Sophie is a young farmer who is one of our 220 magnificent Manx producers.
Ballafayle Farm in Bride supplies Isle of Man Meats with top quality beef and lamb, and also grows barley to feed the livestock. Farming runs in Sophie’s family, but she only took over running Ballafayle in April 2020.
She says: “I set up the business and took over the running of the farm from my dad after he took a step back, or at least he was hoping to! I enjoy the variety of jobs, from lambing and calving time to general stock tasks, tractor work and even taking a few wild blackface sheep to the local shows. I also help to milk cows on my partner’s farm. There’s never a dull moment! My favourite time of the year has to be spring with all the new lambs and calves bouncing around, lighter nights, plus knowing that summer is just around the corner. Although, up north, we do appreciate the odd rain shower to keep the grass growing!”
Out of all of our producers, Ballafayle Farm is the longest distance (about 21 miles) from our HQ at the Meat Plant in Tromode. But that’s still a mere hop and skip compared to the hundreds, or even thousands, of miles imported meat travels from the UK, Ireland or New Zealand. That’s worth considering if you’re concerned about low food miles and how that relates to important issues such as sustainability and animal welfare.
As you can see from the photos, the animals Sophie looks after live in a natural environment with plenty of opportunities to graze in lush green pastures. “We have 60 suckler cows and followers,” she says. “The cows are predominantly a cross between either an Angus, Hereford or Stabiliser. We are currently using a Charolais and Angus bull. Any Angus heifers produced will be kept to go back in the herd as replacements. I like the traditional crossbred cow as they are a nice medium size cow with a good nature and maternal instincts, as well as having good forage conversion. The Charolais bull on the traditional cows produce a fast-growing good carcass animal with a good temperament.”
Ballafayle is home to around 400 sheep, including a lowland flock that are mainly Texel cross, although Sophie has also introduced some easy care sheep this year. “The upland flock,” adds Sophie, “are either Blackface sheep or Cheviots. Some of the sheep are ran pure but we also use a Charolais ram as a terminal sire to help improve carcass quality.”
Sophie is one of many young farmers on the Island whose passion and hard work shows that the future of our food and farming sectors are in safe hands.
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