Headlines
Students, Liz Martinelli and Laurence Gibbs with the curious dairy herd
Environmental Studies Visit to 'The Leen', Pembridge
20th May 2010
The weather was fine as we had a tour of the dairy section of the farm, which also produces organic vegetables, mostly for vegetable box schemes and the London markets, with some being sold to supermarkets.
Students were able to learn from the farmer, Mr. Tony Norman, about the principles and practices of organic farming and question him about practical aspects of farming. Two students, who are also farmers, Laurence Gibbs and Owen Probert, were particularly impressed and raised many points during our walk around the farm.
The cows are milked in a modern carousel milking parlour and are kept outside for a large part of the year, feeding on organic pasture with a wide diversity of plant species. The farm has found that Holstein-Friesian cattle do well only under intensive systems and now have a mix of pure breeds, from Guernsey to Montbéliard as well as cross breeds. Mr. Norman and his farm partners are working towards developing their own breed of dairy cow! Hereford cattle, a beef breed, have, after all, been exported all over the world so there is a precedent. Yields of milk have returned to what they were before the farm converted to organic agriculture and Mr. Norman believes that organic farming could sustain the world’s population, provided we ‘close the loop’ by using all natural waste.