About our farm
We are a 4th generation family run farm. I am James Rangeley, the current custodian of the farm.
My grandfather, Ernest Rangeley was the first generation of Rangeley's to run the farm in the 1940's. Initially farming pigs and a small dairy herd, these gave way to beef cattle and a farm shop in the 1970’s when my father, Melvin, decided to change the direction of the farm. The farm shop was run by my mother, Christine, and proved to be a great success at the time, selling home grown and local produce to the local community, but times change and with the rise of the supermarkets, the farm shop didn’t prove to be viable and so the hard decision was taken to close the shop.
The farm shop is now my home where I live with my wife, Suzanne and my son, Jack, who is the 4th generation.
With the ever changing economic climate, we have had to look into ways of diversifying on the farm. We have decided that rather than sell our grass fed cattle on, we would try and sell locally. We send them to a local abattoir and butcher, keeping the carbon footprint and food miles of the cattle low.
We now also supply grass fed lambs, which as with the cattle, will be sent to the local abbatior and butcher when ready.
About our grass fed cattle
The cows tend to calve around Christmas and March time before they go out to grass. We can keep an eye on them in the sheds and give them a helping hand should the need arise. The majority of the mothers are farm bred and any female calves that are born could be kept to join the herd.
After introducing a new breed of cows, Dexters, last year, we have continued to grow our herd this year. We have six more ladies to add to the breeding stock and in the spring time they had a visit from Graham, a Dexter bull, who stayed with us for eight weeks before making his way back to his home in North Yorkshire. Hopefully in December time we will be seeing lots of little red calves! The Dexter breed originated in Ireland and are the smallest native breed of cattle in the British Isles, they are hardy, dual-purpose cattle, producing excellent beef and milk, an ideal suckler cow for conservation grazing.
All the cows and calves go out in the fields in April time each year. You will see them in the fields on Moor Lane in Highburton and up in the fields on Riley Lane in Kirkburton. Their diet is grass! In the winter months they are fed silage, this is grass that was cut during the summer months, baled into big round bales and then wrapped to preserve it.
About our grass fed lambs
We buy our lambs locally from Holmfirth Market in September time when they are about 6 months old.
They are then put out to grass, alongside our cattle for a time until the cows are brought in for winter.
Being hardy, with their thick waterproof fleeces, the lambs enjoy being out in the fields during the winter months. They thrive on the winter grass, cutting it down to the roots, which helps the grass grow back thicker by encouraging new growth.
The land is also constantly and naturally fertilised, making the rearing of these lambs very sustainable, especially on land that cannot be used for anything other than grazing.
