Lachlan and Lauren began their free range pig farm Bundarra Berkshires in 2010 when Lauren saw the call for locally grown, ethically raised heritage pork. The idea for a 'paddock full of happy pigs' grew and fostered the way for handcrafted charcuterie and smallgoods. The little on-farm butchery and store was established in 2013 and grew until its walls could carry them no longer. In March 2020, the butchery and store was moved into nearby Barham as the Little Pork Deli and Butchery. They now farm 200 acres and run 80 sows, totally free range and regeneratively.
In late 2022, Lauren and Lachlan started sourcing heritage Sommerlad chicks from Milking Yard farms in Trentham. The chickens and cockerels are grown out freely roaming in the paddock for around 120 days in total, all under the watchful eye of 'Clover' the Maremma guardian dog. The farm also supports 1200 laying chooks for delicious eggs and beef from retired dairy cows which we dry age the meat for up to 6 months.
The produce from 'Bundarra' is available to purchase directly from the Butchery in Barham, via home delivery for our monthly CSA mixed boxes, online, through the Fresho platform for wholesale customers, at the Castlemaine farmers' market, and selected retail outlets. You can also dine on the goods at some of Australia's best restaurants including Firedoor, the Surly Goat, Bar Merenda and Society.
We chose not to farm conventionally and use minimal inputs, instead we use homemade biological preparations on the soil, avoiding antibiotics and chemicals. We have adapted regenerative practices where we rest the land to rejuvenate the grasses that naturally grow here, protecting our soil as well as covering them with cover crops that also feed the soil microbes and roots. We harrow pig manure to spread into the soil, nurture native grasses and perennial pastures and never use ploughs to work the soil.
Our vision for our farm is a shaded place, with soft soils, biodiversity of flora and fauna that provides us with healthy delicious food.
This is what we call a natural environment.
Our pigs and chickens are free to range, eat insects, dig wallows, make nests and run around in the sun and rain.
The pigs do a fine job of fertilising and turning the soil, the chickens leave behind finely scratched soil and lovely organic matter, eggs and feathers, as well as grounding us to earth. They also pick through cow manure grabbing bugs and helping the manure into the soil.
You can visit our farm by appointment or volunteer your time to collect eggs, help at the butchery or plant trees in exchange for produce, we'd love to hear from you. We also hold open days for the public which we publicise on our website and social media. You will also find us on the Backroads Trail. Come and get grounded!
Farming For Good.
Berkshire pigs are an English heritage breed, also known as Kurobota pork and are the stars of our business! The breed produces some of the best quality pork in the world due to the excellent meat-to-fat ratio, marbling and slow growth which results in superior texture, flavour and tenderness. We also chose the breed because of the heritage classification, docility, hardiness to roaming the paddocks and because they are wonderful animals. We have 80 breeding sows spread over two farms which have two litters of around 8 piglets a year.
We love our pigs and we make sure their life on the farm is as natural and stress free as possible and truly free range to roam and graze.
Sommerlad chickens have been bred by Michael Sommerlad. Sommerlad chose genetics from Aussie game, Light Sussex and Plymouth Rock to produce a fabulous table bird, specifically bred for Aussie conditions. We source our chicks from Bruce at Milking Yard Farm in Trentham who continues to diversify the breed for us. The chickens add biodiversity to our farm and lovely organic matter to our soil. The breed itself also is important for biodiversity, and we are very proud to be able to grow these birds for our customers. The meat quality is outstanding, flavoursome, textural and dark meat with delicious yellow fat that keeps the meat from drying out. We find that the cooking quality is more forgiving than commercial chicken breeds and the bones are strong which allow the chickens to move freely around the paddocks as they grow.
1 small serving (113g) pork = 1.13kg of carbon. 1 tree can offset up to 21kg of carbon per year, which is over 18 serves. On average our customers purchase 6 serves/order.
So we decided to plant one tree for every order. That’s enough to offset 3 times the amount of carbon we produce. Thinking about our planet now and for its future.
In addition we also measure and test our soil annually for carbon, organic matter and available nutrients so we can help lock in some valuable carbon from the atmosphere and grow better food.
Life is about balance. So meat should be eaten mindfully, as part of a balanced plant-filled diet.
That is why we support Meat-free Mondays.
Ethical meat can be hard to find, with only 5% of all pork producers and 18% chicken produced in Australia is free-range.
That’s why we offer subscriptions delivering pork, chicken and eggs right to your door.
That not everyone can raise their own food.
So we are here to ethically raise your produce for you, share skills, and give you direct access to regeneratively grown food from our farm to your plate.
The pork produced by our pigs is simply incredible. The flesh is darker in colour and has a firm feel, tastes sweet, rich and has a clean aftertaste, soft fat and great marbling which makes for great flavour and juiciness. This is the key ingredient for great charcuterie and smallgoods and why our handcrafted products require not much more than salt and time to be so delicious. We also produce smoked chicken pieces, which are succulent and a delicious snack for picnics or using in cooking.
We also dry age cuts to order for the next level experience. This is what real grass fed pork should taste like: no crap, no moisture infusions, no hormones and no antibiotics, just real, natural delicious pastured pork. The pork and charcuterie has been branded gold at both the Australian Food Awards and the Sydney Royal Fine Food Awards and a State Winner in the delicious. Produce Awards.
