Jimmy Doherty

The RBST is delighted to announce that TV farmer Jimmy Doherty, of The Essex Pig Company, is to lend his support to its work with native farm breeds.

Jimmy, who has a degree in zoology and who studied entomology, has risen to fame since the BBC followed his progress with the series Jimmy's Farm. He is the author of two books - On the Farm and A Taste of the Country.

Here Jimmy explains why he is proud to support the RBST.

"When I left the academic world to become a pig farmer four years ago I was determined to get back to a more simplistic, natural way of life. My plan was to live and work on my own farm, raising free range animals and growing food as nature intended.

My whole ethos was to farm within the natural environment and to work as sustainably as possible. The type of farming that we practice here on the farm was commonplace before the second world war; free range, low intensity - oh yes, that good old fashioned farming.
I have religiously followed this philosophy by farming many traditional breeds that suit the given environment in our corner of Suffolk.

For me, the natural home of the pig is in the wood - so my priority was to find a farm that had a substantial amount of woodland. I wanted to give my pigs as natural a life as possible within the constraints of a working farm.

We have a number of traditional breeds of pig on the farm - ranging from the Essex type of Saddleback, Large Black, British Saddleback, to the Tamworth and the Berkshire. These breeds are all able to cope with the woodland environment; with bristly coats, ability to forage for their own food and their natural intelligence, they thrive in the great outdoors. Some of them are endangered breeds and we are working to build up their numbers to help conserve these wonderful animals.

We also have Red Poll cattle on the farm - a breed indigenous to East Anglia and another breed at risk. These beautiful looking cattle are dual purpose, good for both meat and milk and it is my intention to build up a herd of cattle and produce cheese from their milk - although this may be a long term project!

I am a member and supporter of the RBST and I see it as a modern day Noah's Ark, fighting to conserve traditional breeds. The Trust plays such an important role in bringing the plight of many endangered native and at risk breeds to the fore. This is not only important for farming heritage and food production but also for future generations.

It is good to know that there is someone out there bringing together and supporting the growing band of farmers who are choosing to bring back our heritage breeds."