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Farmers on the island are working together to help clear the damage caused by Storm Ciarán – which also caused flooding and structural damage to farms, and left one "traumatised daddy pig" sat outside all night with no shelter.
Jersey Farmers’ Union members have been out working since Thursday morning to “clear roads and make the island accessible for everyone”.
Peter Le Maistre, the JFU president, said that the clean up is likely take a few days.
Pictured: Jersey Farmers Union president, Peter Le Maistre. (David Ferguson)
In Trinity, the Jersey Dairy building suffered "minor damage" but the Chief Executive explained that the "main impact" will be "the clearing of hundreds of trees that have been blown over" which will take weeks.
James Godfrey added that the team "did a sterling job of maintaining milk collection from farms, processing and delivery to shops to ensure that islanders never run out of dairy products from our domestic supply base".
Pictured: Eamon and Jose from Jersey Dairy collecting the milk to "keep things ticking over" during the storm.
Eamon Fenlon, who was collecting milk from farmers during the storm, said: "With the bare shelves in the food retail outlets this week, we are reminded how important food security is, and Jersey milk and other Jersey Dairy products are a key element of that thanks to our beautiful cows and our hard-working and committed farmers."
During the storm, Brooklands Farm shop was flooded and lost three pig houses, a few trees, and a barn roof.
Kate Hackett, daughter of owner Jon Hackett, said: “We have a traumatised daddy pig called Trotter who sat out in it all night long with no house.
"But he has made a full recovery now, bless him, and he has a new home thanks to other farmers coming to help me.”
Pictured: Trotter's damaged home being removed after it was damaged during the storm.
Master Farms in Grouville faced similar challenges with flooding, fallen trees, and structural damage, including damage to the cow shed roof.
"In my lifetime I’ve never seen so many [trees] down,” said co-owner Philip Le Maistre.
He explained that the community came together yesterday to ensure the cows were milked on time and to clear roads for the Jersey Dairy milk transport.
“This shows how the farming community get together and helps out when times are tough, and how valuable farming is to the island," added Philip.
Fortunately, all the Master Farms livestock remained safe as they had “filled every shed with animals” overnight.
In St Martin, Anneville Farm suffered “sustained” damage to crops like sprouts and purple potatoes, as well as to the farm’s polytunnels – which will likely have a “long-lasting impact”.
Owner Justin Le Gresley explained that the farming community joined forces in the aftermath of the storm as “stewards of the countryside” to help vulnerable neighbours regain access to roads by removing fallen frees with tractors and trailers.
Pictured: Local beekeepers, like Lucy Scott, had to secure their hives to prevent them from getting crushed.
Allan from Happy Hens, who was the “pearls of the storm” in Grouville lost one hen and experienced significant damage to the poultry units.
“My staff are currently making safe the units and trying to repair what is fixable to ensure that the units can be workable," he added.
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