Mixed livestock farming is central to our sustainable system, helping to build soil fertility naturally, whilst the animals enjoy rich pastureland with a huge – and growing – diversity of flora and fauna.
We raise 100% pasture-fed beef cattle and free-range pigs fed on home grown, organically produced feed.
We choose native breeds of livestock, naturally adapted to their local environment. This helps us to manage the land in environmentally sensitive ways, protecting soil, increasing biodiversity and enhancing meat quality.
The health of our animals is paramount. They are all fed on a varied and natural diet, free from the routine use of medications that contribute to antibiotic resistance. We use a rotational grazing system which mimics the natural behaviour of wild grazing animals as closely as possible in a farmed setting. This brings significant benefits to the soil, pasture quality and biodiversity.
Nutrition and taste
We believe that local, sustainably farmed food from animals fed their natural diet is better for their health and general wellbeing – and ours.
Our beef are pasture-fed, certified by the Pasture-Fed Livestock Association. This means they are not fed any form of grain or manufactured feeds, which are not suited to their digestive systems. Intensive livestock production, which often feeds animals on soya, maize or wheat in order to accelerate growth, can be damaging to the animal’s wellbeing and also to the environment. Cultivation of crops for livestock feed are one of the main drivers of deforestation, and are often reliant on chemical inputs, including fertilisers and pesticides. Meat derived from animals fed on pasture has been shown to have higher nutritional value.
Grazing of our diverse pasture provides a natural food source, rich in nutrients, for the animals. This also allows them to ‘self-medicate‘, selecting the plants that are good for them, including many natural ‘de-wormers’ and other beneficial varieties. This is one of the reasons we have seen a 30% reduction in our vet bills in recent years.
Nutritional benefits of pasture-fed meat
Lower total fat levels
and lower saturated fat content
More omega-3
and lower omega-6 fatty acids
High in vitamins
including A, E and B12
High in minerals
including calcium, magnesium and potassium
Source of heme iron
more easily absorbed by the body
Source of zinc
and conjugated linoleic and vaccenic acid
Why Pasture?
The Pasture-Fed Livestock Association champions the virtues of pastoral farming, providing a distinct identity for systems where animals eat only grass and forage crops their entire life. Food produced this way is much tastier and healthier for humans to eat than meat from animals fed grain.Further reading
Find out more about the nutritional benefits of pasture-fed meat here.
Research demonstrating the health benefits of pasture-fed meat.
Read more about the Pasture For Life standards here.
