Making Milk Matter

Ken Storr is a second-generation dairy and poultry farmer from Cumbria. He owns 116 acres and rents approximately another 20 acres, which is predominately all down to grass. He milks about 80 Friesians and rears his own replacements. He also has a 50,000 chicken broiler unit.

Robert Lee owns a 350 acre farm in Alnwick, Northumberland. It is predominately grassland, with 25-30 acres of cereals for the farm’s own use, and half the farm is in the stewardship scheme. He has a herd of 120 pedigree South Devon cattle

James Adams, BVSc FHEA MRCVS Farm Animal Lead at Langford Vets, University of Bristol

Nigel Curr farms in partnership with his wife, Anne, and eldest son, Mark, in Cumbria. He is a second-generation farmer and bought the farm in 2008 as a sitting tenant. The farm is 410 acres, plus fell rights, and he rents a further 60 acres. He owns a herd of 50 suckler beef cows and contract rears 60 wagyu calves out of dairy cows. He also has a flock of 700 Swaledale and 25 Leicester sheep.

David Hanson owns a herd of 52 Pedigree Hereford cows in partnership with his Dad, Dennis, on their farm in Flixton, Yorkshire. The farm is a total of 76 acres of grassland, which they bought in 2001 as a green field site and now houses a farmhouse and farm buildings. They rear their own youngstock to provide replacement heifers for the farm or to sell as replacements and 90% of bulls are sold as stock bulls to the dairy industry. David also keeps bees which produce honey during the summer.

Andrea Debenham milks 400 Friesians on the family farm in Beccles, Suffolk which is owned in partnership by her Mother and Uncle, Margaret Vale and David Burroughs. The farm is approximately 400ha and they also have free range poultry.

Trevor and Elizabeth Gore are fourth generation livestock and arable farmers and farm 750 acres in Hungerford, Berkshire. They have 440 ewes, which are predominately mules, and approximately 20 beef cattle.

Michael and Sarah Ridley live on a family farm in Northumberland where Michael farms with his Dad and brother. The farm extends to 300 acres and is predominately grass land. They have approximately 370 Lleyn and about 20 Herdwick sheep. They also have a Friesian dairy herd. Sarah works at Scott Mitchell Associates Veterinary Surgeons in Northumberland

Jonathan Langridge and Amy Taylor run a flock of 1300 ewes, mainly mules, alongside Jonathan’s Dad and Mum, Bill and Alison, who milk 95 Friesian x dairy cows on their farm in Marchington Staffordshire, which they run in partnership together. They finish the beef sired progeny and the lambs are finished and sold to a local wholesaler. The fourth-generation farm is mainly grassland.
Amy works full-time as a veterinary receptionist in the large animal division of Glenthorne Vets in Staffordshire.

Bryan Fell is a beef and sheep farmer and farms 350 acres in a family partnership near Keswick, Cumbria. He has 80 Limousin-cross beef cattle and 650 ewes, which are predominately Beltex cross Texel to produce prime lambs. He also has a flock of Swaledales which are crossed to produce North of England Mules.

Sophie and Stephen Bridges have lived on their 350 acre farm in North Yorkshire since 2012. They manage a beef and sheep enterprise consisting of 150 Aberdeen Angus cows and 250 sheep.

Simon Wells milks 270 Holstein Friesians on the fourth-generation family farm near Bath, Somerset. The farm is a total of 854ha, of which 172ha is grass used by the dairy, with the remainder in arable rotation. He rears his own young stock to provide replacement heifers.