About Us

Welcome to Balamore

With a passion for the beef industry, a diverse group of bloodlines and uncompromising standards, Joe and Carolyn Cooper along with their family, Robert and Emily, David and Kathleen, and William, raise Limousin, Charolais, Angus and Simmental cattle.

Balamore Farm is located in Great Village, Nova Scotia, overlooking the Bay of Fundy, known for the highest tides in the world. There is a long history of agriculture in this area – it is some of the earliest farmed land in Canada, originally settled by the Acadians who brought their dyke-making skills with them from France in the 1600’s. The name “Balamore Farm” was established long before the Coopers owned it, and it is Gaelic for “Great Village”.

Joe’s parents bought this farm in 1962. It was a mixed farm of hogs, commercial cattle, carrots and grain. Joe’s love of cattle was evident from a young age – he had cattle of his own at the age of 5 and by eighth grade he had 10 purebred Hereford cows. In 1990, Joe started growing strawberry plants for farmers in Florida, and in 1995 he and Carolyn bought the farm from his parents. Since then, the nursery business has expanded and includes plug plants, tips and bare roots.

Cattle have always been a part of Balamore, with the primary focus on commercial cows. It wasn’t until Joe and Carolyn’s youngest son William became involved in 4-H in 2012 that the Coopers started buying purebred Limousin. Since then, more breeds have been added to diversify and appeal to the local market. The Coopers have a love of all breeds and like the challenge of creating good animals regardless.

Like most farm kids, the Cooper boys grew up working on the farm in the summers, and each grew to have a preference for certain areas of the operation. Although everyone has their area of expertise, all members of the family help out in all areas of the farm when necessary. Despite the busy life of farming, Joe and Carolyn made it a point of travelling with the kids when they were younger to expose them to different places, people and ways of thinking. Being open to learning, having an appreciation for others, and maintaining perspective are all important to Joe and Carolyn.

The Coopers are very thankful for the amazing group of loyal local employees that work on the farm, many of whom have been with the farm for 20 to 30 years and have been crucial to building the business. They also appreciate the wonderful crew of temporary foreign workers who leave their homes in Jamaica to come and work for the season at Balamore, many of whom return year after year to work in strawberry plant production.

The Coopers understand how fortunate they are to live in such a beautiful place, with a family that is fully engaged in the farm, and surrounded by a great team that is committed to making it work.

Visitors are always welcome. You are encouraged to reach out anytime.