In a field outside the village of Kehelland, near Camborne in Cornwall, a brood of hens are doing their thing – clucking, scratching, pecking at the ground, ranging freely among the grasses, crimson clover and kale. “All right, girls?” says Pete Olds, picking one up and cradling her fondly. They are bovans brown laying hens and he has 14,000 of them, which sounds a lot but is actually quite small in poultry farm terms.
Cornhill Farm has been in his family for four generations, though they have only kept poultry for a couple of decades. Before that they grew mainly cauliflower and raised beef cattle. They do have a bit of arable land now, but that is connected to the hens. “They are quirky little characters. It is a business, but you’re also looking after animals, caring for them as best you can. You’re a happy girl, aren’t you?”
