The Yorkshire family on a mission to produce the best of sheep breeds
They say animals are for life and not just for Christmas.
It couldn’t be more true in the Stainthorpe fold. Several years ago Louis and Becky Stainthorpe gifted their two young children two Hampshire Down ewes for Christmas.
It wasn’t a fad, it was the start of a project which has seen a new flock of MV Accredited sheep, The Whitby Flock, established and become award winning in just a few years.
The Whitby Flock is a family affair at Mortar Pit Farm, in Sneatonthorpe, North Yorkshire where the focus is to produce the best examples of the breed.
Mr Stainthorpe is now head of breed development for the Hampshire Down Society – while at the same time running his own successful company as a building surveyor.
He spent time as a child working on his uncle’s and friends farms, gathering, dipping and lambing and he wanted his children to experience that same enjoyment.
Mr Stainthorpe recalls: “Back then we used to bring them back on the road from Ruswarp to Sneaton, without trailers.
"We would walk them up the road, sometimes further afield. We absolutely loved it, I have a fond memory of that and wanted my kids to have a bit of that.”
It has escalated to an obsession, he jokes, and breeding sheep has overtaken other hobbies, which now have a back seat.
They re-seeded the 34 acre previously arable farm at Mortar Pit with grass leys for the flock and there are now 40 breeding ewes under the Whitby flock prefix – and a growing list of show successes, including breed champion at last year’s Great Yorkshire Show, Masham Show and Wensleydale Show.
“We have land around the farm and it would be a shame for others to use, so it is better for us to be on with it. All the family help with lambing in December which is great.”
Sheep farming in 2026 has been more positive than last year, says Mr Stainthorpe, after bluetongue restricted shows and sales.
Technology is also making a difference and science, such as CT scanning, is becoming more affordable. It is making for better quality rams at commercial sales, driving up standards, prices and profits.
He said: “It is pushing ram sales for Suffolks, Texels and Charolais. The appeal of Hampshires is growing because they are a low input breed and easy to manage.
“That to us is a challenge, we are behind these breeds, but the technology now is unbelievable. It is semi-affordable now and changing constantly. Before, farmers would never have realistically afforded it.”
It enables precision breeding and putting the most compatible sheep together.
“We have got two or three like that”, said Mr Stainthorpe, “and hopefully one will be a winner at the Great Yorkshire Show.”