18/11/12 Young bulls bred for rose veal at Norbury Farm this morning. Most British bull calves are shot within hours of being born. But these are s
18/11/12 Young bulls bred for rose veal at Norbury Farm this morning. Most British bull calves are shot within hours of being born. But these are some of the lucky few now being spared and bred for rose veal. A surge in demand for the meat is enabling farms, like this one in Derbyshire, to sell the meat from young bulls direct to restaurants and farm shops. Michele and Andy Robinson run Norbury Farm, a dairy farm, near Ashbourne. They began sparing the newborn cattle a few years ago selling them for beef. ÒDairy cattle donÕt have big muscles and arenÕt the best for beef,Ó said Michele. ÒIt was a heartbreaking waste destroying the baby male bulls so we had to do something. But the feed costs of raising an adult animal for beef meant we often made a loss on each one C thatÕs why so many still get slaughtered at birthÓ, she added. Veal was banned from the cruel crate production in the UK in 1990. Historically veal meat was white and the farming was linked to many animal welfare issues as the calves were kept in the dark in tiny pens. But rose veal is produced from young, eight-month-old animals that are well cared for. ÒRose veal is still a tiny percentage of the meat sold in Britain but the demand is growing rapidly, so we thought weÕd give it a go. ÒWeÕre selling to pubs and restaurants in the area C we cut out the middle man and are selling rose veal fillet steaks for about £30 per kilo. The prices go down depending on the cut C mince is £8 per kilo. ÒSome branches of Waitrose are already stocking rose veal and I believe Tesco will have it on their shelves from next year. ÒThereÕs a peak in demand for dairy produce C milk, cream and cheese at Christmas. Cows that have just calved give the best quality milk so there are lots of calves around right now. ItÕs great that these little fellas will get to see Christmas and plenty more beautiful frosty mornings like this,Ó said Michele. Ends. All Rights Reserved - F Stop Press. Tel: +44
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Keywords: ashbourne, cattle, cows, dairy, derbyshire, farm, farming, fsp, fstoppress, norbury, picture, pin, press, rose, standalone, stop, veal
