Had a great day out today, courtesy of Jodie at the
Shropshire Hills AONB. The day was titled ‘Organic Farm to Fork’ and we started with a visit to
Rhos Fiddle Nature Reserve,
an SSSI managed by Shropshire Wildlife Trust, high in the Shropshire
Hills. The views are stunning and it is so peaceful. Part of the
management is the grazing of highland cattle – an unusual sight in the
Shropshire countryside! The cattle are owned by local organic farmer,
Trevor Wheeler, who introduced us to his cattle and hebridean sheep on
the hillside, then took us to his farm a little way down the valley.
This organic mixed farm trades as
Clun Valley Organics,
supplying meat and vegetables through local shops and farmers markets.
We also viewed the eco cottage located on the farm, fully self
sufficient with a wind turbine and solar hot water panels.
After a delicious lunch made by Zara from
Myriad Organics in Ludlow we headed for Daysdrove Abattoir in Bishops
Castle to see the next stage of the journey from farm to fork. It was
interesting to tour the building and see the care taken to ensure
animals are slaughtered humanely. The business prides itself on the fact
that animals have low food miles and are of a high quality.
Finally we visited Andrew Pugh, the local
butcher, who gave a very informative demonstration on how to cut up and
present a forequarter of beef, one of the less popular parts of the
animal. To finish he produced samples of slow cooked chuck beef and salt
cured brisket, both of which were delicious, but the salt beef was
devine! Something I will try to reproduce at home!
