Knepp: The next generation bringing rewilded food to the table
At Knepp, rewilding has transformed the landscape. Now, it’s shaping the way we eat. The pioneering rewilding project in West Sussex has evolved over the last 25 years, and now has a Michelin-recognised restaurant, a beautiful farm shop, and a sustainable butchery; all under the strategic guidance of the next generation in the Burrell-Tree family.
We’re thrilled to be working with Ned Burrell and his partner Lia Brazier on the next evolution of this 3,500-acre rewilding project, helping to spotlight Knepp Wilding Kitchen, The Butchery and Wild Range Meat Boxes as part of a wider story about the power of regenerative food and how it can work in tandem with rewilding.
Long-admired for transforming the way we think about nature restoration, Knepp – made globally famous through Isabella Tree’s bestselling book Wilding - is now celebrating how we eat from that landscape. The animals shape the land as much as the land shapes them; their grazing regenerates the soil, encourages the growth of plants, and helps create habitats that buzz with life – from dung beetles to nightingales. In turn, this wild existence produces meat of exceptional quality, flavour and nutritional value - a wonderful by-product of nature restoration rather than the primary goal of it.
Ned Burrell, son of custodians Isabella and Charlie, and his partner, Lia Brazier, are extending Knepp’s ethos beyond ecology and into the realm of hospitality. Together they direct Knepp’s food ventures – with Ned leading on the culinary and operational side, and Lia, as Creative Director, shaping Knepp’s visual identity and creative strategy. Their kitchen, butchery and shop create a connection from land to plate that celebrates flavour from healthy soil, a varied diet, thriving habitats, and the natural rhythm of the seasons.
Ned’s passion for cooking began on the Knepp Estate itself, eating meat from their land as a child, and was later honed at Ireland’s legendary Ballymaloe Cookery School. He then went on to join the organic, ethical kitchen at the famous Bull Inn in Totnes before moving to London to join the Michelin-starred Brat.
KNEPP WILDING KITCHEN
Now, all eyes are on the Wilding Kitchen as it enters an exciting new phase under Head Chef Alex Dome (ex-Petersham Nurseries, Café Murano) and Ned as Chef Director. Originally opened as a café in 2023, it has since evolved into a restaurant and the beating heart of the estate. It is not only a place for the many walkers and safari guests who visit Knepp each week but has also become a destination for curious foodies who enjoy food that’s rooted in nature and the seasons.
Together, Alex and Ned are leading the restaurant into its first full winter season with a renewed focus on regenerative cooking: dishes that celebrate whole-animal butchery and the ever-changing produce of Knepp’s organic Market Garden, as well as a low-to-no wastage kitchen. Menus are guided entirely by what’s growing now, the rhythm of the butchery and in tune with the culling seasons. Each plate tells a story of seasonality and sense of place – food guided by nature rather than imposed upon it.
Example dishes include:
Market Garden leeks, stracciatella & pangrattato
Knepp beef, venison & pork ragù, Parmigiano Reggiano DOP
Market Garden Amoro squash, spiced almond sauce & grilled flatbread
Aged Knepp sirloin on the bone
Day boat fish of the day en papillote, with sauternes butter, carrot & fennel
Original Beans chocolate crémeux, Todoli orange & crème fraîche
Choux bun with Knepp fig leaf baked cream
The Wilding Kitchen & Shop was born from a collection of derelict farm buildings, reimagined by Kaner Olette Architects, under the creative direction of Lia Brazier, into a striking new home for Knepp’s food story. Housed within a restored 18th-century Sussex barn, the three-year project has already earned multiple architectural accolades, including a RIBA South East Award (2025).
Knepp’s regenerative ethos runs through every detail - from ash tables made with timber cleared due to ash dieback on the estate; to leather chairs crafted by Bill Amberg Studio using hides from Knepp’s own Longhorn cattle. The kitchen pass, built by Ned and Lia from rammed earth using clay and chalk dug from Knepp itself, quite literally rises from the ground the estate stands on - an empirical reminder of where Knepp’s rewilding journey began, and of the soil that continues to sustain it.
THE BUTCHERY & LAUNCH OF WILD RANGE MEAT BOXES
The Butchery forms a vital part of Knepp’s rewilding cycle, producing Wild Range meat for the restaurant and shop from the herds of free-roaming old English Longhorn cattle, fallow and red deer and Tamworth pigs. What began as a way to manage herd numbers in the absence of natural predators has become an example of how nature restoration and responsible food production can work hand in hand.
We’re pleased to announce the launch of the curated Wild Range Meat Boxes and a forthcoming subscription model launching this winter. Each box brings together the best of Knepp’s own herds – all the beef and venison come directly from the estate, alongside a small family of Tamworth pigs. When Knepp’s own pork isn’t available, the Butchery partners with a small network of regenerative farms. Cuts are designed to inspire cooking across the seasons: from midweek staples to celebratory roasts, hearty ragùs to BBQ classics – encouraging creativity in the kitchen while supporting a truly traceable and regenerative food system.
At its heart, the Butchery is a celebration of whole-animal butchery and true craft – a place where nothing is wasted, every cut is considered, and skilled butchers turn the results of rewilding into food of extraordinary quality and flavour. Alongside the meat, they produce a range of charcuterie, from air-dried salamis to bresaola, all crafted, cured and packaged on site with the same slow, respectful approach.
Sustainability runs through every stage of the process: solar powers the butchery; CO₂ refrigerants replace harmful gases; and recyclable wool-lined boxes with water-based ice packs keep deliveries cool with minimal waste. Even the deer culled each winter are wild shot with copper bullets, eliminating the use of lead and ensuring no contamination to the environment. The result is meat that is slow-grown by nature, high-welfare by design and truly flavour-led – a rare combination of environmental integrity and extraordinary taste.
Through the Wilding Kitchen, Butchery and Market Garden, the next generation of Knepp continues that legacy – translating ecological restoration into food that’s high-welfare, low-impact and full of life.
ENDS
www.knepp.co.uk/wilding-kitchen/
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