Organic Meat

Beef cattle are sired by pure-bred Aberdeen Angus Bulls.

For a really good flavour, we chose Aberdeen Angus bulls to sire our cows.  We started with Holstein-cross mothers, but as time goes on, the girls are acquiring most of the Angus characteristics. We didn't want a pedigree herd, as hybrid animals tend to be more vigorous, and have fewer health problems.  We do change the bulls to prevent in-breeding.

What's really important to us is not over-stocking, and keeping a natural herd size. The other thing is not forcing growth. We let the cattle munch away for more than six months a year on meadows that run down to the River Stiffkey, and on the arable-reversion fields - next to Swanton Novers National Nature Reserve - which we have turned back into woodland meadows.

One major benefit of organic farming is an abundance of different species in the grazing. With a regular drenching of nitrogen, all you get is blueish grass, but without spray, you find plantain, black medic, bird's-foot-trefoil - which has great nutritional and anti-worming properties - clover and much else besides, all adding to the flavour of the cows and sheep.

We have two lambings a year; late January and April. We like to lamb outdoors, weather permitting. It's natural, and results in healthier offspring. Apart from the ewe that one year took to living in our garden and spent happy hours drowsing under the trampoline, the sheep alternate their grazing with the cattle.

Our rowdy, free-ranging, vociferous flock of French chickens have the run of the field. They have shade and plenty of toys to interest them. Apart from regular feed that we mill ourselves, we like to plant a strip of maize for them to pick at and they get vegetables left over from the shop.

Geese and turkeys arrive in early summer to be ready in time for Christmas. Plans are afoot to extend the orchard this winter, so that they can find shade under a canopy of apple, pear and plum trees, and the turkeys have somewhere to roost in the evenings.

We are lucky enough to have eight hundred acres of woodland, much of it a National Nature Reserve that has been forest since just after the last Ice Age. From this we can selectively cull roe and red deer. We also have plenty of wild game, and you will find pheasant, partridge, pigeons, rabbit and hare in BacK to the Garden.

The prices shown in this November price-list are subject to change depending on seasonal variation and availability.

PDF pricelist - 14 November 2009 - downloadable pdf (86kb)