About Ballakelly Farm

The Teare family has farmed the Isle of Man’s northern plain for five generations. We raise pigs, sheep and cows in a beautiful environment, and provide exceptional meat directly to you.

Meet The Family

Alan Teare took stewardship of the family’s farmlands after his dad, William ‘Billy’ Teare, sadly passed. Together with his wife and business partner Rachel and a dedicated team of animal lovers (including and especially their two young children, Alice and Harvey), Alan’s mission has been to transform his family business, and have a hand in shaping the future of Manx agriculture.

All the while, the team has stayed true to Ballakelly’s long-held ethos: to practice attentive, sustainable farming, to ensure human and animal well-being, and to promote the idea of encouraging cooking, eating, and sharing around the family table.

The Farmer

Alan Teare
The Farmer’s Wife

Rachel Teare
Our Daughter

Tinky – Alice Teare
Our Son

H-Boss – Harvey Teare
The Farmer

Alan Teare

Email:alan@ballakelly.farm

Phone:07624 212332

The Farmer’s Wife

Rachel Teare

Email:rachel@ballakelly.farm

Phone:07624 492899

Our Daughter

Tinky – Alice Teare

Our Son

H-Boss – Harvey Teare

Our History

1890

Farm Purchased

The lands and buildings at Ballakelly are purchased by Alan Teare Snr (Alan’s great grandad). The family begins with small flocks of sheep, raised for wool and meat.

1980

Tri-Stock Approach

The Teare Brothers become W C Teare after the passing of Phillip (Alan’s uncle). Billy forges ahead on his own, and introduces pigs and cows in small numbers. The rare rotational potential of a tri-stock approach is unlocked.

2016

Brand Produced

The new Ballakelly Farm brand is launched, and disused farm buildings are renovated into custom cutting and storage rooms. They begin butchering and selling their own meat at markets, and providing hog roasts at weddings and parties.

2020

Farm Becomes Digital

With the Covid-19 pandemic comes a new consumer interest in where food comes from, and how it is farmed. Ballakelly’s online shop provides customers with a way to safely purchase their families’ meat and produce under lockdown, with contactless doorstep delivery. The farm’s operations becomes digital as animal tracking and logging move online.

Today

Vision for Manx Farming

We aim even higher to recreate ‘Manx Farming’ and provide Manx customers with sustainable, local, low-food-miles produce, and to innovative and explore regenerative agriculture in the Isle of Man.

Our Pledge

We believe that farming has a responsibility to do right by the natural world. We promise that:

— Our animals live a stress-free and well-cared-for life, and in addition to best practice animal husbandry, receive humane and responsible veterinary care when required.

— Our animals eat natural home-grown diets, free from introduced antibiotics. Ballakelly sheep and cows graze on meadows of grass, herbs and flowers, and eat cereals, peas and minerals to support normal health. Pigs eat a blend of freshly harvested barley, natural minerals and exploring local protein cereals as we move away from soya.

— Our products supply chain is monitored and managed by us, from meat raised and farmed to the highest assured standards. Our meat is always entirely local and traceable, all the way back to the barn the animal was born in. It contains no additives or plumpers, no added flavours or colourings, and no artificial seasonings.

— Our farm endeavours to take a new path to operate with the lowest possible carbon footprint and be a caretaker of the agro-ecosystem. We are working to phase out fossil-powered vehicles and use local protein cereals in place of soya in our animals’ diets. We nurture natural grassland ecology, replenish the pasture we till, and regenerate the lands we farm.

— When we hold farm open days, our doors are open to encourage our friends and customers to see firsthand how we nourish our lands and animals.