Last month, the couple and their two children, Ian and Chelsea, became the first sheep producers to be named Ontario’s Outstanding Farm Family, an award designed to recognize a farm couple who exemplify excellence in their profession. The award was presented by the Ontario Foundation for Rural Living.

When the couple moved to Canada in 1990 John took a job in a bank. A year later they were raising ewes on rented pasture. But in 1993, the couple took over Eadie’s parents’ farm at Norwood and began a flock that has grown to 900 ewes with a global perspective.

The couple chose the Rideau Arcott, developed at the research station in Ottawa, and crossed it with the best Dorset stock in New Zealand and Australia. Health is high on the agenda in developing the herd so they don’t bring in live animals. The herd is improved through embryos and artificial insemination.

"We can learn from the rest of the world," Eadie says, acknowledging the help from New Zealand, "and we can benefit from the rest of the world."

The herd is performance tested, with every ewe’s performance on a computer. At 50 days they can determine a ewe’s ability to milk, she says. At 100 days they can determine her ability to grow. The ability to breed out of season is also part of the genetics.

The bottom 20 per cent of the flock is crossed with Texels, a Danish meat breed, imported from New Zealand. They are terminal crosses, all going on the meat market.

"Eighty per cent of our breeding stock is kept for breeding (in Norwood) or sold to places like the Ukraine or Iowa," she said.

The flock is managed with two border collies. "They work. They are worth their weight in gold," she says. Unfortunately, the the farm has had some predator losses. A llama has helped keep predators away but an electric fence is the main line of defence.

The Steeles are not novices to the business of sheep farming. John’s father, in Britain, had a flock of 2,000 commercial ewes and a flock of 200 breeding ewes. In addition to computerized records, he depends on an eye for physical soundness brought about by years of experience.