BCBC 75th Anniversary

75th British Cattle Breeding Conference designed to create discussion, debate and vision

British farmers are constantly being advised to scrutinise what they do and adapt according to market demands, but is this happening when it comes to cattle breeding?

The 75th British Cattle Breeding conference will be held at Telford Hotel and Golf Resort, Shropshire, from Monday 23rd to Wednesday 25th January, and will bring together experience and science from across the industry in the UK and beyond to create discussion, debate, vision and, as always, to guide the way in putting science into practice on British cattle farms.

With increasing pressures on farmers the opening session will question is it time for change? Keynote speakers will share their insight into the latest challenges and opportunities.

Opening the Beef Day presentations Lucianne Allen, Sales and Marketing Director for Aubrey Allen, will explore how the industry is faring in the war against meat. Never one to shy away from a difficult conversation Lucianne, a former criminal barrister, will discuss the consequences of the beef industry losing and how working together could make a difference. She has been Sales Director for the national catering butcher for the past 15 years and in the past four years has won three accolades in the Women in Meat Business Awards.

John Giles from Promar International will share insight from the soft fruit industry and how lessons learned in the past 10 to 15 years could benefit livestock farmers. In his role as Divisional Director for Agri-Food, John has completed projects in the UK and some 60 countries across the world and has extensive experience in the beef, dairy, pork, poultry and horticultural sectors. Consumer developments in the UK market and export opportunities in postBrexit post-Covid Britain will also be on the agenda.

Sustainable breeding is about more than net zero – profitability, welfare and consumer perception all need to be considered too. Our expert speakers will discuss the importance of avoiding carbon tunnel vision in our second conference session.

runs an intergenerational ranch business, Nerbas Bros Angus, in Manitoba, Canada. The forage only operation has 550 cows and has been applying regenerative principles for nearly 20 years. As well as discussing their genetic process, Arron will share how their regenerative approach has benefited the land, soil, ecosystem and economic business model.

Prof Geoff Simm, Director of the Global Academy of Agriculture & Food Systems at the University of Edinburgh, will address the question: Where does beef fit into feeding the world? He will explore changes to production systems and technical opportunities that may help producers address growing pressures that challenge traditional approaches.

Arron Nerbas.

In the final presentation of the beef session, Terence Pye will bring a farmer’s perspective. He will share how his breeding programme resulted in dramatic improvements in calving ease and directly enhanced herd performance, profitability, sustainability and welfare of animals in his suckler herd. Together with his wife and daughter, Terence runs a herd of 70 pedigree Salers cows plus followers on their 95ha farm in North Yorkshire. Under their Rigel prefix they sell breeding stock, with customers across the UK and Europe, and have exported semen to Canada.

Producing functional cattle which perform well and thrive in our farming systems is the focus of the third conference session at this year’s BCBC conference.

Improved herd health for increased fertility was the priority for a pilot project by Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales (HCC). Its Red Meat Development Programme supports beef farmers to work closely with vets on proactive animal health planning. This presentation will give a vet’s view on the work carried out and the take away learnings that can benefit others in the sector. Eric Fontanillas, of IngenomiX in France, will explain how the company evaluated the calving-first heat interval (CFHI) in Limousin cattle. The company used accelerometer collars to detect first heat in Limousin females in research on 35 farms over four years. The evaluated heritability, together with the great variability of the phenotype, allowed IngenomiX to set up a genomic selection programme for CFHI on the Limousin breed. Results from a KTIF project ‘Feeding for fertility in the suckler herd’ will be presented by Dr Lorna MacPherson. Lorna is Senior Dairy Consultant with SAC Consulting based in Aberdeen. She will outline how the project in eastern Scotland monitored the nutritional status of cows over the spring calving period in 2020.

How can hybrid vigour benefit the beef supply chain? Our expert speakers will explore the issues in the fourth session of the BCBC 2023 Conference.

Benefits and insights of an integrated beef supply chain is the topic of Richard Phelps’s presentation opening the session. Richard is Group Agriculture Director for ABP UK and Managing Director of Blade Farming, and will outline how collaboration – particularly on genetics – can help overcome challenges and maximise opportunities currently faced by the sector. Carmarthenshire beef farmer Aled Evans will share the story of how he and brother Iwan devised a dairy calf rearing system and beef finishing enterprise which had lifestyle and legacy targets first and foremost. Since starting the business seven years ago, they have become one of the UK’s flagship grazing units expanding from 180 calves in 2015 to 650 in 2021, and were named Farmers Weekly Beef Farmer in the same year. James Evans, Director of Farming at Grassroots Farming, will discuss how the business was established by three farmers who spotted an opportunity to supply beef from regenerative farms to a national burger chain. The business suffered some Covid-related setbacks but has now entered an agreement to provide all 45 ‘Honest Burger’ restaurants with certified regenerative beef by 2024.

A panel of leading farmers will discuss the hot topics for British cattle breeders in the final sessions of the beef day at the BCBC 2023 conference.

Three successful beef farmers will be getting to grips with the most pressing topics for the sector in our panel discussion which will conclude the conference’s Beef Day. Bridget Borlase runs a butchery business alongside a small herd of pedigree Simmental suckler cows in Hertfordshire. Her success with ‘Bridget B’s Butchery’ saw her named Women in Meat’s Craft Butcher of the Year in 2021.

Paul Williams was Farmers Weekly Beef Farmer of the Year in 2017. He runs a suckler and dairy beef system in Snowdonia National Park. The business rears calves from 14 days old through to 20 months with an emphasis on genetics and use of technology. Completing the beef panel is John Scott from the Scottish Highlands. John’s family business produces beef and lamb from 250 Beef Shorthorn and Luing cows and 3000 ewes, alongside an arable unit producing spring barley and wheat for milling as well as biomass and wind energy projects.

In our 75th year, we have endeavoured to create a programme that highlights the importance of breeding and genetics in creating a sustainable British cattle industry across all sectors commercial and pedigree alike.

For a limited time take advantage of the early bird and group booking discounts. The full programme and registration details are now available on our website www.cattlebreeders.org.uk or contact Heidi at heidi. bradbury@cattlebreeders.org.uk for further information.

Aled Evans.