The Spours family farm in the Northeast and the Galloway Cattle
Society. The farm is tucked away in the moorlands of Northumberland
and the success story behind the Galloway cattle is just the
beginning of closed-loop regenerative farming for this family.
At Twizell Farm, the land is widely spread in large blocks of
heather moorland and improved lowland. Previously used to farm
commercial cattle and sheep who would chew their way through every
grass and herb, leaving little left to grow. In 2010, part of the
land in the heather hills was designated as a site of special
scientific interest (SSSI), meaning the way the land was managed
needed to change to encourage the wild juniper plants to grow.
The Spours family were left with a decision to make - which
native breed would work best? And after plenty of consideration, a
herd of Galloway's were introduced to the land. Easy to manage
cattle and superior eating quality were just a few benefits, as
well as being non-selective grazers which would suit the SSSI
scheme greatly.
The farmer, Daniel Spours, who farms in partnership with his
brother, Richard, father, Lawrence, and Uncle, Paul, said "It was a
bit of a leap in the dark but I am really impressed with the
Galloways and particularly how well they are finishing", "our
original goal was to have a 60-cow herd, but we are now going to
increase numbers to 90 purebreds as we now know the full potential
of the breed" he added.