Ask the Farmer

 Q: How is traditionally reared beef and lamb better than what I would buy at the supermarket?

A: Traditionally reared means your Peak Choice beef and lamb has been born and reared using less intensive methods of farming that are in tune with the environment. Modern intensive farming to supply supermarkets demands a high volume of animals grown very quickly for the least possible cost, often using indoor grain fed systems, the focus is quantity not quality. By contrast traditional farming methods in the Peak District make use of plentiful grass in the summer months and silage or hay (preserved grass cut in the spring) and some grain when the animals are housed from the harsh winter conditions. This natural diet and slower growth all add to the eating quality of your Peak Choice beef & lamb.

Q: Pure bred Aberdeen Angus are the best beef cattle right?

A: The Aberdeen Angus farmers would say yes! But here at Peak Choice we take a more balanced view when determining what makes the best beef, certainly the breeds used have a major influence on eating quality, but so does the way cattle are reared, what they eat and how they are butchered. Over hundreds of years farmers have bred pure and cross breed animals for specific traits they require, which could be a range of things; high milk yields, good mothers and easy calving, low maintenance, meat etc. Peak Choice farmers still produce rare breed cattle; White Park, Highland, Lincoln Red etc. but most of our meat comes from pedigree continental breeds like Limousin and Simmental, crossed with traditional breeds to give the best of both worlds; outstanding flavour and texture.

Q: Wouldn’t it be better for the countryside if there was less farming, leaving the fields to revert to their natural state?

A: Everything you see in the countryside has been managed by man over hundreds of years, the fields, woodland, hills and moorland may look natural but it is how farmers have managed them. The result is a diverse and unique landscape with countless habitats that cater for many rare species of animal, birds and insects. If farming practices were to change or stop then the number of different habitats would be greatly reduced, hills would become covered in gorse, moorland lost to bracken and scrub. With the loss of specific habitats and the rich biodiversity seen today, would come the loss of many rare species from butterflies to buzzards. Traditional farming methods maintain the natural balance of the countryside, for more information on biodiversity see http://www.peakdistrict.org/index/looking-after/bap.htm

E mail your questions to sales@peakchoice.co.uk