Pioneering Pumpkins on the Essex Coast: Frinton Farms

“We’re based on the Essex coast, right by the sea,” says farm manager Sam. “I’ve been here eight or nine years now… we’re an arable farm, so we grow wheat, barley, oilseed rape – your standard crops – but we’ve also got these lovely areas of SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) marshes and ancient woodland. It’s a special place to farm.”

A solution to waste

The story of Frinton’s pumpkin seeds begins, of course, with pumpkins – but not the kind you eat. “We started with a pick-your-own pumpkin patch,” Sam explains. “After the first couple of years, we had hundreds of pumpkins left over after Halloween. It seemed like such a waste – there was no real market for ornamental pumpkins after October.”

This waste sparked an idea. Sam and the team began experimenting with the Austrian Styrian variety of pumpkin, bred specifically for its hull-less seeds.

“The issue with Halloween pumpkins is the seeds have a tough casing – you can’t really snack on them,” Sam says. “So we grew a small area of Styrian pumpkins… and hand-harvested everything. We were splitting pumpkins with spades and scooping the seeds out by hand.”

That first harvest – 80 kilos – went straight to Hodmedod. “Hodmedod was always interested in niche seeds and became our first buyers,” Sam says. “And it’s just grown from there.”

Growing and diversifying

Styrian pumpkin seed oil is a delicacy in Austria, where it holds protected status and is prized for its flavour. Keen to learn from an established market, Sam travelled to Vienna.

“I went out to look around farms to understand how they do it," Sam explains. "Then we brought that knowledge back and adapted it here.” As production increased, so did opportunities to diversify. Golden linseed – another crop well suited to the farm’s rotation and in demand from bakeries – soon followed.

“We were already supplying bakeries with pumpkin seeds, so it made sense,” Sam explains. “Linseed is widely used in baking, so we started growing a small area of golden linseed and marketing it to the same customers.”

From hand work to harvesters

Scaling up has meant significant investment – and a steep learning curve. “We’ve come a long way,” Sam says. “We started off harvesting everything by hand. Now we’ve got an automated pumpkin seed harvester which picks the pumpkins up, breaks them apart, and spreads the flesh back onto the field as fertiliser for the next crop.”

This closed-loop approach reflects a broader ethos at Frinton Farms, where improving soil health and making the most of every part of the crop is key. But the journey hasn’t been without its challenges. “We’re the only people in the UK really doing this at scale,” Sam says. “So there’s no blueprint – it’s been a steep learning curve.”

Timing is critical: once harvested, seeds must be washed and dried within 24-36 hours to prevent spoilage. To manage this, the farm has built its own drying system, powered by a local biomass boiler. “We’re using a renewable heat source now, which is a big step forward,” Sam adds.

Small team, big ambition

Despite its growing output, Frinton Farms remains a small operation. “It’s just myself and two full-time workers,” Sam says. “We’re a small team – but we’re hoping the pumpkins will get to a stage where we can bring someone in to focus on them.”

Looking ahead, Sam says there are plans to expand the range, with new flavours of roasted seeds, and even chocolate-coated pumpkin seeds, in development.

“We’re also looking at other crops bakeries like – sunflowers, for example. But really, it’s about building on what we’re doing.”

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