Four years ago Nala and Lula came to us as excitable puppies, raring to play and get involved with farm life. These gorgeous bundles of fluff were our brand-new Maremma Livestock Guardian pups and needed to be shaped into the role of protectors.The Maremma Sheepdog is...
Let’s face it, if you lived outside, you’d probably prefer it if the weather was mild. Extreme cold and wet weather is not too appealing when you’re standing out in a field. It’s for this reason that our poultry is only raised through the warmer months. The chickens...
When Farm2Fork moved to Dalditch we were presented with a wonderful opportunity to embrace and enrich the new diverse environment we now inhabit. As an organic farm with a firm focus on regenerative practices, we see our new home as a place where we can work together...
We’ve seen the hottest June on record, and now the wettest July. This unpredictable, often unseasonable weather throws up challenges for farmers, and resilience is needed to survive these conditions. Extreme weather impacts UK soils, equating to swathes of the earth...
If you think it’s been hot for us humans, just imagine how a woolly sheep must feel when the thermometer is notching up to 34 degrees! Luckily for the sheep, and anyone who uses wool, an annual shear gives them relief and a plentiful fabric that can be used in a whole...
These past few months have been intense, to say the least. Moving home is no small feat, and when you have to move an entire farm, plus a meat business, animals and all, together with cumbersome heavy machinery it can be all-encompassing, overwhelming and pretty...
A new year has presented Farm2Fork with an extraordinary opportunity to grow both the business and our regenerative practices. We’re swapping the pastures of Greenway Farm, for an organic 237-acre farm, called Dalditch – part of the extensive Clinton Devon...
It’s a bad time for many farmers right now. The past year has been the worst year ever for cases of avian influenza, aka “bird flu” in the UK and abroad, and with the winter only beginning, the worst is yet to come. It’s been looming heavily over the heads of poultry...
Bringing our Farm2Fork business operations all into line, we’ve started selling our goose frozen, just as we do with all our other produce. This has prompted a number of enquiries about our decision from customers who for the past 12 years have bought their goose...
There’s a perception in society that organic food is more expensive than non-organic food. On the face of it, yes, organic generally has a higher price point. But there’s an extra cost for good reasons. There are many additional hoops that we as organic farmers have...
We’re excited to read about our very own Ollie featuring in a new book exploring the next wave of regenerative farmers. Sarah Langford’s “Rooted: Stories of Life, Land and a Farming Revolution”, follows his hard-fought personal journey starting out in farming, to...
The Farm2Fork cows are nosey characters, friendly and docile; they aren’t looking to make anyone nervous. Our herd is made up of Aberdeen Angus and Hereford, native breeds that are well suited to our temperate climate and green landscape. Cows on the whole are curious...
When we’re surrounded by news of increasing energy and food prices, difficulties getting certain commodities with the ease at which we’re used to, the threat of a war that’s not too far from home, and a hangover from Covid and Brexit, it’s easy to find ourselves...
COP26 and the promise of repairing the damage humans have wreaked on our planet seems a bit of a distant memory right now. So off the back of the January “Regenuary” initiative, and the fact that we want to keep the issue of climate change, sustainable living and...
With so much noise over COP26 and our environmental responsibilities, sometimes it’s hard to know what’s best to do for the planet – and it’s easy to think that an indulgence such as a meat-laden Christmas dinner must be a bad thing. An emphasis on eating less meat...
The fragility of the UK economy and the wider environment was thrust firmly in the spotlight recently with the “petrol crisis” and a shortage of HGV drivers. The impact of Brexit continues to send shockwaves throughout the country in all industries, and farmers aren’t...
They may look like innocent, fluffy clouds with a habit of following each other around and not thinking much beyond the end of their noses, but behind that sheepish exterior, the ovine species is wily, cunning, and intelligent. How do we know about the intellect of...
You must know by now how much we love soil. We talk about it all the time, and we’re always shouting about how it enriches our meadows and encourages diversity and new species. Now we want to talk about what actually goes on in there, underneath the ground, and why we...
Not that long ago Tesco got slapped with a massive fine for selling out of date food to its customers at three stores. Each time we hear these stories (remember that horsemeat scandal?) we’re reminded that trust plays a big part in where people buy their food. Once...
As you know, regenerative farming is our thing. So we’re really happy to have been picked as test pilots for a new accreditation programme run by A Greener World (AGW), which will result in us being “Certified Regenerative”. We are all about looking after this...
Over the years we’ve been witnessing a shift in the way people choose their food, and we’re delighted to see that people are becoming more and more discerning about where their food comes from. That’s why Farm2Fork is asking people to make a pledge and really get to...
We’ve done it! We’ve been accredited as an organic farm! It’s been a two-year journey of “hoop-jumping” to get our farm certified, however, we’ve always followed organic principles, so for us, it was more straightforward than it could have been. We’ve always farmed...
As millions of turkeys, geese and chickens are fattened for Christmas tables across the UK, here’s some food for thought on why small-scale producers are changing the way we eat. It’s thought that somewhere in the region of 10 million turkeys are eaten in this country...
First came the chicken tractors. Now, we present the “Gobblygo”, the ultimate in turkey accommodation! It’s all part of our pasture-raised turkey enterprise, and this contraption gives the turkeys somewhere they can perch at night and feel safe, while enabling us to...
The beginning of the year typically starts with restraint. Quitting bad habits like smoking and swearing form some new year’s resolutions, Dry January is a popular choice, and now comes the newest on the list, Veganuary. By the time February arrives, lots have fallen...
As a farmer following organic processes, and running Farm2Fork in the most environmentally sound way we can, it probably won’t surprise you that we are in support of the recent Extinction Rebellion protests and what it stands for. But as the publicity drum for...
Unlike Donald Trump, we do believe climate change is a “thing”. On the farm, you really get to see how the weather makes a difference to nature, day in, day out. Over the past few years, we’ve seen more extreme weather patterns emerging. Last year in February and...
When something this cute comes home to Farm2Fork we just have to share it with you. Meet our new livestock guardian pups, named Nala and Lula! They’re Maremma Sheepdogs – a breed from the region of Tuscany and Lazio in Italy where they take their name from....
Oliver White’s determination to make a success of his county council tenancy has earned him a place in the finals of the best farmer category in the Western Daily Press Food & Farming Awards. Sue Bradley met him. Every day counts on Oliver White’s small...
How many chickens does it take to make a pack of livers? No, this isn’t the beginning of a terrible joke. A huge demand on offal here at Greenway Farm, coming mostly from a spike in diets advocating its nutritional value, means our little enterprise Farm2Fork is...
We’ve been lucky enough to land ourselves a LEADER Rural Development Grant, to help us expand and improve facilities here on the farm. It means we can boost productivity and store a wider range of products to benefit our customers. We’re busy rejigging the farm...
Here at Farm2Fork we follow organic principles and strive to use natural methods at all times. This means avoiding pesticides, herbicides, not medicating our animals (unless absolutely necessary for their wellbeing), and allowing the animals free access to pasture,...
Several West farmers are rearing geese for Christmas. Sue Bradley discovers how they’re upholding a centuries old tradition. Christmas is coming and increasing numbers of geese are getting fat on farms throughout the West. Once the festive season’s bird of...
For the Cratchit family, the goose was the centerpiece for their humble Christmas dinner in Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Despite goose at that time being considered the cheaper of the birds when compared with turkey – the goose brings the family together around the...
We were lucky enough to have a helping hand from our Wwoofer (volunteer) Nisreen this summer, who’d traveled all the way from Boston, Massachusetts to work at Farm2Fork for three weeks. She’s been chronicling her journey as a Watson Fellow in a blog, as she explores...
While things are generally peaceful in the pastures of Farm2Fork, we’ve been on our guard for a lot of the summer as the foxes have been circling. We can’t blame them, as the unusually dry weather has meant they are extremely hungry. It does, however, put everyone on...
A study carried out by Defra back in 2013 showed that in 2010 the average age of farmers in the UK was 59, unchanged from 2007. The industry faces many challenges and it’s struggling to recruit younger workers, but my personal journey shows that if you’re passionate...
You may think that we eat lamb at Easter because of its seasonality. But as our ewes still aren’t due to give birth for another two weeks, Farm2Fork can say with some certainty that Easter lamb isn’t likely to be seasonal, and it might not even be local if you’re...
It’s not that usual for meat producers to extol the virtues of eating less meat to its customers. But at Farm2Fork we do things a little differently. Of course we want you to buy our meat – after all we consider it the very best – but we still want people to eat less...
Chickens can’t live on grass alone. And there is good reason for this. If we fed our poultry 100% grass and didn’t incorporate the essential grain they need in their diet, then they wouldn’t survive. Many of our customers ask us whether our chickens are fed...
Sharing a delicious Christmas goose with loved ones fits in perfectly with the latest fashion to eat well and share hearty meals with friends and family. Sweet by Yotam Ottolenghi, Nigella Lawson’s At My Table: A Celebration of Home Cooking, Crave by Martha Collison,...
On Friday (November 17) the inspiring film In Our Hands premiered in Bristol. Farm2Fork is proud to have been included in this important story behind the blood, sweat and tears of the farmers who are outgrowing the industrial food system. Following a group of...
This blog post is designed to get you thinking. To show that there’s never just one way to do things. For many years the debate has been running around how best to rear livestock. Scientists have proved that ruminants produce a huge amount of methane which contributes...
According to the Soil Association less than one sixth of the land on Earth is suitable for growing crops. When we rely so heavily on soil to produce food it’s madness that we’ve taken our soil for granted for so long. The association says that a third of the world’s...
We could get into a debate on the ethics of eating meat full-stop. For vegans, eating any animal product, be that meat, or dairy, or honey, would be unethical entirely. For vegetarians often the reason behind the choice is animal welfare, but there are health reasons...
As a small-scale producer, getting the word out about my farm and ultimately my products is crucial to its success. When there are so many farmers and producers out there doing brilliant things with their marketing, I know how important it is to use the digital age to...
In March this year 76.3 million broilers were slaughtered in the UK, according to Government figures. Broilers are chickens reared for meat, and this eye-watering figure might make you wonder where all these chickens are kept, and how they raised. According to the...
No doubt you’ll be familiar with the Paleo diet, which in broad terms involves cutting out anything that couldn’t be hunted or gathered in the days of our cavemen ancestors – Paleo followers will often only eat 100% grass-fed meat products to ensure they are...
A damning report from the UN claims the use of pesticides goes against our human rights. Those who suggest pesticides are needed to “feed the world” have been called inaccurate and “dangerously misleading”. Here at Farm2Fork we steer clear of pesticides as we like to...
We’re all about the slow cooker right now. You’ve probably already heard about cooking “slow and low”, but did you know there are plenty of benefits from eating meat that’s been cooked for a long time (not cremated though). Slow cooked meat retains its scrummy flavour...
