We farm 2500 acres regeneratively and organically, applying a holistic management and enterprise stacking approach. We currently grow organic crops including linseed, oilseed rape, borage, beans, gluten-free oats and heritage wheats/grain varieties and have 480 New Zealand Frisian Jersey crossbreed dairy cows and a mobile milking parlour, with us managing cows on the herbal ley grassland. This is run as a shared-farm partnership.

Our vision at Kingsclere is to regenerate the estate for a fertile future by encouraging the growth of a circular community – of growers, farmers, producers and local businesses. We have seen first-hand the outcome of commodity farming, and the benefits of working within a circular economy designing out waste and pollution, keeping materials in use for as long as possible, and regenerating natural systems. We actively look for new partners, through our annual Pitch Up! campaign, who want to be part of this exciting journey alongside us, as there is opportunity for 20-30 different enterprises to stack on top of what we are currently doing on the farm.

Session:

My transition from conventional broad acre farming to organic mixed farming ten years in...

Tim May has been on a ten-year journey moving from conventional arable to mixed farming using shared farming and utilising holistic management techniques to regenerate the land and the finances of Kingsclere Estates. Tim believes farming needs to be about creating communities, from the tiniest soil organisms all the way to bringing new start-ups into the business. The farm was growing only arable commodities but is shifting to organic gluten-free oats and more niche crops like heritage wheat/grain varieties. It is also now the home of a pasture-based dairy with a mobile milking parlour, The Roaming Smoker, a rabbit food company, a counselling practice, and a green burial site with many more to follow.