Campton's Cider Company

Campton’s Cider Orchards is a new farm bringing back an old style of farming.  Established by John Wernham and family in 2018, heritage varieties of apples and pears are being planted. So why sheep? For the mowing! Instead of running machinery to keep the grass under control, the sheep are four-legged grass cutters with the huge benefit of diversifying the farm. Our sheep have their lambs in May and June, as the grass starts growing. By the time the grass goes dormant for the winter and hay-feeding begins, the lambs are mature. While this makes for a lot more work with fencing, the sheep are raised without many of the high-intensity practices needed for livestock raised in full confinement, like growth hormones or regular antibiotic treatment. The sheep live as ruminant animals should, eating plants. The result is a farm that needs a lot less mowing to keep the young fruit trees growing well, with beneficial production of more food from the same land.