Featured Farmers:
Tannybrake Farm
About Us
The Barr Family have the only known Shorthorn Dairy herd in Ireland. They have resolutely stayed small, producing the best quality milk from cows they know by name.
History
We have milked Shorthorns on Tannybrake farm for approximately 100 years spanning 3 generations and hopefully moving into the 4th. It is believed that we have the only remaining dairy Shorthorn herd in Northern Ireland.
Crops
Livestock
Grazing
Dairy herd
Current System
Currently we milk 17 cows producing approximately 300 litres of milk a day. In comparison to most other dairy farms this is miniscule however we have a story to tell alongside our high quality milk. We are so proud of our heritage and the livestock that we care for. Each cow has a name and is treated more like a family pet rather than a dairy cow. We are a family farm where everyone mucks in- including 6 month old baby girl, Lily. If you would like to see some content from the farm just search for the hashtag #tannybrakefarm on Instagram.
Customers
The Milk Parlour at Glenarm use the milk for the most amazing ice cream
Approach to regeneration and sustainability
Ultimately we want to secure a future at Tannybrake farm for our livestock and generations to come. In doing so we want to help our farm grow sustainably. We would love to achieve a method of farming that not only supports our family but mixes traditional farming with modern farming techniques. Whilst large scale dairies are the norm in Northern Ireland we believe now is the time for micro dairies to shine and we have the potential to become a micro dairy. In doing so we hope to achieve-
• Preservation of a native, traditional breed of cow
• Lower food miles
• Local products for local customers
• Ethical farming
• Nothing hidden in the production process
• Farm to fork/spoon
Vision for 2030
We are at a crossroads in the life of the farm and we have to make a decision to either stand still and hope for the best or diversify and be innovative with our unique product. We do not want to scale up majorly in terms of herd numbers the way a lot of dairy farms are being forced to do, we do not want to lose the heart in our product or story and we most certainly do not want to see this precious heritage lost.
