Efficient grassland management and customer connection prove key for developing direct-to-consumer meat business Rhydri Fresh

Neil Johnson and family operate a grassland farm on the outskirts of both Cardiff and Caerphilly, with the vision for their cattle and sheep enterprise to be healthy and productive, not just in economic terms, but in both ecological and social aspects too. Cae Bach is run as a closed herd and grass fed outdoors all year, with strict planned grazing to maximise animal health and production, soil and sward health, along with other benefits to the ecosystem. 

It is Neil who primarily operates the farm, raising and selling native-bred beef and lamb locally, breeding pedigree cattle stock and helping the landowner to sell harvested fodder. Neil says: “We manage 200 acres of farmland for the owners, and we receive grazing and winter feed in return. It’s all pasture, including about 30 acres of native woodland, and we are almost halfway through a five-year contract with ‘Ruumi’, a non-profit organisation funding farmers with carbon credits based on mob/rotational grazing techniques and herbal ley establishment. The contract is covering reseeding costs and increasing grass production and sward health.”

Harvested forage keeps the cattle over winter, with the surplus sold locally

The family’s venture into selling their pasture-fed beef and lamb direct-to-consumer has been a successful one, with Neil seeing great potential for the future: “The meat business [Rhydri Fresh] is where we see the greatest growth for the business; over and over again the enthusiasm from customers is because they say the meat is exceptional in flavour and tenderness, and local! Being close in proximity to both Cardiff and Caerphilly gives us a strong market for selling meat, and it allows us to interact directly with our customers in a really positive and personal way in the local population. Social media has helped us to connect with consumers and the wider public in a fun and informative way, building bridges between town and country.”

Alongside the cattle, the farm runs 30 Hill Radnor and Welsh Black Mountain breeding ewes producing lambs to sell as meat, along with 100-150 native breed store lambs purchased each year for fattening. The Traditional Hereford cattle also get taken to a couple of shows each year, which Neil says has brought them the most help and advice from other breeders: “Showing the cattle has been invaluable and enjoyable for us as newcomers to livestock breeding. We are a busy, large family which the Club has welcomed warmly!”

Neil’s herd includes his pedigree Original Population Herefords and a handful of Welsh Black cows for producing Hereford-cross finishing cattle, plus a few non-Traditional Hereford cows which are property of the landowner. Neil says: “Our foundation pedigree stock were originally purchased from family Andrew and Gill Crow, with the Plum, Laura and Amorous female lines dominating our breeding. We find they have proven solid cows which can weather the challenging Welsh winter climate and produce healthy stock off grazing that can give a lovely carcass for the butcher, or scrub up nicely for a show. They are also gentle cattle which are a pleasure to handle and move on the farm.

The herd is content grazing the last bits of grass in February 2025

“We also really see a difference in the overall better condition of the OP Herefords over the non-Traditional Hereford cows, especially in the latter part of the winter. Using a Traditional Hereford bull has helped improve some of the landowner’s calves, and using the Hereford bull on the Welsh Black females has produced cross bred calves which we feel bring a greater depth of body to the slightly larger Welsh Black breeding, and capitalises from the good mothering of the Welsh black cows. Our first carcass from a cross bred beast gave some lovely meat, with very good feedback received from customers.”

As well as developing meat sales for the business, Neil also has a keen eye on the pedigree side to ensure that the herd is producing desirable breeding stock, and takes great pride in their show successes. He says: “We recently sought to introduce different genetics into the herd by using AI with two of our Amorous cows, and we now have two young bulls by the 1976-born sire Trewarren Britannic. At the Carmarthen multibreed Christmas calf show last year, we had the pleasure of meeting the son of the last owner of the Trewarren herd which was long ago dispersed, and he was overjoyed to see progeny of a bull from the Trewarren herd. At our most recent appearance at the Royal Three Counties Show in 2024, we achieved the Reserve Champion Female with homebred Caebach Unity Amorous, and 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places out of 8 young heifers bred from the Caebach herd, two of which were exhibited by their new owners.

Caebach Unity Amorous

“Last summer we – along with Andrew and Gill Crow – hosted THBC members on the farm for the summer Club meeting and herd visit, which was a real pleasure. We were also recently treated to a visit from Argentinian breeders Fernando Hernandez and his two daughters, who seemed to have a strong appreciation for Traditional Hereford breeding, and it was great to get some more understanding from a very different perspective. We are looking forward to another year of breeding and showing as calving season comes closer, and we expect a few animals will be available for buyers.”

Neil (right) chats with Clive Davies about the Caebach herd at the THBC Summer Herd Visit in June 2024

Neil, Rebecca, and their children have certainly gotten involved with Club activities at every opportunity, with admirable enthusiasm to learn and to share their knowledge with other members, and we’re grateful to them for taking the time to tell us about their developing business! 

To keep up with Rhydri Fresh, visit www.rhydri-fresh.com or follow the herd on Facebook @rydrifresh and Instagram @rhydri.fresh