November 2011

There’s so much talk these days about ‘local produce’ and ‘self-sufficiency’, and it made me wonder just how local and self-sufficient it would be possible to be. 

We recently invited some friends to join us for dinner, the ingredients of which were wholly produced at Green Farm (with the exception of olive oil, salt & pepper … and a really good Spanish plonk – but next Spring we’ll be quaffing our own perry!).  We’re fortunate enough to live in a mixed farming area, producing an amazing variety of crops (grain, orchard and horticultural) and livestock, including a beekeeper with 60+ years experience.  Much of this produce is grown and reared on relatively small family farms, often having been in the same family for several generations, and is farmed in traditional, low input systems.  Within a very small radius, we can source beef, lamb, pork, poultry, eggs, honey, a wide range of fruit and vegetables, preserves, pickles, and the odd bottle of country wine and pitcher of cider or perry.

Not only does this represent a huge saving in food miles, but also handling, packaging, warehousing and the whole electronic infrastructure involved in modern food production systems.  

Sadly, there are no washing powder wells in the locality, so the occasional trip to a supermarket is still necessary!  Robin has been talking about getting a little 4-wheel wagon and hitching up a pony for the weekly trip to our local market town – sounds great in good weather, but I’m not so sure about how much exercise the pony would get in winter?

Last month we set about the task of sorting the ewe flock, and having separated this year’s breeding ewes, we now have to decide about the rest.  We’ll keep the best ewe lambs born this year to grow on as replacement breeding ewes – they’ll have their first lambs in the spring of 2013.

Next, we take a very critical look over the ewe flock and any that have had lambing problems, recurring or chronic lameness, mastitis or blocked teats, or low resistance to internal parasites – now have to go.  And this is the part of farming that I like least.  I don’t mind taking healthy lambs to slaughter – it’s what they were bred for, I know they’ve had a good life and we are lucky enough to have a very good village abattoir fairly close by.  But in a small flock the shepherd gets to know the ewes, especially older ewes that have born lambs for several years, and there’s a distinct sense of betrayal about taking them to market as ‘cull’ ewes.

There are options, of course, but hanging around on a patch of grass ‘til they get arthritic and lose their teeth is not one of them!  We have had some slaughtered for mutton, which is a most underrated and delicious meat when produced and cooked properly.  We’ve also had a couple slaughtered and minced for our dogs.  But until there is a more accepting market for quality mutton, there will always be cull ewes to take to market.

Livestock markets vary hugely these days.  As a child, I remember my grandfather taking me to the Cattle Market in Hailsham, West Sussex.  It was in the middle of what was, in those days (the ‘60s), a small country market town.  Market day was chaotic, smelly, noisy and very exciting - many farmers still drove their animals in on foot!  These days, livestock markets are more often situated on out of town trading estates, and are housed in big industrial-looking sheds.

If you’ve never taken livestock to market before, it can be quite daunting – it’s always worth phoning the auctioneers beforehand to check which day is the most appropriate for the type of animals you have, and the staff on-site are used to novices and will explain exactly what you need to do when you arrive.

You’ll need to do some paperwork:  Movement Licence (AML1), MV Accreditation forms if you’re selling accredited stock for breeding, and Pedigrees if appropriate.  When you book your animals in at the market, you’ll have to complete the auctioneer’s form, giving your details and the stock you’re selling.

We arrived with 8 ewes loaded in the trailer, leaving ourselves about an hour before the sale to get our ewes settled in two pens – one for ‘culls’, and one for ‘breeding ewes’.  It’s always interesting to follow the auctioneer, and you can learn a great deal by talking to the other farmers and watching the buyers.  On this occasion, I was really surprised to see that good quality ‘fat lambs’ sold for only a few pounds more than ‘stores’ – why would anyone bother to bring on stores when the margins are so low?

We got a very good price for our ewes – just under £70 each, less the auctioneer’s commission, the Livestock Levy, a small Meat Inspector’s charge and VAT on these items – the total of all charges came to just under £25.  The cheque arrived in the post a week or so following the auction.  I don’t know who bought them, or where they will go – a large proportion of cull ewes these days go into the ‘ethnic’ trade to fulfil our insatiable appetite for ‘Indian Takeaways’!