Our Story
The Belcher family has been Farming in Great Dalby since 1780.
We are the fourth generation here at March House Farm, it has always been a mixed farm, breeding quality, traditional, Native livestock and crops.
In 1999 Our Journey into butchery and retail started when we took our first selection of Home reared Lamb, Beef & Pork and set up a market stall at Camden Lock in London.
Soon we had progressed to several markets throughout north and west London.
The gamble had paid off…we were selling our home reared quality produce!
In 2005 we built our own on-site Butchery, here at the farm and were quickly selling to local customers.
In 2017 came the development of the Farm Shop, this was a huge move for us, to move into a retail shop. The demand was there, and we have not looked back.
In 2018 we opened the café to showcase our produce and continue the development of quality food at March House Farm.
We are proud to rear and produce the Beef, Lamb & Pork sold in our Farm Shop, from our own farms in Great Dalby & Little Dalby.
All Butchered here on site by our team of Master Butchers.
Our Core Values
We have a straightforward, simple & honest approach to food and farming, we are not driven by trends but by tradition & provenance
Our counter, café, markets stalls & Homemade goods will always provide you with our home reared Beef, Lamb & Pork.
We farm in a responsible manner, caring for our livestock, giving them the respect they deserve. Whilst working in harmony with our Land, Soils and The Environment
All our animals are Traditional Native breeds; they thrive on our grass pastures and mature slowly. This gives us the quality and flavour you have come to know in our meats
Our Livestock
Cattle
We currently run 6 Beef Shorthorn bulls, 2 South Devon bulls and 2 Aberdeen Angus bulls in our herd.
These are Pure bred and Registered to ensure we are breeding the best qualities and attributes of all these different breeds into our herd.
The females are a mix of Beef Shorthorn, South Devon and Aberdeen Angus cross cows.
We stick to Native breeds that can adapt well to the environment, are low input and thrive on grass. These breeds have developed over the centuries in the United Kingdom and are used to the conditions and climate, in turn they convert pasture well, can keep warm and adapt. This is important when you consider their suitability to be low input and hardy, so not wasting energy on staying warm for example. All these factors have an impact on the quality of the meat.
We cross breed the cattle to get the best qualities of each breed across the whole Herd.
Beef Shorthorn
Originated in North East England -The modern-day Durham ox. A hardy traditional breed with ease of calving, excellent maternal traits, milk and growth from grass.
Slower growing, the Shorthorn renowned for its texture and flavour, develops a marbling that delivers greater depth of flavour and tenderness to the beef.
South Devon
Originated in South West England – The Gentle Giant.
The largest of the British native breeds, incredibly quiet, rich creamy milk, great maternal qualities, fast growing calves off mothers’ milk & grass.
Well known for its tenderness and marbling, beef packed full of flavour and size.
Aberdeen Angus
Originated in North East Scotland
Showcasing versatility, they can thrive in a variety of conditions and converts pasture to a high-quality product, a medium size cow that produces great calves.
Renowned for its marbling qualities, tenderness and flavoursome beef.
Sheep
We cross breed the Masham and Scotch Mule Ewes with a Suffolk Ram to produce superior quality lambs with an abundance of tender succulent meat in the right places.
Masham Sheep
Originated in Northern England.
The Masham Ewe is hardy and highly prolific, with excellent milk and mothering abilities. They produce great lambs from grass.
Their wool, traditionally, is also highly sort after for spinning.
Scotch Mules
Originated in the Scottish Borders
The Scotch Mule is an intentionally crossbred sheep out of Scottish Blackface ewe and sired by a Bluefaced Leicester Ram.
In the UK, Mule ewes are the backbone of the commercial sheep industry, and the Scotch Mule is the most popular.
With great maternal instincts they are prolific breeders which need little intervention, again, they produce great Lambs when crossed with the Suffolk Ram and grow best off grass.
Suffolk Rams
Originated in Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk.
They are the flagship bred in the British Isles and recognised as the leading terminal sire for growth and producing exceptional Lambs from grass.
Pigs
We use Gloucester Old Spot, Large white, Tamworth and Berkshires to create Great Pork that has a well-balanced fat to meat ratio that gives quality and flavour in the eating.
Our pigs farrow in arks and loose straw housing with plenty of room.
All our pigs are reared on deep straw beds, in open airy light yards.
The Gloucestershire Old Spot
Originated around the Berkeley Vale on the southern shore of the River Severn.
This is a hardy breed able to cope with most conditions, known for having good maternal instincts and a very gentle nature.
The Gloucestershire Old Spot is renowned for the quality of its meat and is a dual-purpose breed suitable for pork or bacon production.
The Large White
Originated in Yorkshire.
This is a large pig with a lean body renowned for its bacon and little fat.
Widely used in cross breeding, it is an exceedingly popular commercial breed.
The Tamworth
Originated in Tamworth, Staffordshire
Considered one of Britain’s oldest pig breeds, its Known for producing fine bacon.
The Tamworth is a slow maturing breed but is a good dual purpose pig.
The Berkshire
Originated in Reading
This is a medium sized pig and is the oldest recorded breed in Britain. It is known for its good maternal instincts and docile nature.
The Berkshire is an early maturing pork producer and the meat is renowned for its flavour.
