The Prince of Wales encountered a pig called Ginger Spice and taste-tested a strawberry during a visit to a regenerative farm in Devon. William toured the Apricot Centre near Totnes, an establishment that integrates food cultivation with educational programs and nature-based wellbeing initiatives.
Tour of the Farm
The heir to the throne explored the 120-acre property on Thursday, beginning in the food packaging section where lettuce was being added to bundles of fresh produce destined for direct customers, market sales, and local food banks. He later visited the strawberry patch, sampling a fruit after admitting he had been “eyeing up” the strawberries and raspberries in the packaging area.
William came across one of the resident farm animals—a large ginger pig with black spots named Ginger Spice, who lives with fellow pigs named after the other Spice Girls.
Background of the Centre
Farmer Marina O’Connell and her psychotherapist husband Mark O’Connell established the centre in 2015 by transforming a disused dairy farm using organic and regenerative methods while also offering wellbeing therapies. The centre’s food production employs agroforestry, permaculture, rotational grazing, and crop rotation. It is now carbon neutral, has increased biodiversity by 400%, and achieves an annual turnover of £1.3 million.
The centre also focuses on nature-based therapies to support the mental, emotional, and social wellbeing of children, young people, their families, and farming communities. It provides training courses and educational visits for primary and secondary school pupils.
Comments from Staff and Students
Rachel Phillips, managing director who led the visit, said: “We have young people that come out and see where their food grows. Quite often they’ll come through and eat all the berries, or they’ll go through and they’ll eat the cucumbers, or they’ll go and pick courgettes and then they’ll come back into the training centre and they’ll make something out of that, and then they’ll eat it. I think just having a positive experience with nature means that people are more likely to be interested as adults about where their food comes from or looking after the environment that they’re in. You’ve got to create those opportunities to have positive experiences.”
Student Madeleine Cocken, 33, from Totnes, said: “We have been learning today about the history of biodynamics and, literally right behind me, we are stirring some water, making a spray that we are going to be putting on the soil, which is part of biodynamics preparation, which is quite a spiritual way of farming, but there’s a lot of science backed behind it.” She added: “I don’t want it to be something that’s a privilege. I want us to think about what we can grow in our climate and know where the food comes from. I think that’s a really special thing that I would like to learn about and then share my knowledge.”
William’s Interests and the Wellbeing Garden
The prince’s visit underscored his interest in the transition to net zero, aligning with the Duchy of Cornwall’s target of becoming net zero across the estate by 2032. Throughout the tour, he asked questions about the impact of climate change and extreme weather events on crop growth.
New techniques are being tested among fruit and vegetable patches and flower meadows, such as pig grazing. William was also shown the wellbeing garden, the final stop of the tour. Featuring thriving flower plants, a gazebo, and a waterfall, the garden—which appeared at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025 as an award-winning garden for Bowel Research UK—offers a haven for younger children to connect with nature and biodiversity.
