In April 2003 a small 'fold' (the term used to describe a group/herd of Highland Cattle) was established at Cannon. Two cows and six heifers were purchased from a farm in North Wales. The objective is to use the Highland Cattle's unique attributes of hardiness and it's ability to utilize poor quality forage to manage the moorland grazing. They are wintered in areas of commercial forestry, increasing the environmental value of these areas by controlling vegetation growth on the forest rides and helping to reduce the effect of the forestry canopy closing.

In 2004 an additional 11 cattle were purchased including a bull and now the fold numbers 55 cattle.

Highland Cattle are very slow maturing, hence they are not a popular breed for today's commercial beef production. However, their natural attributes make them ideal for the environmental management of moorland grazing where sheep would contribute little. The beef of the Highland breed is low in fat, low in cholesterol and high in protein, making it a healthy meal.

Beef from the Highlanders at Cannon Farm is available to purchase via a box scheme and as the fold grows we aim to be producing quality pedigree breeding cattle for sale.