A family’s nearly 100-year tradition of dairy farming in North Shropshire is drawing to a close.
Three generations of work at Whattall Farm near Ellesmere are set to come to an end with a dispersal sale of a large portion of the Dilandy Holstein Herd.
The Shakeshaft family, who have farmed at Whattall for nearly a century, will sell most of their herd at a dispersal sale on Tuesday, September 23, at Shrewsbury Auction Centre.
Andrew Shakeshaft, who farms in partnership with his wife Helen, said: "I have enjoyed dairy farming very much for the past 40 years, but nothing lasts forever.
"This new opportunity has arisen and I am looking forward to it.
"Whilst I am still fit and healthy, I need to focus on something that is more manageable."
The decision comes as the tenancy of the nearly 300-acre Whattall Farm is ending soon.
The family plans to retain 80 youngstock for a smaller farming venture in English Frankton and intends to sell the remaining young animals over the coming months.
Mr Shakeshaft said the move was partly driven by the demanding nature of dairy farming.
He said: "With a dairy herd, you have always got to be milking twice a day and you don’t get much respite.
"By comparison, a beef herd is less demanding."
He also noted wider industry challenges.
He said: "The way forward for the dairy industry seems to be more cows per unit and labour working on a shift system.
"One of the biggest problems is getting staff to work on the smaller farms where the hours can be onerous."
The Dilandy Holstein Herd is Bluetongue vaccinated and will be licensed to sell to Welsh holdings.
The herd averages 11,466kg of milk with 4.40 per cent butterfat, 3.45 per cent protein and a 105 cell count.
The 60 milkers, giving 32kg daily, have just been classified for the first time, including 21 VG cows, seven VG heifers, 14 GP cows and 15 GP heifers.
Mr Shakeshaft’s grandfather, Hughie Edwards, began dairy farming at Whattall in 1929.
His mother, Isabelle, was born on the farm and married David Shakeshaft in 1959.
Following David’s death in 2011, Andrew and Helen continued to run the herd, which has earned numerous awards at Shrewsbury Auction Centre’s dairy shows.
Mr Shakeshaft said one of his greatest passions has been breeding top-quality dairy cows.
A career highlight was breeding Dilandy Debonair Tabitha Red with the late Bryan Challenor of Worldwide Sires.
The cow was sold privately to the Logan Holstein Herd in Scotland and went on to become the Royal Highland Show interbreed champion and Red and White champion at AgriScott in 2014.
The connection came full circle in June when Mr Shakeshaft purchased two Tabitha descendants in Scotland.
Jonny Dymond, manager at Shrewsbury Auction Centre, said: "This is highly respected and extremely well bred herd and it has been a privileged to sell cattle for the Shakeshaft family at Shrewsbury Auction Centre over a number of years."
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