Trophy
Jean Luc MARTIN established himself in the "Bocage Virois" at Montchamp in 1986. Today his "chèvrerie" (goat farm and cheese manufacture) is open to all visitors (individual, group, French or foreign), and it has 40 nanny goats of the Alpine breed. During a visit to his breeding farm, Mr Martin speaks enthusiastically and in detail on the life and habits of his goats.
In the "chèvrerie", visitors can stroke, brush, feed and milk a nanny goat. In 2006, the breeding farm received more than 6000 visitors. During the visit, the public can taste different cheeses made from goat's milk.
A documentary film in French or English introduces various stages of the manufacture of the Saffrin-branded cheese. On the site, a room is available for the visitors for picnicking. The site can receive up to 50 people at a time, and the average length of the visit is 1 hour 30 minutes. It is also possible to just walk about the farm and perhaps take photographs at different points.
1986 to 2008 : a dynamic tourist attraction
Since its first cheese sales under the "Saffrin" brand in 1987, and its opening to the public in 1991, Jean Luc Martin has continually worked to create an authentic and interesting tourist attraction. Amongst his achievements are:
- Rewards for the quality of its cheeses (1988 and 1989: gold medal in the cheese competitions at the Normandie-Maine fair in Alençon).
- Renovations of the laboratory and amenities in 2000 to comply with European Union requirements for dairy farming.
- Development of a pedestrian footbridge above the goats for easy viewing, creation of a parking area for 2 buses, development of an activity and video room, development of a toilet building, including toilets adapted for disabled people, room to park camping cars for free, and modernisation of the main reception area.
Projects in progress : a glass room exclusively reserved for meals and picnics, and to free up the animation room during busy or rainy periods; erection of a large information panel in the village.
Numerous on site activities :
Jean Luc Martin organises a farm market on the 15th of August every year. Entrance is free, and it has attracted around 2000 people annually since it launched in 1987. The market brings together product producers principally from the 3 departments of Lower Normandy.
Mr Martin has his goat farm registered in several tourist programmes at national and regional levels. The national programme is called "bienvenue à la Ferme", or " Welcome to the Farm ". Some of the regional programmes are "Buissonnières", a tourist discovery programme with visits adapted for disable people, "La Normandie se découvre", a programme organised by the Regional Tourism Committee (CRT), and also "Visites du jeudi", a programme by a local tourism enterprise.
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