the outskirts of Ipswich in Suffolk. The drama revolved around Jimmy's previous lack of hands-on experience of farming, the financial struggles involved in starting a small business, and Jimmy's relationships with employees, friends and his then-girlfriend, Michaela Furney. Doherty was a childhood friend of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, who gave him a loan to help get the farm started, and appeared in one episode of the series. The series was followed up with a one-off special, Back on Jimmy's Farm, and a second series, Return to Jimmy's Farm.
The Livestock Conservancy, formerly known as the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy (ALBC) and prior to that, the American Minor Breeds Conservancy, is a nonprofit organization focused on preserving and promoting rare breeds, also known as "heritage breeds" of livestock. Founded in 1977, through the efforts of livestock breed enthusiasts concerned about the disappearance of many of the US's heritage livestock breeds, The Livestock Conservancy was the pioneer livestock preservation organization in the United States, and remains a leading organization in that field. It has initiated programs that have saved multiple breeds from extinction, and works closely with similar organizations in other countries, including Rare Breeds Canada. With 3,000 members, a staff of eleven and a 19-member board of directors, the organization has an operating budget of over a million dollars.
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The Large Black is a British breed of domestic pig. It is the only British pig that is entirely black. It was created in the last years of the nineteenth century by merging the black pig populations of Devon and Cornwall in the south-west with those of Essex, Suffolk and Kent in the south-east. It is hardy, docile and prolific; it forages well and is suitable for extensive farming, but not well suited to intensive management.
The Mangalica is a Hungarian breed of domestic pig. It was developed in the mid-19th century by crossbreeding breeds from the nearby Romanian Salonta and Hungarian Bakony with the European wild boar and the Serbian Šumadija breed. The Mangalica pig grows a thick, curly coat of hair. The only other pig breed noted for having a long coat is the extinct Lincolnshire Curly Coat pig of England.
Suffolk New College is a further education college in Ipswich. It provides courses for students from across south Suffolk. In 2009 it constructed a new building costing £70 million.
Pig Business is a 2009 investigative documentary and exposé by environmental activist and former actress Tracy Worcester. The film presents the findings of Worcester's four year investigation into the hidden costs associated with pig factory farming. It advocates on behalf of small-scale farmers and discusses the topics of animal welfare, environmental pollution, corporate responsibility and food sovereignty.
The Guinea Hog is an American breed of small black pig. Since 2006 it has officially been named the American Guinea Hog. Its origins are unknown; a connection to the Essex pigs of eastern England has been suggested. It is apparently unconnected to an older pig also known as Guinea Hog or Red Guinea, which disappeared in the late nineteenth century.
The Cumberland was a breed of domestic pig that originated in the North of England; it was used to produce local delicacies like the Cumberland sausage and Cumberland ham. The breed became extinct in 1960, after changes in farming methods and a demand for less fatty meat led to it falling out of favour.
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Heritage Foods USA is an American heritage meat distribution company with offices in Brooklyn, New York. It was formed in 2001 as the sales and marketing arm of Slow Food USA — a non-profit organization founded by Patrick Martins, dedicated to celebrating regional cuisines and ingredients. The Heritage Turkey Project, which helped double the population of heritage turkeys in the United States and upgraded the Bourbon Red turkey from “rare” to “watch” status on conservation lists, was Heritage Foods USA’s first project aimed at heritage breed preservation. In 2004, it became an independent company selling heritage breed meat to top tiered restaurants and consumers.
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