25/02/08
The Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers officially re-launched
the Dairy Event on Friday 22 February, at a media briefing
in the House of Lords.
Re-branded The Dairy Event and Livestock Show, the two
day specialist event will offer comprehensive technical, business
and financial information for the entire UK ruminant sector at
Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire on 17 and 18 September.
While dairying will remain at the heart of the business to business
event, with competitive dairy cattle classes continuing as a key
feature, this year will see the addition of activities specifically
dedicated to beef, sheep and commercial goat producers, together
with those farming commercial native breeds.
Practical working demonstrations, specialist diversification and
technical exhibitions, together with a number of new initiatives
designed to reconnect the entire food chain, will combine to offer
a one-stop service for all livestock farmers.
“For more than 130 years, RABDF has been proud to organise
the UK’s leading event in the dairy sector,” explained
RABDF chief executive, Nick Everington. “However, we are
aware from extensive research carried out at previous Dairy Events
that the majority of our visitors manage more than just dairying
as a livestock enterprise: 40% of our visitors farm beef cattle,
28% sheep, and 13% sucklers. In addition there is a small, yet
fast growing commercial goat farming sector that regularly attends
the event.
“To compete in an increasingly competitive global marketplace,
we believe that livestock producers need to be equally efficient
in all their enterprises, not just their key business of dairying.
To do this requires time and effort to keep up to speed with the
latest technical developments in these different areas,” he
said.
“By working with the National Beef Association, the National
Sheep Association, the British Goat Society and the Rare Breeds
Survival Trust, we have developed specific exhibitions for these
other sectors, which will broaden the scope of the event to the
extent that livestock farmers with multi-species enterprises will
be able to obtain all the information they need from this one event.
“The mixer wagon, tele-handler and farm health planning
demonstrations scheduled for the event will also be of equal interest
to all ruminant livestock farmers, as will the free silage analysis
and soil assessment clinics.
“Furthermore, our exhibitors will benefit from this new
event,” Mr Everington said adding: “More than 75% of
them already market products for beef, sheep and goat farmers as
well as dairy. By broadening the scope of the event, they will
be able to promote a wider range of their products to a much larger
visitor audience.”
HSBC’s agriculture director, Martin Coward said: “As
principal sponsor of the Dairy Event for over 30 years, we are
delighted to continue our support for the industry. We are as committed
as ever to investing in the future of dairy farming, and RABDF’s
re-launched Dairy Event and Livestock Show with its widening appeal,
will enable us to demonstrate that same allegiance to the entire
ruminant sector.
“We firmly believe that specialist business to business
events like the Dairy Event and Livestock Show will have an ever
increasing role within the industry, not only to supply the latest
technical, marketing and financial information and advice to farmers,
but also in helping to build much needed collaboration throughout
the food chain. HSBC is committed to the agriculture industry and
proud to be principal sponsor of the Dairy Event and Livestock
Show.”
Beef Production
Beef from the Dairy Herd has proved for the last three years to
be an exhibition of interest for the 4,000 visitors to the Dairy
Event who also manage a beef enterprise. This year, RABDF is
expanding that exhibition and offering features of interest to
all beef producers – those with pedigree herds, and both
suckler and finishing enterprises. The exhibition which is being
organised by RABDF in association with the National Beef Association
and sponsored by EBLEX, will focus on areas for cost saving and
improving efficiency.
Sheep Production
This new technical exhibition will be of interest not only to the
3,000 dairy producers who farm sheep and already attend the event,
but all those solely with a commercial sheep enterprise. Organised
by RABDF in association with the National Sheep Association,
it will feature grassland management, nutrition and solutions
to animal health issues, together with the latest sheep ID and
handling systems.
Native Breeds for Modern Needs
Dedicated to promoting the benefits of Britain’s native breeds
to commercial livestock producers, this new exhibition will be
organised by RABDF in association with the Rare Breeds Survival
Trust. It will feature cattle, sheep, goats and pigs and demonstrate
their suitability for producing high quality added value products.
The exhibition will also highlight the advantages of native breeds
to land management using extensive, low cost production systems.
Commercial Goats
The dairy goat product sector has expanded by 20% year on year
since 1997 and is currently worth £50m per annum. RABDF
has recognised this is a fast growing sector and one which imports
more than 60% of the total 50 million litres of milk required
per year for liquid, cheese and other products. Working with
the British Goat Society, RABDF has developed an exhibition that
offers technical and marketing information to help both existing
and prospective commercial producers exploit this market. There
will also be a display of commercial breeds, and a series of
practical demonstrations, including AI and foot trimming.
Tele-handler demonstrations
Originally designated as a new feature for the Dairy Event 2007,
visitors will be able to observe and compare tele-handler and
tractor loader models from up to 10 different companies as they
are put through their paces moving muck, stacking bales, loading
trailers and lifting fertiliser bags throughout the two day event.
Farm Health Planning
Farm Health Planning is another major new exhibition, which was
scheduled to make its debut at the 2007 event. The feature which
supports Farm Health Planning, the industry led partnership with
Defra, is specifically designed to encourage farmers to introduce
proactive measures to help manage herd disease and improve their
livestock’s overall performance.
Diversifarm
Diversifarm, which will once again be jointly staged by RABDF and
sponsors, the Country Land and Business Association, will provide
information on a broad spectrum of farm diversification activities,
including the opportunities for anaerobic digestion, biomass
and wind power generation. Advice and support will be available
to enable farmers to find out how to exploit their existing farm
assets, such as redundant farm buildings or an area of land to
create a new income stream and boost revenue from non-food enterprises
The Forage for Livestock Exhibition
This exhibition will offer all livestock farmers advice on how
to make more efficient use of their home grown forages. The exhibition
will feature a soil surgery supported by Kingshay Farming Trust
to which visitors are invited to bring along a sod of soil for
visual assessment. In addition, the grass silage clinic, supported
by Sciantec Analytical, will analyse samples of either clamp
or big bale, free of charge, and turn around results within just
two hours.
Mixer Wagon Demonstrations
The popular complete diet feeder demonstrations, rated by visitors
as one of the top features that farmers come to see, will continue
to be among the event’s main activities Sponsored by John
Deere, these demonstrations will feature companies representing
all the main types of mixer wagon currently available including
paddle, auger and tub designs. Visitors will be able to observe
and compare mixing of a Total Mixed Ration and also their handling
efficiency. They will also have the opportunity to view the mixing
chamber during each operation from a specially constructed gantry.
MilkMade
MilkMade is another exhibition established in response to farmers’ interest
in creating new income streams. Sponsored by Dairy UK, this RABDF
organised exhibition will once again enable farmers and processors
to find out more about milk processing, packaging facilities and
cool storage technology. They will also be able to obtain advice
to help them with their business planning, market research and
final decision making.
MDC Exhibition
MDC will once again be informing all producers how it is making
their levy work hard to help improve herd efficiency and subsequent
returns.
The Dairy Event has previously attracted over 300 overseas visitors
from more than 30 different countries, with a subsequent 53% of
exhibitors reporting enquiries from international contacts. The
expanded range of exhibitions covering all aspects of ruminant
livestock production is designed to attract more farmer visitors
from abroad as well as from the UK.
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