OPEN FARM WEEKEND AT GIBSIDE'S CUT THORN FARM, 8-9 JUNE! OPEN FARM WEEKEND AT GIBSIDE'S CUT THORN FA...

Cut Thorn Farm

Cut Thorn Farm is a tenanted farm located on the Gibside estate, on the outskirts of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England. It has been farmed by the Gibson family since 1948 and is currently managed by Alastair Gibson. At present, Cut Thorn Farm is comprised of 260 acres of land, all of which is down to grass. Of this, 141 acres are inside the Gibside estate and run by a Countryside Stewardship Scheme. Basically, this means that our animals are 'conservation lawnmowers' producing the correct environment for plants and animals to live in. We breed Beef Shorthorn Cattle and have 40 breeding females, plus followers. The market for our cattle is split between pedigree sales of heifers and bulls and meat production, which we hope will be marketed by ourselves in the future. Further, we keep sheep and have about 300 breeding ewes which are currently marketed for meat production; again this will hopefully be by ourselves in the future. Our vision is to breed top quality animals and produce high quality meat with low food miles, so essentially our customers would be 'eating the view'. Here at Cut Thorn we farm in a traditional manner, with high regard for animal welfare. We operate in a profitable and sustainable manner aided by our farm diversification projects, including West Wood Yurts and our Camping and Caravanning site. These elements of our farm business enhance our links to National Trust Gibside. To extend this relationship further in future, we hope to operate a more open farm to provide education and understanding of farming to visitors of National Trust Gibside. We aim to provide an environment where people of all ages can visit, enjoy and understand!  

In mid-January 2013, work began on-site for a new shed at Cut Thorn Farm. Work was expected to be completed by the end of February 2013, but due to delays caused by the weather, work was only completed at the end of April 2013. The new shed will allow farm manager Alastair to grow his herd
of Beef Shorthorn Cattle. For more information, keep an eye out for the Cutthorn Shorthorns website, coming soon! Alastair can be contacted on 07823 334910.