Jody is involved in all aspects of farm life from hand- rearing the lambs with daughter Isla, 12 (opposite) to
quality testing the buffalo-milk mozzarella (far left) – and, of course, keeping an eye on those pigs…
dairy produce may be delicious – customers include culinary kings Heston Blumenthal and Raymond Blanc and supermarkets including Waitrose and Sainsbury’s – they don’t come particularly cheap. “I think it’s a question of priority,” he insists. “They say that
60 years ago over half of people’s salaries went on food. Now it’s something like ten per cent. Meanwhile, people are throwing away an estimated 30 per cent of their groceries each week. What does that tell you?” Nevertheless he does concede that the term “organic” can have
pretentious associations, particularly in the aftermath of a recession. “It has got that ‘Gucci’ feel about it,” agrees Jody. “It’s considered fashionable and expensive. But, all it really means is that the food you buy has been produced naturally.” Jody’s wife Clare is equally passionate
about introducing future generations to the benefits of organic farming. She hosts regular school visits to the farm where the children get to pet and feed the animals and learn about food production. “You get these 12-year-olds getting
breed; there are only about 80 in the world and I own 27 of them. They have shorter legs, flat backs are much smaller than the registered Angus breeds you see on most British farms which have been bred over the years to maximise profits.” Jody also owns some 2,000 sheep which produce some 3,000
lambs each spring. But arguably the most interesting livestock are his water buffalo, originally imported from Italy. They produce delicious milk, mozzarella and ice cream, all processed in the farm dairy. “They are beautiful animals with gentle natures,” says Jody.
HAS A “GUCCI” FEEL – IT’S CONSIDERED FASHIONABLE
‘THE WORD “ORGANIC
FOOD HAS BEEN PRODUCED NATURALLY’
AND EXPENSIVE. BUT ALL IT MEANS IS THAT YOUR
off the bus looking bored, but within minutes, my wife has them intrigued,” says Jody. “She’s got every type of animal waste on the farm, from rats’ droppings up to buffalo dung, and the children have to guess which ‘exhibit’ belongs to which animal. They love it.” Happily, Jody is as committed to animal welfare as he is to soil
quality. His sheep and cows are noticeably smaller than some of the common breeds roaming the fields of other farms. Apparently, this is a good thing. “I’m not looking to breed big animals to produce the highest
volumes of food, I want taste and quality,” he explains. “For instance, I have the most rare cows in England. They’re the original Angus
“They are more relaxed than cows and love rolling on their backs in the field.” To ensure the buffalo don’t get stressed out during their twice-daily milking sessions Jody has soft music playing in the dairy. “They like Cliff Richard,” he jokes. With such careful attention to welfare,
the emphasis is on keeping the animals comfortable right up until slaughter in the farm’s state-of-the-art abattoir. “I had a leading animal psychologist
come and critique it twice because I wanted to make sure it was correct,” Jody explains.
“It has skylights because animals don’t like going into dark places. There’s music playing as they wander in and we make sure the floor isn’t slippery to prevent panic. They are killed quickly and humanely.” Yet, despite his obvious devotion to animal and plant welfare,
Jody says he is not ruled by over sentimentality. He just wants to be the best organic farmer he can be. “I produce healthy, delicious food,” he says. “Lots of things come
with that including making sure the livestock are happy and healthy. I think that’s mother nature’s way of asking us to be kind to animals. If you make an animal suffer you get bad meat. Perhaps more farmers should take note.”
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