Livestock
“Of all the benefits I love about organic farming – the wildlife, the landscape, the delicious food – what motivates me more than anything is allowing our animals to have as good a life as possible.”
Helen Browning
Dairy cows
The farm is predominately dairy, as the next generation (my daughter Sophie and her husband, Dai) are taking over the reins. We have two dairy herds, one on the lower land just below the village, the other high on the Ridgeway at Starveal, both with their own milking parlour; about 500 cows in total, plus lots of young calves and heifers.
Pigs
Our Saddleback sows have a special place in my heart. So much of my life has been spent learning, then championing a better life for these intelligent creatures. If we want to eat meat, then we should ensure that animals not only avoid suffering, but have some fun too.
Rose Veal
Helen Browning’s Organic Rose Veal makes the most of this natural resource of livestock from our dairy herds, offering an indulgent but truly ethical eating experience – as we enjoy milk, cheese or ice-cream, we believe it is also our duty not to waste the veal meat this industry produces.
We don’t actively breed veal calves, so the stock is limited. Available as premium cuts to showcase the delicious flavour, versatility and quick-cook nature.
The male calves are slow reared for about 10 months, living outside when the weather is reasonable. They are kept in small sociable groups so they are able to play and forage.
Beef
Our ‘Good Beef’ range is from cows that have been born and raised on the pastures here at Eastbrook Farm. At the end of a productive dairy life, the cows are retired and allowed to rest and graze naturally before being sent off for beef.
Besides supporting a circular food system in line with our ethical aims, retired dairy beef (or Basque beef, as it is known when from Spain) is renowned for a serious amount of flavour and marvellous marbling of fat from a healthy active life on grass meadows.
