Inspiration

Organic milk

The Coombe Farm Organic Milk Scheme guarantees top quality milk and a fair deal for farmers.

Waitrose Organic milk

Waitrose only sources its organic milk from carefully selected family farms in Somerset, Dorset & Devon, all lying within an average of 30 miles of Coombe Farm, where our organic milk is processed, which also reduces the carbon footprint.

All of our farmers 'work in balance with nature' to produce organic milk to the best in farming practice for animal welfare, whilst protecting the environment, in return for a fair price for their milk.

What is organic farming?

'Working in balance with nature' organic farming is a purely natural form of agriculture and some might say returning to traditional methods.

Our organic dairy farms maintain the highest levels of animal welfare and routinely avoid the use of antibiotics. They grow their crops without the use of synthetic inputs such as fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides; this is believed to produce a more natural food which is free of chemical residues...

With organic systems the whole farm is viewed as a complete ecosystem that co-exists with nature and natural cycles, because it is understood there is a need to work in harmony to produce good food from a biologically healthy soil. Soil fertility is maintained through the use of composted manures and crop rotation with nitrogen fixing crops; this rotation also helps to control weeds and disease.

This ultimately moves up the food chain giving more biodiversity to the flora and fauna found on the farm and the positive effect on the environment reaches far beyond the farm gate.

Why is organic milk different?

Organic cows graze on pastures which have not been treated with synthetic chemicals or fertilisers.

These hand picked local farmers are specifically chosen as they demonstrate best practice in all aspects of organic milk production, so what does this mean?

Although all milk is good for you, based on the principles, organic farming maintains healthy soils, produces healthy animals which in turn produces healthy food.

The clover which is contained in the pastures can capture the naturally occurring nitrogen in the atmosphere and convert it into nutritionally rich plant food, rather than relying on synthetic fertilisers.

Organic cows eat a higher proportion of grazed grass which allows for a traditional diet. Any additional feed the cows require especially during the winter must be GM free.

The overall objective is to create a supply of organic milk that meets and exceeds customers' expectation for quality organic milk. The milk supply group is an industry standard setter delivering the requirements for quality milk production whilst also providing tangible benefits to the dairy producers.

What about animal welfare standards?

Animal welfare is the very cornerstone of organic milk production for our organic farmers.

Healthy farm animals are usually content and productive, so we work hard to achieve this.

The cows and calves graze freely on clover rich pastures and during the winter are housed with plenty of room to express their natural behaviour.

The breeds of cows used by our farmers are chosen to suit organic farming methods rather than to maximise milk production.

We work closely with our farmers to ensure they are always looking at ways of improving the cow's quality of life...

All of our supplying farms are registered and monitored by the RSPCA under the Freedom Foods Scheme.

All dairy cows have to be treated with due care under the 'Five Freedoms', however, organic farming practices demonstrate greater attention to detail.

Freedom from hunger and thirst ~ due to the limited range of food allowed greater attention has to be put into creating a balanced diet.

Freedom from discomfort ~ all of the cows rest on natural materials when they need shelter during the winter.

Freedom from pain, injury and distress ~ because organic farmers do not routinely use antibiotics, disease prevention relies on first class stockmanship and a knowledge of their individual cows behaviour (understanding when then cow has an off day!)

Freedom to express normal behaviour ~ by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and the company of their own kind. All of our organic cows have to have 0.66 acre to graze during the grass growing season, which is more than most non-organic cows. When housed during the winter months, they have to have a minimum of 10.5 m2 per cow, which allows them to socialise with their herd mates.

Freedom from fear and distress ~ with access to more natural grazing and space, our cows are allowed to express more traditional behaviour such as forming closer natural associations and loafing about.

How does Waitrose organic milk help the environment?

Organic farming practices promote biodiversity (a mixture of species of plants and animals). The skill of the farmer is to manage the balance of the required farmed crops and the diverse species which could well be weeds. Diverse plant life will support more diverse animal life.

Great care is taken, whether it is through food production or farming, to:

maintain healthy soils
prevent pollution
be economic with resources
enhance the natural habitat for the benefit of wildlife
maintain the rich rural landscape

All of our farms are involved in the Organic Entry Level Scheme which maintains specific natural features to the individual farm to give conservational and environmental advantages such as, hedges, ancient woodlands, rivers, field margins, ponds, ditches & streams, beetle banks and wildlife corridors.

Our farms regularly use organisations such as Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (this link opens a new window) for independent advice on environmental and conservation issues.

Does Waitrose know all the organic farmers?

Yes we do, Waitrose puts a 'face to our farmer' and with this unique partnership we have with Coombe Farm, our dairy processor, we know all of our organic farmers.

As we have grown, they have grown with us.