The Farmers Mart Dec/Jan 2015 - Issue 37 | Page 60

BRIDGE FARM

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French sheep that we flushed
this time and put them into
recipients. We also have
semen stored from rams
we have brought in before.
‘Muscle Man’ was a very good
ram that is known nationally.
We are hoping to get some
very good lambs by him again
this coming season.”
While the Berrichon breed
is dear to her heart, so too is
her herd of Aberdeen Angus
cattle.
“It was a joint decision
between myself and my
partner, Charlie (Wrightson) to
take on the breed. We started
with a crossbred Angus from
a local farmer to see how we
went and then had a trip up
to Perth where the Netherton

60

Dec/Jan 2015 FarmersMart

herd was having a private
sale. We bought two very
good cows that formed our
foundation stock then went
back and bought a very good
bull. We have enjoyed a bit of
success and won with a cow
and calf at the Great Yorkshire
Show in the mid 2000s. We
got up to 150 head of cattle at
one time but we are now half
of that number with 25 cows
plus followers,” she explained.
“We have started to
consolidate by selling all the
crossbreds. It is not a numbers
game anymore. When I was
providing animals for the
butchery it was important I
had that throughput right the
way through the year. I am
conducting ET work with the

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Ear tags & much more online:
last of my crossbred heifers
and some of the purebreds
using embryos I have in
storage. We have just bought a
very high index bull ‘Jerusalem
Druid’ from the Jerusalem
Angus herd and we are trying
to climb the ladder.
“What I look for is good
calving and docility,” Elaine
added. “I have some lovely
cows including Kirsti, who has
been a show cow. She is on
her eighth calving and I like to
take them through to around
12.”
The butchery was a source
of great pride to Elaine and it
was successful, but personal
circumstances meant she had
to give it up. It was one of four
businesses based on what is

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now the Bridge Farm Business
Centre at the original family
farm in Seamer.
“We started it when we
received a Rural Enterprise
Scheme Grant for where dad
used to milk the cows. I had
always wanted to do the ‘farm
to fork’ thing.” she said.
“The farm business centre
has some lovely tenants
and we are now involved
with a different food and
drink enterprise with HedgeHoggers cider and apple
juices. Through running
the butchery I met Dan
Hargreaves, head chef at The
Copper Horse in Seamer.
Dan told me his passion was
making wine and cider. I have
a cold store, once used for
the butchery, and just what
he needed for the apples and
cider. We have now bought
a hydro press and a mill and
have just had our third apple
season. It is a real community
enterprise. We don’t have
enough apples of our own,
even though I’ve now planted
out a small field at Bridge
Farm, so we take apples from
anyone who supplies us from
their own trees and we give
back a proportion as fresh
juice or cider. We make proper
apple cider, like scrumpy, and
we add anything fruity that
comes out of hedges from
elderberries and brambles
to sloes - to make our own
branded fruit ciders,” she
added.

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