Wow! There’s a controversial statement that’s going to annoy a few people. So why say it? A couple of years ago, when I announced the launch of the Free Range Dairy initiative, some people accused me of dividing the dairy industry – pointing out difference between farms that grazed their cows and farms that…
Have you heard milk isn’t just good for building strong bones and teeth, it can actually improve a child’s IQ (even before they’re born). A report in The Telegraph states that women “who consumed lower amounts of iodine, which is absorbed from food and found in milk, dairy products and fish, were more likely to…
Next week I am holding the first in a series of three meetings to bring together Free Range Dairy farmers who have made the Pasture Promise, with two further meetings planned in the Midlands and South West England, where we have the biggest numbers of farmers signed up. I am keen to establish regional groups…
I have to admit getting this grassland management thing right is quiet hard work. I had a few days off last weekend and spent the whole time worrying about how far the electric fence was being moved each day and which field the cows were in. Just yesterday I made a really important decision and…
Whilst visiting Amsterdam with some friends last weekend I came across a crowd of people carrying some interesting placards with images of cows and other farm animals. It turned out that the people taking part were protesting against the growth of intensive livestock farming in The Netherlands and were members of Partij voor De Dieren…
Buoyed up by a recent surge in grass growth I decided I wanted to see how much supplementary food I could remove from our cows’ diets, how much grass they would then eat and what milk yields could be sustained. Determined to make things as simple as possible this summer I am running all of…
Some football clubs get average attendances of around 10,000 spectators to watch them play each week. Not the biggest crowd for a football match, but can you imagine that number of people coming to your farm to watch your cows being turned out to grass? Well that’s what happened on a farm near Gothenburg in…
The recent sunshine has a put a spring in everyone’s step, including our cows. Here are a few top tunes that are on our herds’ playlist this week. Jerusalem – Sir Hubert Parry And did those feet in ancient time Walk upon England’s mountain green? And was the holy Lamb of God On England’s…
Last week I hosted a ‘Reseeding Day’ at our farm, organised by The British Grassland Society, DairyCo and EBLEX. The event gave farmers a chance to learn about evaluating the productivity of their pasture following one of the wettest years I can remember and provided tips on reseeding grass and variety selection. Soil scientist,…