Our cows and pigs graze on our pesticide, artificial fertiliser and herbicide free pasture all year round. They are reared on a completely natural and varied diet.
Since converting to organic, we have seen a wide variety of naturally occurring grasses, herbs and legumes growing all around the farm. We have chicory, yarrow, red and white clover, cock's foot, meadow fescue and much more, providing our cows with all the nutrients they need. Chicory, for example, is rich in protein and minerals. It is also anthelmintic, acting as a natural wormer.
Nature never grows monocrops. Why? Because they have no resilience or natural balance.
For instance a field of rye grass may look green and healthy, but as soon as a drought comes, it withers and dies off. Our pastures are made up of a diverse range of plants. Some grasses have long tap roots which reach down deep in the soil profile to find water when it is scarce, leguminous plants such as clovers fix nitrogen, some plants have medicinal properties which the cows use to stay healthy. Our pasture is resilient, it doesn't need expensive chemical fertilisers to grow or to be sprayed with glyphosate to kill weeds.
By shopping for organic produce you're not only guaranteeing the food you eat hasn't been genetically modified but it also means you have taken a stand against the large chemical companies that have polluted the world and caused catastrophic biodiversity loss.
For every antibiotic and pesticide that man invents, nature adapts. It's an arms race and nature is winning. We farm with nature not against it, by doing this we have no need to engage in the arms race. Organic farming does not encourage the rise of the super strain. This has a huge benefit for mankind and yet again the consumer can help by making choices about what they eat.
Non-organic farming has caused real destruction to the UK countryside, from indiscriminate chemical and pesticide use to extensive cultivation and soil erosion. By farming organically we protect and encourage so many organisms and we strive to build soil health which forms the bedrock of all the living things on our planet.
Living on an organic farm and eating the food we grow means we aren't exposed to the chemicals that are used in conventional farming. It means the soil is healthier, the rivers are cleaner and that the people and the local community that surrounds us benefit from all we do. By buying organic food from us you are supporting the much wider community of people and wildlife.
Just as the biome of the soil is transferred so is the terroir of the land transferred as taste. Our animals are the product of what they eat and therefore have a deeper, richer, more intense flavour. Their varied organic diet is transmitted through to the meat and by hanging for longer we can enhance the flavour.
We believe the soil biome is directly transferred through the food we produce to our gut biomes. If the soil is sick then that adversely affects you through the food you eat. Fossil fuels drive current agriculture production and synthetic fertilisers force the nutrient deficient soil to grow crops. By using nature's organic fertiliser to enrich and build soil we believe the soil biome on our farm is healthy.
By never using chemical fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides, our soil health and biodiversity increases. Herbicides and pesticides do not differentiate between good and bad bugs, they simply kill them all. Pollinators are critical to the world's food supply and to date conventional farming has caused irreparable loss. Nature has evolved over billions of years to be in balance and we have altered this for the worse. It's incumbent on everyone to make sure they encourage pollinators however they can.
With nearly a mile of river round the farm (the Cherwell) all that we do on the land will eventually make its way to the river and from there to the sea. We believe we have to take responsibility for what goes on our land and that responsibility doesn’t stop with us. By choosing organic food we are all choosing to take responsibility for what goes downstream to the sea.
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