Third-generation farmer Rory Christie has helped create the world’s first crossbreeding index using genomic information, milk production and herd health data. Mr Christie, who milks 1,100 spring-calving Jersey cross Holstein cows alongside his brother, Gregor, in South-West Scotland, has been part of a trail-blazing project, led by Professor Mike Coffey at SRUC since its establishment in 2017. T...

Aberdeenshire suckler farmer is bucking trends – while other suckler farmers were dispersing herds he took on a 226-acre tenancy and started a herd of 50 suckler cows. Over the past eight years, he has more than quadrupled cow numbers to 230 and is now farming 610 acres. To obtain a loan from the bank, Duncan says it was vital he was focused on KPIs and breeding cows that fitted his low-input sy...

Returning to Telford on 22-24 January 2024,  the programme for the conference entitled 'Green Genes - Revolutionising cattle breeding for a sustainable future' is now available to view here. The programme brings together a wealth of well-acclaimed UK and international academics and farmers.  This year for the first time there will be two bovine sessions assembling beef and dairy sectors to reveal...

The British Cattle Breeders Club conference is returning to Telford in January and will explore why the UK’s cattle industry is part of the climate change solution and how breeding can help meet greening targets. The industry has pledged to become net zero by 2040, and some national governments are already proposing livestock reductions. However, there is another, more sustainable solution to me...

Dairy farmers, vets and industry professionals right across the whole supply chain have collaborated through Ruminant Health & Welfare (RH&W) to create the new UK Dairy Cattle Welfare Strategy for 2023-2028. The strategy, which has now been launched is designed to help the industry show progress in animal welfare by 2028. RH&W vice-chairman, Gwyn Jones, says the strategy is an update of a previo...

Bovine genetics company, Genus ABS, has been awarded Climate Smart Funding by Innovate UK for their Climate Smart Beef Genetics Project, to aid the agriculture sector in meeting its net zero aims.  This project will see a large monetary award given to the genetics company to support their ground-breaking research. Data collected so far has demonstrated the potential of ruminal microbiome-driven b...

We are thrilled to announce that Professor Sharon Huws BSc MSc PhD FHEA has been awarded the prestigious Sir John Hammond Award at the recent BSAS Annual Conference. The award, jointly sponsored by the British Cattle Breeders Club and BSAS, is presented to individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of animal science. Sharon Huws, a renowned researcher and Professor of Animal...

Efficiency, fertility, emissions, and profit are all linked, Phil Garnsworthy, Professor of Dairy Science at University of Nottingham’s School of Biosciences told the BCBC conference in January. Milk yield is the main driver of production efficiency, and milk yield per hectare is the main driver of whole farm efficiency. However, any efficiency gains are partly offset by lower fertility said Pro...

Sustainability is about more than just net zero. The BCBC conference heard from speakers working on other areas of the sustainability challenge. Livestock are part of the climate change problem, so it’s important to address the issues so that they can be part of the solution, said Prof Geoff Simm, Director of the Global Academy of Agriculture & Food Systems at the University of Edinburgh. Clima...

Hybrid vigour in the dairy herd means that one plus one equals three, says Sean Chubb of LIC. Speaking at the BCBC conference he outlined how cross-breeding – and other changes – were helping to save the dairy unit at Walford College. Increasing the value of milk while also drastically reducing costs were twin aims at the centre of Sean Chubb and Tom Moore’s plans at Walford College. Together th...