Delight as organic bull takes the top beef award

AN organically-fed Hereford bull emerged as champion of all the pedigree beef champions in the farm livestock competition of the day.

He was shown by Keith Jempson for Stephen and Aileen Nesbitt, who bought him at the Royal Highland Show three years ago, for the Cleland Herd on their organic farm at Hungerford, Berkshire. Bred by the Wilson family at Kelso, he had become junior interbreed champion at the Royal Highland and was overall interbreed champion when the Nesbitts took him back there two weeks ago.

Mr Nesbitt said: "It is exceptional for an animal reared organically and fed organically to take an interbreed championship and it is 30 or 40 years since a Hereford won an interbreed championship at a major show and we are really delighted to be able to take the championship at a show like this with a British animal."

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Second among the finalists from 18 breeds was a Simmental cow, with calf, shown by stockman Jim McMillan for Boddington Estates, near Cheltenham.

The home-bred cow was breed champion at the Norfolk and Three Counties shows.

Third placed was a home-bred Charolais cow, also with calf, shown by herd manager Charlie McLean for owner Ken Piper of Fair Oak, Hampshire.

Last year's winner was a Belted Galloway bull.

The Great Yorkshire runs an unusually democratic voting system, involving 18 judges – one from each breed's panel – casting 17 votes, for every animal except the one they have chosen as their own breed's champion in the morning.

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During the adding up of 17 sets of points out of 20 for each animal, Wensleydale farmer and regular commentator Mike Keeble told the audience why beef was environmentally-sound choice of food.

Without it, he said, a lot of characteristic countryside would not be looked after. Dales farmers like him could not grow corn or potatoes. And thanks to the swing back to grass, most of the animals on show could fairly be called "solar-powered and totally sustainable".

"Vegetarians are not doing our countryside a lot of good," he told his audience.

The big shows differ from the small ones in not allowing commercial cross-breeds into the interbreed competition.

Their turn will come today.

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