WHAT MAKES OUR FARM SUSTAINABLE OVER CONVENTIONAL BEEF & PORK OPERATIONS???
We have jumped on the crazy train and followed the world-famous, self-proclaimed "Lunatic Farmer" -
Joel Salatin of Poly Face Farms.
His methods have proven that you can actually HEAL THE LAND and REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS while producing flavourful, ETHICALLY RAISED meat.
You can read about his methods on their website HERE .
HERE AT HERITER FARMS, our goal is to mimic his management strategies. This allows the animals & plants to express their natural characteristics. A critical component is MOB or Intense Rotational (IR) grazing, used to improve the quality of pastures, build new topsoil and develop a strong network of underground soil structures.
Like permaculture practices, the Salatin method creates a sustainable relationship between the livestock, soil organisms, and the surrounding ecosystems such as forests and wetlands. It embraces diversity, so you will never see a mono-culture field on our land.
WE STRIVE TO ACHIEVE THIS BALANCE IN EVERY AREA OF OUR FARM.
Check back often as we continue to add new info on our farm's progress. This is a very exciting time!
Please watch this short clip on what makes a farm sustainable, and how important it is to get everyone on board so that future generations can have food security while enhancing and healing the land it's produced on.
SO WHAT ARE WE DOING DIFFERENTLY? -
EVERYTHING
Here at Heriter Farms, we are following the practices of revolutionary (and "crazy" farmers) like Joel Salatin and Gabe Brown, who are using science-based farming practices to change the way we grow and produce meat and other foods.
Here is what we DON’T do:
Till or plow fields and gardens
Use chemical sprays (herbicide or pesticide)
Use commercial fertilizer
Use GMO seed
Have mono-species fields
Feed our cows grains or animal bi-products
Confine our livestock
Here is what we DO:
Seed fields with diverse species to mimic native grass and "weeds" that thrived here previously
Allow most weed species to grow, providing nutrient-diversity for our cattle and pigs, and habitat and food for native birds
Plant seeds using a no-till seed drill to minimize soil disruption and prevent damage to fields
Use composted manure from our own animals to improve our fields - not tilling it in - to build the soil year after year and reduce outside inputs to increase sustainability
Mimic nature by moving cows daily onto fresh pasture to improve the soil, control weeds and reduce/eliminate any health
risks to our animals from parasites and disease
Encourage birds that naturally follow grazing animals, such as starlings, sparrows and swallows, which eat harmful insects and help sanitize the grazed paddocks
TREAT ALL OF OUR LIVESTOCK AND NATIVE SPECIES WITH THE UTMOST RESPECT AND LOVE