Old-fashioned farming

9:41am Friday 13th June 2008

Dropswell Farm sells meat thats farmed the traditional way, not cheap but very, very tasty.

IT was the health warning on the haggis that cheered us up. Underneath the directions to Fry in good bacon fat it added Not good for the heart, but good for the soul. Exactly.

Anyway, we compromised and grilled it with a tomato C not so bad for the heart and still definitely good for the soul.

Dropswell Farm Shop does things differently.

Jill and Trevor Christian farm 220 acres near Trimdon, rearing cattle and pigs and growing cereals.

Six years ago they started selling their own beef. Now the newly extended farm shop sells a full range of traditionally reared meat, all of it produced either on the farm or within a few miles of it.

We know exactly where everything comes from, says butcher Paul Craddock who runs the shop. Hes in his element, had been a butcher elsewhere, but was disillusioned. I didnt like the way butchering was going. Didnt like the way meat was produced or the way it was sold. Hes a local lad, came to the farm to sell some game and jumped at the chance to work with Jill and Trevor.

At Dropswell, he says, they do things properly. Everythings slowly reared, nothings forced. The meat is left to mature for a decent time. The animals are treated right from start to finish. Its not cheap meat, but its good.

Most of the beef in the shop comes from the farm. The rest comes from next door C Catlaw Farm, Wingate. Lamb comes from Trimdon or Spennymoor and they also sell mutton, which is enjoying a revival as people realise what theyve been missing. And oxtails too.

Their pork comes mainly from saddleback pigs or Gloucester old spots raised on the farm. But we also buy a few pigs in, mainly from hobby farmers, who raise just one or two them in the old fashioned way.

They also sell game, much of it shot locally, especially the pigeons and the wild rabbits. Both have proved very popular, specially the pigeon breasts wrapped in bacon or stuffed with other meats.

I like clarting on, coming up with new ideas, says Paul.

The butcherys at the back of the shop, all open so people can see just whats going on. Weve nothing to hide at all.

They cure their own ham and bacon, make their own sausages, haggis and black pudding and a whole range of pies, all of which would be hard to beat for flavour. They also stock a small range of vegetables from Hutton Henry and a few other local products such as Archers ice cream. And they are hoping to have some sweet pies available soon.

Their customers come from a wide area: A lot are local, of course, or come across from Hartlepool, but we get a lot of people from way up and down the A19, which makes it our favourite road. We even have some people from Somerset who come up to the area regularly and go back with shedloads of stuff, he says.

The shop is literally in the farm yard C watch out for hens roaming. And as you come up the long drive you pass a field with some Ryland sheep C a breed noted for its wool, and two remarkable looking pigs.

These are Spud and Squeak, New Zealand Kune Kunes. We are not sure what their purpose in life is, say the Christians, but they are very friendly and, rest assured, not destined for the shop.

Some animals you just know too well to eat.

ö Dropswell Farm Shop, TS29 6NL, one mile east of Trimdon village.

Tel: 01429-880661, www.dropswellfarmshop.co.uk Open Mon-Fri 8.30-4.30; Sat 8.30-3.30.

Mail order available.

PS ON MONEY SAVING

* WHEN it comes to saving petrol, Wendy Acres of Darlington recommends turning off the engine at traffic lights and also putting on your seat belt before you switch on the engine. Only saves a tiny amount, but over the year it mounts up.

If You want sweet feet

WE like the lateral thinking from the people at Brasher socks.

Their All Terrain socks were originally designed for people who spend their days tramping the hills, moors and mountains in boots and sensible clothing. But they are also, say Brasher, ideal for festival goers, who will spend their days trudging through the mud before returning to their tents. And, though Brasher are too couth to say so directly, unlikely to change their socks for the entire weekend. Whod want to share a tent with those feet?

Their All Terrain socks will, they say, make life smell a little sweeter as the Coolmax fibres wick moisture away from the feet while X Static yarns inhibit the growth of bacteria.

So we gave a pair to the lad with the smelliest feet we know and sent him for a weekend camping in the Lakes, during which time the socks never left his feet.

He came home, collapsed on the sofa, kicked off his trainers and instead of fainting from the stink of dead rats, we hardly noticed a thing. Result.

* www.brasher.co.uk

Bouquets of the Week

Dear Sharon,

PLEASE will you thank a lovely lady called Margaret Brown from Durham who helped make my parents wedding anniversary very special.

At the last minute we had to change the venue for the ruby wedding celebrations and had a room which was nice and big but also a bit bleak and bare. I was at a loss about how to cheer it up. Margaret had already offered to do the flowers on the tables for me, but she really went to town. As well as the table flowers, she did huge arrangements of greenery and ribbons around the room. Her husband Dennis also brought in some pots of the miniature topiary trees from their own garden. The final effect was brilliant and really added to the sense of occasion. Everyone commented on what a lovely setting it was.

Sue Jennings, Stockton.

ö Many congratulations to Sues parents on their ruby wedding and well done to Margaret Brown for her part in making it look good. As Margaret already has a garden full of flowers, were sending her a box of special chocs for her generosity and inventiveness.

LEANNE ODonell left her mobile on the bus when she was coming back from Newcastle last month. Luckily it was found by Pam Chambers of Bishop Auckland, who rang Home from Leannes phone, spoke to Leannes mum, Teresa, and when she realised that where they lived wasnt far from where she worked, dropped it in the next day. She wouldnt take anything for her trouble and wouldnt tell me where she lived so we could write and thank her properly, so this was the next best thing I could think of, says Teresa. As Leanne seems to spend half her life on the phone, you can imagine we were very grateful.

Frances Hall, of Sunnybrow, had a fall in South Church Road, Bishop Auckland, on Tuesday, May 27. A woman in a white van kindly stopped and took her to hospital. Another woman, in a red car, also offered assistance.

I did thank them at the time, says Mrs Hall, but I didnt get their names because I was fading away. But Im very grateful and would like to thank them, as they were both Good Samaritans. And we hope Mrs Hall, whose arm is in a sling, is now fully recovered.

And we had a lovely email from a lady called Jackie who says that: In the past I have been guilty of being mum and doing too much for my teenage children and they have been equally guilty of letting me. However, when I really needed help last week after I fell and badly sprained my ankle, they really came through with flying colours when I was marooned on the sofa, so I would like to say a big thank you. When we asked the teenagers names, Jackie decided it would all be an embarrassment too far for them C but you know who you are and your mum thinks youre great. So there.

* If you want to say a public thank you for good service or to a helpful neighbour, kind stranger or efficient business, then just write with all the details to Sharon Griffiths, Bouquet of the Week, The Northern Echo, Priestgate, Darlington, DL1 1NF. Or email sjgriff111@aol.com. Each week the person nominated in our main letter gets a real bouquet of flowers or a box of posh chocs.