The 75th Anniversary conference marked the occasion of the BCBC presidential handover, following the completion of Professor Mike Coffey’s six-year term. He handed over the title to Mr Duncan Sinclair.
Professor Coffey, a Professor in livestock informatics at SRUC, said “I had already been a member of the Club since around 1989 before having the huge honour of being nominated as President of BCBC. I was standing on the shoulders of previous presidents such as Maurice Bichard who shared a similar vision to me about the direction of the Clubs activity and it was a great pleasure to help continue that journey. The Club is now enjoying large successes with its annual conference and its role in British cattle breeding has never been more urgent and pivotal with the expected challenges for food production, society and the environment over the next 20 years. I have every confidence that our new President Duncan Sinclair can bring his years of experience, his connections and his personal skills to bear on the Clubs future. I wish him and the Club every success”.
Duncan thanked Professor Coffey and added “I am humbled and honored to become the latest President of the British Cattle Breeders Club joining an elite group of distinguished individuals who have held this post over the years. The annual BCBC conference has, for over 25 years, been one of the first commitments in my calendar each year! I attended my first conference in Cambridge back in 1997 in the aftermath of the BSE crisis when the entire cattle sector was going through a truly difficult time. Since then, the beef and dairy sectors and the Club have emerged from these challenges in a stronger state ready to face into the major issues of today. I am really looking forward to supporting the BCBC committee build on the Club’s solid credentials by attracting the very best speakers to inform and inspire us each year but also to enjoy the spirit of fellowship and friendship which the Club is renowned for”.
Duncan’s entire career has been livestock focused with the journey beginning at the Meat & Livestock Commission before his time at Waitrose and currently at MSD.
In addition to serving on the BCBC committee he had the privilege of being the Club Chairman during 2011/2012. He has also served on several industry committees including Red Tractor, FAWC and BRC. In 2015 Duncan became a Fellow of the Royal Agricultural Societies of the United Kingdom and in 2019 a Fellow of the Institute of Agriculture Management.
In his spare time he can often be found on a racecourse and has had several shares in racing syndicates over the years. The latest project is learning to train a gun dog since Belle his black Labrador arrived during lockdown back in autumn 2020!