All kinds of everything at Castlemine Farm
Most of their cattle are Angus, with some Limousin, Charolais and Hereford. “We rear 80 to 100 cattle for meat every year. We have 60 cows, and we buy in year-old animals as well. They are all sold through the farm shop, the website and at the markets in Moycullen and Galway city”.
Along with the Angus cattle, the Allens carry up to 400 Suffolk and Texel lambs, and a similar number of bronze and white turkeys for Christmas.
“We also have free-range Saddleback, Tamworth and Gloucester Old Spot pigs. We are trying to finish four or five a week, but it’s hard to keep up with demand”.
Then there’s poultry, eggs and seasonal vegetables — they offer a complete primary food package. For feeding their livestock, 50 acres of barley and oats, and with 12 acres of winter wheat, are grown on the farm. Last December, the Allens relocated their farm shop to Roscommon town, just as the weather turned bad. “We were lucky with the new unit, as it would have been very difficult for customers to get up to the farm.”
Customers are communicated with through a very busy website, which allows for web sales of meat and curing packs, and which also features Derek Allen’s farm diary. The Allens also use Facebook and Twitter, and a YouTube channel to show customers things like “just how free-range our pigs are”.
