With over 30 years’ heritage behind the brand, Owlet Fruit Juice recently embarked on a new chapter following founder Colin Corfield’s sale of the business to James Smith at Loddington Farm, a family-run business in Linton, Kent. 5 generations of the Smith family have been growing fruit there since 1882 when Fred Smith was the first commercial grower of Bramley Seedling. It’s a fitting move for the business as Colin began his fruit growing career in 1979 with James’ father Alan.

Adding to the Owlet Fruit Juice range, the new varieties include Apple & Aronia Berry; Pear & Aronia Berry; and Cherry. Each new blend joins the brand’s range of single-variety English apple juices and highly original blends of English fruits, berries and flowers, all crafted in a way that is kind to the environment. Two of these brand new flavours include the latest trend in superfoods; locally sourced Aronia Berries, which are rich in antioxidants containing both anthocyanins and catechins, and although quite tart in flavour when eaten alone they blend beautifully with sweet, mellow pears and apples to create drinks that are as delicious as they are nutritious.

Full production of Owlet Fruit Juice has now moved to Loddington Farm, where the former pack house has been completely renovated for its new purpose. Besides ensuring quality control and freshness, pressing and bottling on site reduces the product’s carbon footprint and a zero-emission van for local deliveries helps even more. Loddington Farm began rolling out a regenerative farming strategy during the 2020 growing season, with plans to move to chemical-free farming in five years. Apple varieties including Bramley, Gala, Braeburn, Evelina, Jonagold and Discovery are all grown without using synthetic fertilisers or herbicides. This ethos underpins the entire growing operation and is reflected in the clean nature of Owlet Fruit Juice.

James Smith, Managing Director at Owlet Fruit Juice said: “Most of the apples and pears used in our juices are grown at Loddington Farm, with some coming from a select group of partner growers. We prefer to work in harmony with nature to produce more nutritious, environmentally friendly fruit for our juices.”

“The simple pressing process we use retains the ‘just picked’ flavour of the fruit and we don’t add any sugar, artificial sweeteners, colours or preservatives. As the new owners of the brand, we plan to build on the well-earned reputation for the consistent quality and flavour of Owlet Fruit Juices as we continue with existing product lines and, as you can see, developing exciting new ones.”