Celebrating 10 years of UK Dairy Day

The countdown is on for the 10th anniversary of UK Dairy Day, and organisers say it seems like only yesterday they were planning the first event. This year’s show will be held on Wednesday, 11th September at Telford International Centre.

With fantastic support from sponsors, trade and cattle exhibitors, UK Dairy Day provides the opportunity to network, share knowledge, learn and most importantly, do business.

The internal and external exhibition areas will be packed with existing and new trade exhibitors including feed manufacturers, animal health suppliers, vets, milk buyers, dairy and farm equipment suppliers – plus professional service providers and charities. With over 280 trade stands and the first floor Sharing Knowledge Zone, there will be an extensive display of products and services supported with expert advice.

There will also be a showcase of new products launched in the past 12 months, featured in the concourse.

The first floor will feature four industry panels with leading industry representatives. Four hour-long panels will cover opportunities under four themes: cows, carbon, culture and costs, as well as four seminar presentations. Speakers will cover key dairy subjects with each broadcast on screens, and recordings available to watch after the event.

Demonstrations

Returning to the external exhibition area will be Tim Carter with the live foot trimming and knife sharpening demonstration. Dairy cows spend up to 12 hours a day on their feet so it’s obvious that ensuring their comfort is essential.

Tim will demonstrate, in an upright crush, several key areas to be considered during foot trimming including sole thickness, foot angle, and heel depth. The key to the success of any task is having the right tools for the job and with Tim being a board member of The Cattle Hoof Care Standards Board the aim is to improve the health, welfare and mobility of the national herd.

Carolyn Baguley and the team from Scarsdale Vets will again present their innovative and engaging demonstration – using paint to visualise and understand calf anatomy.

Throughout the day, in the external trade stand area, the Scarsdale Vets team will use paint on calves kindly supplied by the Whittaker family to assist in the understanding of calf health and welfare. The practical demonstration will also focus on twin pregnancies, what causes them and how to manage them.

The internal exhibition area by Hall 3 cattle stalls will feature Type Classification and Linear Scoring demonstrations for the Ayrshire, Jersey and Holstein breeds. The demonstrations, by NBDC Classifiers, will be held at 12.30pm and 2.30pm.

The NBDC Type Classification Scheme currently evaluates over 130,000 dairy and beef animals every year operating an internationally recognised appraisal system providing an overall classification score for heifers and cows, which can substantially increase their value.

Cattle show

The UK Dairy Day 2024 cattle show will feature six dairy breeds with a leading line-up of judges who will cast their professional eye over the show ring:

• National Ayrshire Show – Ian Collins from West Yorkshire
• National Brown Swiss Show – Blaise Tomlinson from Leicestershire
• National Holstein Show – Marcel Egli from Switzerland
• Dairy Shorthorn classes – Paul Harrison from Northumberland
• Guernsey – Ian Collins from West Jersey classes – Willie Taylor from Cumbria.

The Holstein UK banners will be presented to the Premier Breeder and Premier Exhibitor of the show, along with the coveted Howard Sneesby Award, and awards for Best Presented and Tidy Lines. One of the afternoon’s highlights in the show ring is always the presentation of the Holstein UK Premier Herd Award, with the 2024 winner being announced, judged by last year’s winner the Will’s Family of Willsbro Holsteins.

The full cattle show will be live-streamed throughout the day with commentary for those unable to attend UK Dairy Day. The link will be available from the home page of the event website here.

Doors to the show open at 8.00am, 11th September, at Telford International Centre. It’s free entry and parking and there is no need to pre-register.

UK Dairy Day is an accredited event with Dairy Pro CPD points and BASIS CPD points.

Seminar programme for 2024

• 9.30am to 10am – Seminar presentation 1: Harper Adams University.
• 10am to 11am – Industry Panel 1: The Opportunities: Cows
• 11am to 11.30am – Seminar presentation 2: Lely
• 11.30am to 12.30pm – Industry Panel 2: The Opportunities: Carbon
• 12.30pm to 1pm – Seminar presentation 3: Liverpool University
• 1pm to 2pm – Industry Panel 3: The Opportunities: Culture
• 2pm to 2.30pm – Seminar presentation 4: IDEXX
• 2.30pm to 3.30pm – Industry Panel 4: The Opportunities: Costs.

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