Silverthorne Farm (1UK 11791)
Silverthorne Farm is a free-range egg farm in Milborne Wick, Dorset and is run by Jason Thompson. Jason gave up his career in the mobile phone industry to begin running Silverthorne Farm in 2005.
One of he most important functions of Silverthorne is to give the chickens the best quality of life possible while they live on the farm. After all, the happier and healthier the chickens - the more top-quality eggs they lay, and that makes Jason happy! The chickens enjoy unrestricted access to 45 acres of fields that are surrounded by an electrified, fox-proof fence. There is also a programme of planting fruit trees - over 100 so far - that provide shade and somewhere for the chickens to rummage.
Jason employs local young people to work as egg-collectors at weekends, which gives him more time with his baby daughter Isobel, who was born in September 2007. Jason has also been doing business with Blackacre Farm Eggs since September 2007, and that is turning out to be a great trade relationship with a strong future.
At Blackacre we are a small family run business and we treat Jason as an individual, rather than a faceless number. Another of the bonuses to the relationship with Blackacre is that of food miles. Eggs from Silverthorne Farm used to travel from Dorset to Devon, and then onto Hull before being sent out to supermarkets. Now, with Blackacre, their eggs travel about 5 miles before being packed and sent out to local stores - and that is good news for consumer and the environment.
Like many farmers, Jason has learnt to diversify. He makes hay (while the sun shines!) and Jason runs a small pest-control business. He also offers livery on the farm, and has quite a number of horses that mingle well with the chickens. The chickens benefit from this relationship in the summer, as horses are very good at providing shade! Finally, Jason is also a beekeeper. Despite some nasty stings, he and his bees produce about 350 pints of delicious honey a year.
Jason loves his new outdoor life running Silverthorne Farm. It is a far cry from his days designing mobile phone networks, but the time his has with Isobel, the beautiful countryside, the hard work and a never-ending supply of eggs make it all worthwhile.
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