Francesca Cooper

Isle of Wight

Agroecological (mixed)

REGENERATIVE BEEF, OUTDOOR PIGS, PASTURED LAYING HENS, ISLE OF WIGHT, HAMPSHIRE: Francesca trained as a rural surveyor but in 2021 decided to change course and become a livestock farmer on the Isle of Wight, where she was raised. With her childhood friend and business partner Hollie Fallick she now farms 500 acres (202 hectares) of permanent pasture on the 900-acre (364-hectare) Nunwell Estate which has been owned by the Oglander family for over 900 years.

In addition, the pair graze their cattle on around 400 acres (162 hectares) for the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, moving them on every few days to enhance its biodiversity. “We are keen to show that land can work for nature while also producing nutrient dense food,” says Francesca.

Francesca and Hollie keep a range of livestock, including around 100 Belted Galloway cattle, and native breed pigs. They also have approximately 300 free-range hens which they keep in mobile coops, or ‘eggmobiles’, which enable them to feed off the pests that the cattle leave behind, and deposit manure which helps enrich the soils.

The meat and eggs are sold directly to local customers through an online farmshop and delivery service. Some customers subscribe to weekly and monthly meat boxes. As the farm expands, Francesca and Hollie also plan to sell whole carcasses to local restaurants.

Despite the challenge of running a farm while caring for two young children, Francesca is enjoying life as a farmer. “I absolutely love stewarding and improving the land we manage, creating space for nature, building soil, and raising nutrient-dense food for local people,” she says.

On the downside, she believes farming is a greatly undervalued profession and that people have very little knowledge of where their food comes from. To counter this, Francesca shares her journey on social media, warts and all, and regularly invites customers and local people onto the farm for tours.

She is also passionate about bridging the gap of information between farmers and consumers, and also between farmers and environmentalists and conservationists.”

Contact Francesca

Francesca loves cooking and developing recipes with her meat and local vegetables. She is also a keen gardener and runner

Talking Point

“Before starting our own farm both Hollie and I spent many years looking into ways to make our diets sustainable. This included following vegan and vegetarian diets in a bid to support animal welfare and reduce meat’s impact on the planet. This diet had a significant negative effect on my health, so we looked further into ethical meat production. Through extensive research it become clear that meat, if produced well using few inputs and managing the land regeneratively, could have a positive impact on planet, soils and human health. The benefits of meat produced in this way are rarely stated in the media, but through our research and hands on experience we are confident about changing the story about the place of high quality meat in our diets.”

Declared interests

None.

Happy to talk about

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