Farm reports: Grassland Poultry

We can't go to farms at the moment so we've asked them all to do a show and tell video so we can see what's happening on the ground.

Here's Kim Kiss from Grassland Poultry at Meramie Farm near Wellington, NSW, reporting on conditions at the farm. We've been buying Grassland's Sommerlad chickens since August 2017 and it's wonderful to see the transformation produced by recent rains since we last visited in September 2019.

The Sommerlad chooks are revelling in the new pasture growth and the Kisses have re-introduced a small number of cattle and sheep to the farm. 

Although, as Kim says in this video, experienced farmers proceed with caution, conscious that conditions are predicted to become hotter and drier. 

Why Farm Reports?

The necessary Covid isolation regime has successfully reduced the infection curve but it's also increased the sense of distance most of us already have from the sources of our food. So, after the rollercoaster of drought, fires, flood and pandemic over the last six months, we felt it was high time for all of us to re-connect with the farmers whose produce we enjoy each week.

So far, we've received reports from Working With Nature near Guyra,  Farmer Brown Eggs near Spicers Creek, Gundooee Organic Wagyu near Leadville, Grassland Poultry near Wellington and Allyn River Galloways near Barrington Tops - all in NSW.

When we visited these farms in August and September last year, after three years of drought, everything was parched and dusty and even the most stalwart characters were clearly very anxious. This year almost everyone has had some rain and it's wonderful to see green pastures and full dams and cheerful, relieved farmers celebrating the reprieve.  

We'll keep bringing you these reports as they come to hand.