F ARMING may have been changed massively by advances in technology, but Ben May from Lower Upcott Farm, near Hatherleigh, is "bucking the trend" and taking farming right back to the more traditional times of the 1940s.

Ben, 43, has always loved farming and the environment and is now learning farming methods and systems from the past to create a self-sufficient and sustainable enterprise, which is sympathetic to the environment. Ben believes that a lot of modern farming "has been obsessed by output and quality has often suffered" while at Lower Upcott Ben is "obsessed with quality using environmentally friendly age old common sense methods that do not have an negative impact on the environment". He truly believes that there is as much to be learnt from past traditional methods as there is from more modern technologies.

Ben grew up in Kenya where his parents farmed but returned to the UK when he was 10 to complete his secondary education. He boarded at St Michael's in Tawstock and his holidays were spent at his grandmothers in Buckland Brewer or with his parents in Kenya. Ben loved the woodlands around his grandmother's house and spent much of his time making dens and appreciating the wildlife around him.

When he left school at 18, he worked as a farm labourer on a farm in Yorkshire before attending Wye College at London University to complete a degree in Agriculture. After finishing his degree, Ben worked in a variety of capacities before enrolling on a two-year Masters Degree in Landscape Design, which he describes as a very inspiring period in his life.

"I loved the idea of coming up with a concept and then working on it until the design was complete," he said.

After graduating, Ben worked for two years as an environmental consultant and landscape architect. However, Ben had always wanted to work for himself and wanted to prove to himself that he could make money doing something environmentally friendly.

In 1996, Ben bought himself a shire horse and with support from the Clinton Estate who gave trees in exchange for thinning out their woods, he set up a charcoal business. Anstey, his shire horse, dragged the logs from the woodland to a kiln where Ben turned them into charcoal which sold to Mole Valley Farmers, garden centres and garages.

Although Ben worked seven days a week, profits from the business were meagre and the work seasonal. To supplement his income Ben started to make rustic furniture, which he sold at shows around the UK. He then developed his skills to try his hand at chainsaw woodcarving and this proved to be hugely successful with orders pouring in for his creations.

Ben still runs his carving business at Lower Upcott and most of his orders come from commissions and internet sales, which has enabled him to establish the type of farm he has always dreamed of running. Ben has no romantic or nostalgic notions of running a traditional farm and everything he does is both practical and makes sense financially.

The farm is home to three shire horses who work the land, extract timber from Ben's own woodland, which he manages as sensitively as possible. Haymaking at the farm is a great community occasion with children and adults turning up to help. The hay is cut using a 1940s tractor and the shires are used to turn the hay and bring it in loose ready for the winter. Ben adores haymaking. "Everyone is invited to come along and help and the day is a really sociable occasion with everyone getting to know each other and at the end of the day I supply a big community meal to thank everyone for their help," he said. Ben is aware that this job could be completed in much less time with new technology but he will not compromise. "Working this way keeps my capital costs down, ensures good quality, and brings back the community spirit into farming."

In the old days, there was much more interaction between the different types of animals on the farm and this is the case at Lower Upcott. For example the chickens are free range and so what grass seed the horses and cattle leave, the chickens clear up. It is not uncommon for a chicken to lay an egg in the horses manger whilst the horse is eating hay alongside.

Prudence the sow is a popular lady on the farm and her piglets are able to run around the farmyard before they start rooting too much. Prudence is due a new litter before the New Year and Ben is like an excited expectant dad. Eleven Devon Ruby Red cows complete the farmyard family.

As well as looking after the animals Ben has vegetable gardens which keep him and his helpers in fresh veg for most of the year. Ben is fortunate to have his parents, Tessa and Kim, sharing the workload as well as volunteers from Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF) because there is always something to do.

As well as keeping on top of his woodcarving commissions, Ben runs courses in charcoal burning, rustic furniture making and horse logging. He smokes his own meat and is happy to show groups of more than six people around the farm at no cost and in summer offers wagon rides pulled by the shire horses to the local pub in Exbourne.

Ben is not too sentimental when his animals leave the farm for the slaughter. "I believe that it is my responsibility to care for them from the cradle to the grave but I do have to make a living from what I do so I can't afford to be too sentimental," he explains.

For anyone wanting to take a step back in time then a visit to Ben's traditional working farm is an absolute must. As well as being a hard-working farmer Ben is a delightfully passionate man who is making the environment a much better place for the wildlife around Hatherleigh by doing something he loves doing. Why not get a group together and give Ben a ring on 01837 811123 to arrange a visit.