Mulfra Farm

Roy & Monica Olds

Mulfra Farm is a thirty-acre smallholding set on the southern slopes of Mulfra Hill, near Newmill, 605 feet above sea level. The land consists of small fields with very ancient stone hedges where we breed our small herd of Hereford cattle. The maximum number of cattle (including calves) we’ve had on the holding is 24, and currently we have 12.

Mulfra has been in the Olds family since 1964 and has been farmed in the ‘old fashioned way’ for generations. The majority of the fields have narrow and rocky gateways, making them inaccessible to large modern machinery. We find that the Hereford cattle suit the farm because they are a hardy breed, and things need to be hardy to survive up here as we are exposed to the elements.

We are both locally born and bred. Roy was brought up working with his father on the family farm at Ludgvan using traditional farming methods which continue at Mulfra to this day.

The yard is always full of various types of poultry (guinea fowl, bantams, pigeons) and Jack Russell terriers which Roy used to breed; puppies have found homes all over West Penwith and beyond. We believe keeping the smallholding alive.

Croft land is also part of the farm, this croft land contains the remains of Iron Age settlements. Mulfra Farm is in the ESA (Environmentally Sensitive Area) which means it is protected from any changes to the farming landscape or from development.

Mulfra Farm used to produce milk from 8 cows, but since Roy took over the farm in 1981 this has not been viable and beef cattle were introduced. To supplement our income we also ran a very successful bed and breakfast business and Roy was involved in working with granite hedges and features etc.

We believe in keeping the farm as a farm and being as traditional as possible because the future for smallholding as we know it is becoming a thing of the past.

Monica Olds