Our Cattle
Breed
Our main breed is a Galloway mix.
The Galloway breed has been in Canada for 165 years. These cattle are hardy, hairy, and beautiful. They love the outdoors, calve without any intervention and are fantastic grazers, efficiently converting hay and grass into body weight.
They are usually white, but can be belted, brown and even a very cute grey colour.
Activity
Our cattle spend the entire summer outside in pasture. They are given fresh grass twice daily in small sections to improve fertilization and so they eat it more efficiently and trample it less.
Seeing these graceful and majestic animals on pasture doing what they were meant to do is truly a beautiful sight.
Feed
In the winter they are fed hay exclusively. No, our cattle are never fed grain. Many conventional cattle farms ONLY feed grain.
Meat
Our beef is certified organic by Pro-Cert, and grass-fed.
Grass-fed beef is sought after because it has a better Omega fatty-acid ratio and a higher nutritional content. Galloway beef in particular is lean and very healthy.
It is tempting to overcook our beef because of worries about food poisoning in under-cooked conventional and processed meat. Grass-fed beef does not need to be cooked as long, so watch it closely and eat it when it’s a little pink for best flavour and nutritional value.
Our Pigs
Breed
Our pigs are a mix of breeds chosen for their desire to root and be outdoors – mainly Tamworth, Berkshire and most recently, Duroc.
Most people don’t know that standard “pink” pigs can get sunburnt! Our pigs have brown, red or black skin and they were bred for hundreds of years for their good health and stamina, not to mention the quality of their meat.
Activity
Pigs think about the weather a bit like the average human does. When it’s warm, or a nice winter day, they go exploring. When it’s nasty, hot, or nighttime, they go inside and snuggle up in some nice clean straw for a nap.
And yes, they like to lay in mud puddles in the summer, don’t worry!
Feed
Our pigs have access to a 2-acre paddock of grass. They are given fresh grass every day during pasture season. Pigs lack a rumen, so they can’t digest grass like cattle do – however, they like to eat the flowers, or very young leaves from the clover. They also root in the dirt and like to eat roots, earthworms, and buried walnuts!
The main source of their growth however, is Certified Organic grain – a mixture of soybeans, corn, and mixed grain.
Meat
Our pigs are certified Organic by Pro-Cert, which means all aspects of their production is reviewed annually against the Canadian Organic Regime.
We believe that their lifestyle results in meat that is fundamentally different than typical pork from animals raised in confinement.
But really, our customers are the judge of that! Try it and see!
Our Chickens
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- Free-range organic chickens
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- Our chickens eat what they were always meant to eat – grass, roots, bugs and beetles.
Breed
We use 2 breeds of chickens, one for cuts like breast, thighs, drumsticks etc. and one for whole birds. Our whole birds are usually Rustic Rangers, and our cuts come from White Rock, your standard white chicken.
Rustic Rangers do a little better in the early spring and late fall, but dress a little smaller, which is perfect for roaster chickens.
Activity
Our chickens spend the first few weeks of their life in the barn, first in our primary brooder and then in our larger, secondary brooder. Here they are kept safe from predators while they get big enough to be outside.
After moving to the cages, they receive new grass every day for a varied diet and get plenty of exercise roaming around. We are careful not to overload our cages so that the birds have plenty of room to themselves.
Feed
We feed a pelletized chick starter at first, and then our own precise mixture of corn, soybeans, mixed grain, and mineral mix.
As with all Certified Organic animals, our feed comes strictly from Certified Organic grain producers.
Meat
We have a full selection of cuts of chicken as well as whole chickens available.
All of our chicken comes vac-packed and uncooked, unspiced, with no added water or filler of any kind.
Our happy customers know that you can taste the difference!