Pioneering organic farm put up for sale at £10m

A pioneering organic farm and its estate have been put up for sale for £10m.

Pimhill Farm, at Harmer Hill near Shrewsbury, Shropshire, has been owned by the same family since 1923 and its owners made the decision to go organic nearly 80 years ago.

The Mayall family said the move in 1949 was due to a belief that "this was the best way forward for both their land and for their livestock".

But the decision to sell the estate has come because "the next generation are not pursuing careers in agriculture".

Estate agents Savills said Pimhill had helped "spearhead the organic farming movement in the UK".

The farm's founder, Sam Mayall, was vice president of the Soil Association for a number of years in the 1950s.

During the same decade, the farm also took the decision to set up its own mill and it became well known for its organic oats and muesli.

In a BBC interview in 2019, Mr Mayall's son Richard, said that in the early years "some people thought we were totally crackers" and the family had also had its doubts.

"I'm glad to say we had sufficient conviction to go on," he added.

Jack Cooper, from Savills, said the estate, which also includes an organic dairy farm, "epitomises careful stewardship".

As well as a farm, the estate includes a Grade II-listed Elizabethan hall, a wedding venue and 67 acres (27 hectares) of woodland.

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