A FARM, which produces dairy products to Barrow, will up its game by introducing a state-of-the-art rotary milking parlour and an upgraded animal housing facility.

Beckside Farm’s project will see the site’s dairy operation extended from 150 to 400 cows, which will see a reduce of ammonia emissions per animal.

Owner Robert Morris-Eyton and his son Patrick travelled up and down the country to research how to improve their dairy facilities. Soon, Beckside Construction broke ground in March to start the farm’s new era, which will also see animal welfare put at the forefront.

Patrick Morris-Eyton said: “The facility will allow us to bring in 250 more cows, giving us a total of 400.

“One obvious concern would be the confinement and welfare of that many cows, but once the development is complete, the animals will actually have more space in their cubicles than before.

“We’ve been hard at work researching about environmental and ecological studies.

"Our aim is to see a reduction of ammonia emissions per litre of milk produced.

“This will be done through providing greater welfare for animals by providing more freedom, which will reduce stress levels.”

Mr Morris-Eyton added: "It was important for us to work with local firms for this project.

"We employed a sub-contractor from The Green, we're working with Tony Brown Aggregates in Ulverston, and we're using a building firm from Kendal.

"Since we've started the project, we've also taken someone on full-time and we also plan to create several more full-time jobs in the future - so it's all guns blazing at the moment."

Going forward, the farm also wants to introduce school events, where pupils can see how cow's milk is produced for consumption.

In February, the farm became a full member and product supplier to dairy giant Arla.

Arla's Leeds site receives product from Beckside Farm, which is then turned into yoghurts, milks and cheeses, and other store items to be distributed across the South Lakes area to the Asda, Morrisons and Tesco stores.

Mr Morris-Eyton also stated he is not concerned about the farm's investment as dairy alternatives rise in popularity.

He said: "We see the market as strong and we want to educate people how the dairy industry is trying to reduce its impact on the environment."