Poppies Farm

Poppies Farm Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Poppies Farm, Farm, Hurst.

A local farm based in Hurst | Est 2005 🌾
Alternative provision for children and young people
Producer of top quality dexter beef, british lop pork and native lamb 🥩

05/06/2026

🥩 Why does our meat taste different?

Joanna talks about one of the biggest differences between the meat we produce here at Poppies Farm and what you might find elsewhere... time. 🌿

Our animals are grown slowly and traditionally, allowing them to mature at the rate nature intended rather than being pushed for rapid growth.

When animals are grown very quickly, muscles don’t always have the same opportunity to develop and mature fully. By giving our animals time, we allow flavour to develop naturally, resulting in meat with real depth and character.

We don’t force growth. We don’t rush the process. We simply give our animals the time they need. 💛

A great example of this is our sheep. We produce hogget, which sits between lamb and mutton.

🐑 Lamb is under 1 year old
🐑 Hogget is typically 1-2 years old
🐑 Mutton is generally over 3 years old

That extra time allows the meat to develop a richer flavour while still remaining tender. It’s not about making animals grow faster… it’s about letting them grow at the pace they’re meant to.

The result is quality, flavourful meat from native and traditional breeds, reared with high welfare and high herd health standards every step of the way.

Because sometimes the best ingredient is simply time. 🌱

NativeBreeds RareBreeds LocalProduce SupportLocal

02/06/2026

🐷 Meet Betsy... one of the sweetest pigs on the farm 💛

Betsy has always been a lovely pig, although she may have had a slight issue when it comes to sharing food... 😅

Since Lou Lou has gone off to have her piglets, Betsy seems to have lost a little bit of weight. Coincidence? We’re not so sure. Let’s just say she was always very helpful when it came to making sure Lou Lou’s food didn’t go to waste.

The interesting thing is that Betsy should technically be pregnant too. The problem is... we’re struggling to work out whether she’s expecting piglets or whether she’s simply been enjoying the catering a little too much 🙈

No fat shaming here of course!

So for now we’re playing the waiting game. One morning we may walk up to the pig pen and be greeted by a surprise litter of piglets... or we may not. Only time will tell! 🐽

During filming, Betsy also disturbed a rat, which sparked a conversation about one of the less glamorous sides of farming. With livestock, feed, bedding and plenty of places to hide, farms can provide the perfect environment for rodents, especially at this time of year. It’s something every farm has to manage carefully, and while it’s impossible to eliminate them completely, we work hard to keep numbers under control and protect both our animals and feed stores.

The reality of farming isn’t always cute lambs and piglets... but Betsy certainly helps make it more entertaining 😅🐷

WorkingFarm TheRealityOfFarming

31/05/2026

🐷💨 Piglet zoomies in full swing!

One minute they’re fast asleep in a piglet pile, the next they’re tearing around the pen at full speed as if they’ve got somewhere very important to be 😅

Piglets are incredibly playful animals, and all this running, jumping and chasing isn’t just fun to watch… it’s actually an important part of their development. Play helps them build strength, coordination and social bonds with their littermates.

Safe to say Lou Lou’s little ones have plenty of energy and are making the most of every minute of it 💛

We could honestly watch these little characters all day. Although we’re not entirely sure where they keep finding the energy... 🙈

NeverADullMoment

29/05/2026

🌿 Breakfast time at Poppies Farm 🌿

Joanna talks you through what goes into feeding the animals here at the farm… and we’re very lucky to work with some brilliant local businesses to help reduce waste while feeding our animals something they absolutely love 🐄🐑🐖

One thing we get is brewers grain, which is the leftover barley used in the brewing industry after making beer 🍺Mixed with things like hops, yeast, sugar and water during the brewing process, this is the by-product that then comes to us to feed the animals.

We’ve also teamed up with a local company in Reading called Nutri Seed , who provide us with their leftover pressed fruit and veg from juicing 🍎🥕🥒

Today’s mix looks like carrots, apples and cucumber… and honestly, EVERYONE on the farm goes mad for it 😅

It’s all part of making sure good food doesn’t go to waste while giving the animals lots of variety and nutrients in their diet.

And as you can probably hear in the background… breakfast time is everybody’s favourite part of the day 🙈

RareBreeds BreakfastTime

27/05/2026

☀️🐷 Hot weather at Poppies means one main concern… keeping everyone cool.

For pigs, it’s all about the wallowing 😅

Unlike dogs, pigs can’t pant to regulate their body temperature, so instead they cool themselves down by covering themselves in mud or water. As the water evaporates from their skin, it helps bring their temperature down — which is why you’ll often find Rosemary and KP fully embracing their own personal swimming pool in weather like this 🌿💦

And honestly… they seem pretty pleased with themselves about it too.

A little update on Lou Lou and her piglets 🐖Unfortunately we lost the smallest piglet of the bunch, as well as another one shortly after. It’s always sad, but sometimes these things do happen, especially with newborn piglets.

Because Lou Lou is feeding her babies, we don’t want her wallowing in muddy water as it can make her teats dirty, which wouldn’t be ideal for the piglets. So instead, we’ve been keeping her cool with regular misting and sprays of water throughout the day 💦

Some might say she’s receiving her own personal spa treatment…Do we reckon she’d give us a 5-star review? 😅

RareBreeds SummerOnTheFarm

23/05/2026

🐷 They’ve arrived!! 🐷

Lou Lou welcomed her piglets into the world at around 12am last night, and thankfully everything went really well 💛

We do have one little piglet that’s slightly weaker than the others, so we’re keeping a closer eye on them over these first few crucial days. But when we checked back in this morning, everyone was still doing well 🫶

The first few days with piglets are always the most nerve-wracking, as mum has to be very careful not to accidentally lay or stand on them. Thankfully, we have a setup in place designed to minimise the risks as much as possible while still keeping everyone comfortable and settled.

A total of 9 piglets is a fantastic number for a pig of Lou Lou’s age…. with 5 girls and 4 boys 🐽✨

We honestly couldn’t be prouder of her.
Well done Lou Lou, the best mumma around 💕

BritishFarming PigletSeason

21/05/2026

🐷 Any day now… little piglets pending at Poppies Farm 💛

Joanna is here with Lou Lou, our lovely British Lop, who is due to farrow very soon. Remember… pigs are pregnant for 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days 🐖

We know Lou Lou very well, and she definitely likes a little peace and quiet after becoming a mum, so we’ll be giving her a few days to settle in with her piglets before introducing them to visitors.

But don’t worry… once everyone is happy and settled, we’ll be launching some piglet experience sessions, so keep your eyes peeled for tickets 👀✨

Of course, no filming session at Poppies would be complete without an interruption from the donkeys 🙈
Charging around in the background like they’re starring in their own comedy sketch, trying to steal Lou Lou’s spotlight… although thankfully she didn’t seem too bothered 😅

We did warn you they’re the most mischievous animals on the farm.

And honestly… Lou Lou is definitely one of Joanna’s favourites, and we think you can probably see why 🫶🐷

BritishFarming ComingSoon

19/05/2026

🥩 A little more about the meat we produce here at Poppies Farm…

You’ll often hear us talk about our animals being native, minority or rare breeds… but why do we choose to rear them?

The simple answer is because many of these breeds no longer have a place in large-scale commercial farming. Modern systems are built around animals that grow very quickly and fit commercial demand, which means many traditional British breeds have slowly become less common over time.

As these are all native breeds, they are naturally suited to our climate, our land and, of course, our wonderful British weather 🌿

Most of the meat we produce is also slower grown, which means the animals are given more time to mature naturally. Slower growth often allows for better muscle development, better marbling and deeper flavour… producing meat with real character and quality.

For us, it’s about preserving these incredible breeds while producing honest, local food with high welfare and herd health standards at the centre of everything we do 💛

Supporting rare breeds helps keep them on our farms and part of Britain’s farming future 🐄🐑🐖

FarmToFork SupportLocal ConservationThroughFarming

14/05/2026

🐷 Osteopathy on pigs… now there’s something we never thought we’d be saying at Poppies Farm 😅

Rosemary has been with us for just over 6 years now and is becoming a lovely old lady. As she’s getting older, the team have been keeping a close eye on her comfort and mobility.

One thing we always look out for with pigs is changes in behaviour… pigs in significant pain will often become withdrawn or show signs of aggression. But Rosemary is still her usual calm, content and food-loving self 💛

Jo happened to mention Rosemary’s stiffness to a friend who works as an osteopath with horses and dogs, and the conversation quickly turned into… “Have you ever worked on a pig before?”

Well… now he has 🐷

He came out to see Rosemary yesterday and gave her some treatment, and already we can see she’s moving more freely than before. We’re hoping to see even more improvement over the next few days.

Definitely a new one for us at Poppies, but we’ll always try anything we can to keep our animals happy and comfortable as they get older 🌿

AnimalCare NeverADullMoment

12/05/2026

As we say goodbye to our Meet the Lambs event for 2026, we’d just like to say a huge thank you to everyone who came along to visit Poppies Farm and all of our animals this year 💛

We’ve loved welcoming so many of you onto the farm and seeing the excitement that lambing season brings each spring.

If you took any photos during your visit, we’d absolutely love to see them… feel free to share in the comments or make sure to tag us in your posts and stories 📸✨

And if you missed out this time, don’t worry! We also run farm visits during the school holidays, so if you’d like to come and experience your local working farm, feel free to email or call us on … 🌿

📞 07446 440426
📧[email protected]

Thank you again for supporting local farming 🐑

FamilyDaysOut SpringOnTheFarm SupportLocal WorkingFarm CountrysideLife

Address

Hurst

Telephone

07770883884

Website

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/meet-the-lambs-at-poppies-farm-tickets-1987038809569?sg=3df1f173

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Poppies Farm posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Poppies Farm:

Shortcuts

Share

Category