Heritage Livestock Breeds is one of those things that is so important yet so little spoken of. Of course, in my world of farming we talk about it a lot, but I know for many of my friends and customers it is a completely new concept. Like pretty much everything in the world - the more diverse our livestock breeds are, the better off we are. Each livestock animal, like cows, ducks, and pigs, each have hundreds of breeds amongst them. Each breed has specific characteristics that serve our varying needs as humans. For example, a dairy cow that you might have in Western Canada will be completely different from a beef cow you would have in Thailand. They are both cows but they are absolutely not interchangeable. 

The sad thing is that industrialization of farming and urbanization of rural land worldwide has been causing the extinction of these heritage breeds that have been around for up to centuries and are very specialized. Fortunately, there are many farmers around the world who are working hard to keep these heritage breeds going. We are proud to say that we are one of those farms! We raise Berkshire Pork and have both a Jersey cow and a Kerry cow. We also have 4 heritage sheep and a flock of heritage laying hens.

Here are some examples of heritage breeds that are especially important to Canada, including the breeds we chose and why we chose them!

Kerry Cattle

Berkshire pigs

Here on our farm we breed Berkshire pork so if you are already one of our customers, you know that Berkshire pork tastes incredible! Berkshire pigs come from Berkshire County in England and are believed to be one of the oldest breeds of pig in England. We like Berkshire because they are a great match for our land which is a mix of pasture and forest. Our pigs eat up both the grass and the brush and turn it into delicious, juicy, marbled meat. Berkshire is known to have high fat content which is originally what led it to be cast aside in favor of more lean industrial pigs but that high fat content is now once again valued by chefs and people who love good food.

Our dairy cow Felicity is one of a relatively small number of Kerry cows left in Canada (less than 20 across the country!). Kerry cows are very cool because they are actually an ancient breed of cattle that is indigenous to Ireland. The Celts bred these cows for milk production and it is believed that they may be the oldest breed of cattle that was bred strictly for milk. It is no wonder why Felicity produces some seriously top quality milk!

Kerry cows are favorable in Canada because of their ability to survive harsh climates, their ability to produce large quantities of that high-quality milk while eating modest amounts of forage and also for their longevity. Felicity is extra special for us because I make my own cheese and Kerry milk is especially great for cheese-making.

Canadienne Cattle

We can’t talk about heritage breeds that are important to Canada without talking about the Canadienne! These cattle are the only breed of dairy cattle that were actually developed in Canada. Dating all the way back to the 16th century, these cattle were bred by French settlers  from the different breeds they brought with them from Normandy and Brittany. Until the 19th century, these were the most common cattle in Canada but sadly they are now quite rare. They are known for their excellent grazing-ability and their small size, as well as they’re high quality milk with notably high protein content.

Shropshire Sheep

We started with three sheep, Ma and her two lambs. In November, we welcomed a ram to join the family and now we are officially breeding Shropshire sheep! Shropshire sheep are a very old  breed from England that were introduced to Canada in the 1800s. They were one of Canada’s most popular breeds of sheep for almost a century but are now on the rare breeds list. Shropshire are great because they are docile, easy to manage, and they make great mothers. They also make good meat and produce high quality wool. They also happen to be super cute!