Along the way we have had to pick up various skills and gain knowledge, especially around the rules and regulations that apply to various aspects of the farm. Below is a set of files that we thought might be helpful to other new farmers and smallholders going through the same process we did. Feel free to adapt for your personal use. If you are interested in reproducing these elsewhere please contact us first.
Food safety management plan
Required as part of setting up and running a food business this plan covers the essential aspects of our operation. It is suitable for businesses that do not actually prepare or handle the food - we receive packaged meat back from the butcher and simply freeze and deliver to customers.
Flock health plan
A copy of our month-by-month plan covering all routine aspects of sheep management. This will need adaptation to your own circumstances and risks and we recommend that you discuss it with your vet too.
Lambing record sheet
A double-sided record sheet for each in-lamb ewe to cover the lambing period. Prompts us to record the data that inform care at the time and future planning. With space for up to three lambs per ewe and listing tasks in the order they generally occur this has been an invaluable tool to jog tired brains in the early hours.
Transporting animals
A summary of the regulations that often cause confusion over whether formal certificates of competence or transporter authorisations are needed for small-scale producers. We firmly believe that there is no good reason that animals should not have the same welfare needs met regardless of who is transporting them and for what reason.
Product inventory and invoicing workbook
An Excel workbook that allows you to quickly and easily set up an inventory of products for sale and generate invoices as they are sold. Also provides category-specific sales reports that allow at-a-glance viewing of progress. Product types and descriptions can be personalised in a variety of ways, as can the invoice template.