New Isle Of Wight Dairy Farm Bucking The Trend With Brave Step Back Into Industry

On an Island that has continued to lose many of its dairy farms over the past twenty years, one family farm is taking the brave step back into the industry.

This spring, a new dairy farm has started production on the Isle of Wight, offering local and sustainable dairy products.

Warren Farm, situated near the Needles, has taken the step back into milk production after nearly a quarter of a century away.

The farm is now just one of five dairy farms remaining on the Island and aims to reverse the declining trend of dairy farms by adopting new ways of working.

Husband and wife team, James and Becca, have been behind this new venture at Warren Farm.

The farm has long had a focus on working with grazing livestock to restore and enhance the habitats around them and has a farm shop on site.

However, the couple were keen to produce even more food for the local community to enjoy and, in doing so, wanted to go back to their roots as a dairy farm.

James said:

“There is a rich history of dairy farming at Warren Farm, with my father previously running a dairy here for over 35 years.

"He also ran a milk round, delivering milk to local customers.

“Unfortunately, the economic pressures of dairy farming, especially here on the island, has seen many farms move away from dairy production.

"So, we are really excited to be able to be bucking this trend and bringing dairy cows back to Warren Farm to start producing milk again.

"We are really grateful for the support from our landlords, the National Trust, and also the Isle of Wight National Landscape, who have helped fund the project via the Farming in Protected Landscapes scheme.”

The couple have been able to bring in some pedigree Jersey cows from a local farm in Brighstone, who have recently stopped producing milk.

This herd’s ancestry is steeped in Island history, with many of the bloodlines being traced back to Queen Victoria’s own Jersey cow herd here on the Isle of Wight.

Warren Farm is reviving a traditional approach to dairy farming, albeit with a modern twist.

They are starting a ‘Micro Dairy’, which means that they will be milking fewer than 20 cows on the farm.

They are also running a ‘cow and calf’ dairy system. This is where the calves are kept with their mothers, who will look after them, whilst also being milked once a day.

With this small herd of cows and their calves, the farm aims to put nature and animal welfare at the heart of the operation.

 Becca explained:

“At Warren Farm, we farm with organic and regenerative principles in mind.

"This means we use no artificial fertilisers or pesticides, whilst aiming to improve the soils and harnessing the power of grazing animals to protect the habitats surrounding the farm.

“As a core pillar of our farming approach, we really prioritise the welfare of our animals.

"Through running our dairy as a ‘cow and calf’ system, we can keep our calves with their mothers to be reared as naturally as possible.

"Our co-milking system means that we only milk the cows once in the morning, with the calves drinking from their mothers for the rest of the day.”

The milk is processed on site at Warren Farm, where it is gently pasteurised to preserve its goodness and is then bottled in reusable glass bottles.

The milk is unhomogenised, so the cream naturally rises to the top.

You can now buy Warren Farm milk and other farm products from Warren Farm’s very own shop onsite.

Warren Farm milk is also now available in Orchard Bros, Hazelgrove Farm Shop, Nunwell Farm Kitchen and the Needles Park on the Isle of Wight.

The team are also in discussions with other local outlets to sell their milk and are planning to bring out new products over the next year.