News from 2011

8 members exhibited calves at the Smithfield Festival, held at the East of England Showground, Peterborough on 2nd/3rd December.
Results will be published shortly.

The commission payable by vendors to the Society for cattle sales via the website or Regional Field Officers is reduced to 2.5% with immediate effect.  Purchasers can request inspection of cattle on their behalf by their Regional Field Officer, at the cost of the RFO's travelling expenses.

We wish all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 

The new Finance Committee agreed by Council, with Terina Booker as Treasurer, means that the day-to-day finances of the Society will be run from her address: 52 Border Cot Lane, Wickham Market, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP13 0EZ (01728 746959) terina.booker@btinternet.com
All payments should now be sent to Terina, who will be liaising closely with Ray Bowler, the Secretary

Smithfield:  Joy Broughton has been very successful in encouraging nine breeders to participate in the relocated Smithfield, which will be held at the East of England Showground, Peterborough on 2nd/3rd December.  

See the information on the new Regional Field Officers system on the 'About the Society' page.

Annual Dinner on 29th October at Knights Hill Hotel near King's Lynn, Norfolk.  NOT TOO LATE TO BOOK BUT NEARLY!!!

Council has agreed changes to the way in which the Society's finances are carried out.
The main administrative change is that Terina Booker has been appointed the new Treasurer and will carry out the day-to-day accounts work from 52 Border Cot Lane, Wickham Market, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP13 0EZ, to where all payments should be sent with immediate effect.  A new Finance Committee has been set up, headed by Giles Crisp, to oversee the Society's financial strategies.
 

See information about the new Regional Field Officers on the About the Society page.
Annual Dinner on 29th October - see information in Events
Calf Registrations - it is not possible for calves to be registered via the website - please contact the Secretary for information/forms. 

See the Show Results section for this year's results.

Red Poll Show & Sale at Rugby Farmers' Mart Ltd., Stoneleigh Park on 12/13th August. 

The Red Poll world conference 2011 has just taken place in the UK, with people travelling from around the world to be part of a 19 day tour learning all about this rare breed of cattle.

The international group of delegates, who came from as far as Jamaica, Uruguay, New Zealand, South Africa and USA, travelled to numerous farms around the UK to view the Red Poll cattle and learn about what is involved in their conservation.

As part of the excursion, the group visited the home of John and Jayne Pochin, at Barkby Hall in Leicestershire, to view the Pochin Estates' herd of Red Polls' and hear how the herd has been built up in a relatively short period of time.

The herd was created by Mr. Pochin, whose great enthusiasm for conservation saw him set up a herd of Red Polls' in the summer of 2003 with the aim of preserving this old native breed for future generations to enjoy.

The herd initially started with the purchase of 14 in-calf heifers followed by a further 15 in 2004. With the help and advice of the Red Poll Cattle Society, estate managers Fisher German and in particular Andrew Kirk, the herd has grown to a 109 strong suckler herd. Andrew Kirk and family currently carry out the day to day management of the herd and have been farming on the Barkby Estate for four generations.

John Pochin comments "The retention and conservation of rare breeds is extremely important in the farming industry. We are immensely proud of what we have achieved here and very pleased that we can be part of the Red Poll conference and world tour.

"All of our delegates have their own herds of Red Polls' in their respective countries, and the general consensus was that they were extremely pleased with what they saw on the day."

The Red Poll Cattle Society is a charity which helps maintain the beef and milking qualities of the cattle as well as creating awareness and promoting the breed. Her Majesty the Queen is the patron of the charity, and in 2007 to mark her 80th birthday, John Pochin provided one of two Red Poll heifers as a gift.

Please contact Terina Booker (01728 746959  terina@redpoll.co.uk) for website enquiries.

There will be new Young Handlers Classes at the Royal Norfolk this year but there are no entries on the day - please see schedule for details.

The 2011 Field Day will be held on Sunday, 3rd July at Quentin & Maggie Edwards' Cools Herd in Wiltshire and the 2012 Field Day at the Lavenham Herd of Nick Thompson in Suffolk.

Record for registrations - 1050 in the 2010 Herd Book.  Well done to all involved.

The Red Poll Cattle Society will shortly be putting together a further consignment of Red Poll cattle for export to Ireland.  The Field Officer, Diana Flack, will as usual be sourcing the stock and liaising with the buyers.  Since exporting live cattle is somewhat complex, Diana will need a reasonable number of cattle forward from each vendor and for logistical purposes they must be broadly in the same area.  If any member would like to discuss this with Diana, she can be contacted on 07831 165705. 

Please note the date of the AGM is 16th April, not 23rd.  If you wish to attend the AGM and would like lunch, please let Terina know on terina@redpoll.co.uk (01728 746959)

The Red Poll Cattle Society will shortly be putting together a further consignment of Red Poll cattle for export to Ireland.  The Field Officer, Diana Flack, will as usual be sourcing the stock and liaising with the buyers.  Since exporting live cattle is somewhat complex, Diana will need a reasonable number of cattle forward from each vendor and for logistical purposes they must be broadly in the same area.  If any member would like to discuss this with Diana, she can be contacted on 07831 165705. 

All subscriptions are due on 1st January:
Registering £35; Associate £20; Overseas £30; Junior £5; Student £8.  Life Registering is £500; Life Associate £250; Life Overseas £250.
The registration fee for bulls is now £50, heifer fees remain the same.
The Stock for Sale page has been changed so that we now list Stock for Sale and Wanted for members.  Please let Diana Flack know if you have stock for sale or you want cattle and we will put it on the website for you.