Native Rare Breeds at Hazeldene Farm

When I visited husband and wife team Steve and Liz at Hazeldene Farm near Chesham this past Sunday afternoon, I honestly left feeling that I wanted to become a farmer. The scene was idyllic - rolling green hills, glorious sunshine, smiling faces and all the signs of spring, complete with lambs and piglets. To me at that moment, it made farming seem like the perfect way of life. It’s not perfect of course, there's some seriously hard work to be done but Liz tells me with a sparkle in her eye that it is also extremely rewarding. I was lucky to enjoy a guided tour of the farm and as we walked, talked and I photographed and scribbled, it was clear to me that Liz and her husband truly love their jobs, and their animals. For Hazeldene is no ordinary farm - the animals are no ordinary animals. There are some really rare breeds here. The pigs for example are 'British Lops' (you can see how they get their name, above), of which there are only approximately 300 sows left in the UK - they were officially endangered until Hazeldene started breeding them. Among the chickens, there is the delightfully named ‘Marsh Daisy', the rarest of all chickens at Hazeldene, along with some 'Ixworths', 'Indian Cornish Game' (another cracking name) and the 'Araucarna', which actually produce green eggs. All these birds are rare breeds – with only 3-400 of each left and boy are they well cared for…I think the only way the chickens here could be more free-range is if they were actually living in the wild (see below). This is the beauty of the small producer – a stark contrast to the often low quality meat that is produced on a large scale. Liz tells me how the 'Sasso' breed – another rare chicken, has a very fine flavour but is unpopular with large producers because it takes 14 weeks to mature - commercial chickens take just six weeks. The cows are also slow growing. The ‘Traditional Hereford’ is easily identifiable by their beautiful brown and white markings and whereas most examples are crossed with American breeds, these have fully traceable blood lines. As for the sheep, we have the ‘Oxford Down’ which, apart from being the largest sheep in the country, is also the most local to Hazeldene. There is a huge emphasis on keeping things local here, the farm does not distribute their meat or eggs out to retailers, everything is sold in their farm shop, encouraging local people to come to the farm and get in touch with their food and where it comes from. They even have their own cold room and butchery so everything gets done on-site. Beef is hung for a minimum of three weeks to age, bacon is dry-cured and sausages are squeezed into their casings by the butcher they employ to work with them. I must say I learned a lot from my day down at the farm. On the trivial side of things I was overjoyed to learn that pigs actually have the ability to control that curl in their tail - some of the time, they straighten it out and wag it like a dog. I kid you not. On a more thoughtful note though, I found that getting out there and meeting the people who produce good food it is an experience that cannot be beaten. This is what the Real Food Festival is all about. These people take time to produce high quality, superior tasting products and they do it because they care – about eating well and in a way that is ethically sound. I am amazed to learn that Liz and Steve are new producers (they have been going for just 3 years), as they seem like seasoned pros. In addition to the existing shop, there are plans for a café selling home made cakes and no doubt other lovely things and I’ve even heard whispers of an application for a license which will allow children to visit the farm – an exciting prospect indeed. The value of introducing children to the idea of where their food actually comes from should not be underestimated. As I trundled back down the Metropolitan line towards the city, tightly clasping my eggs, bacon and sausages for my dinner, I honestly felt like I had been on holiday in the country, such was the power of the atmosphere at Hazeldene. All parties contented - animals, producers, customers - and last, but by no means least, my very lucky belly. Helen Graves also writes her own London-based food blog, Food Stories.