Cumbrian excellence shines at national awards ceremony

A HIGHLY regarded farm business and a environmentally friendly farmer represented the county at the National Farmers’ Union’s Farming Excellence Awards yesterday (11 March).

Tom and Sue Forrester, who own Howberry Farm near Carlisle and who have their own brand of churned butter called Cream of Cumbria, were runners-up in the Great British Food Award category.

Martin Baird of Red Hall Farm in Wigton was also a runner-up in the English Nature Farming for Wildlife Award category.

Tom and Sue will now receive £200. They use surplus milk from their dairy farm to produce their own butter and use the buttermilk by-product to bake scones and cakes. Tom and Sue sell through farmers' markets, food fairs and shows.

Martin Baird also receives £200 as recognition of conservation work, which includes restoring hedgerows and managing the fodder beet on his dairy farm to provide cover for birds.

Martin, who farms a 157-acre intensive dairy unit with 97 cows, recently purchased 22 acres of land which he plans to manage as a wetland habitat and will also receive up to £3,000 to help with further conservation work on his farm.

After the awards ceremony, Sue Forrester, said: “We’ve had a great day. The awards ceremony was fantastic and it’s great to see at first hand the innovation and dedication there is in farming.

“We were like little fish in a very big pool but we flew the flag for Cumbria and we are both proud and honoured to have been at the awards ceremony.”

Martin Baird added: “Winning the north west regional award was a complete surprise so getting through to the national final was an added bonus. Being at the awards ceremony was a great experience.”