May 2026 Newsletter

As this is probably the last Newsletter that I will be writing for the Club, I would like to say a huge thank you to all our members and those who have supported the British Friesian, arguably the best dairy breed ever.

Her time has certainly come again as she is well placed to take advantage of the regenerative movement, bred for that very purpose. As the UK competes on the world market, driving down the cost of production through maximising milk from grass is certainly an option for many. Male progeny, whether crossed with beef or not, can also make use of this advantage.

Some dairy farmers now find themselves struggling with their systems due to world events pushing up prices and problems with ever-increasing inbreeding % due to the fast-forwarding PLI Index system. To promote the breeding from young animals with little or no actual production or evidence of survivability, is diametrically opposed to the principle of Evolution, survival of the fittest. Epigenetics is the way in which genes respond to their environment. e.g. specific to the farm. That is why we believe in breeding from older well proven animals, those that have responded well to their specific farm conditions.

Perhaps ‘Egenes’ should take a lesson from Sir David Attenborough! To be fair to Marco Winters, he inherited the situation when he took over from Gordon Swanson. Gordon had realised the importance of the separate breed codes. (Holsteins had taken on the BF code 01) for the black and white breeds, the absence of which had so distorted the original Index.

So, thank goodness HUK have kept their open herd book for registering both black and white breeds, affording a carefully selected cross from proven data, if required.

If breeders decide that it’s more important to bring in new British Friesian bloodlines than to satisfy the AI companies’ need for high PLI, they are available from Holland or Ireland, and we are really pleased to see the work that Wageningen University has carried out in identifying the Friesian population across Europe.

Never has it been so important to support our Breed Societies and help ensure the future of our native breeds for their pure genetics and specific data, so important for the future.

From Rickmansworth to Telford, BFBC, HFS, HUKI, HUK, the Society and the Club have been part of my life for 60 years, as pedigree breeding became a lifetime’s passion. MM

BFBC AGM 2026

The Club would like to thank James Macpherson and Andrea Debenham for their service on the Committee and extend a welcome to our new Committee members: Rachel Francis of the Tucker family (Mudgleyhill), Thomas Oulton (Domvilles) and Dan Heal (Midway).

March 13th - 14th: Borderway National British Friesian Show

Exhibition Centre, Carlisle.

See Results below.

Well done to all exhibitors on the animals that they put forward and on how well they were all presented. This year was a bumper showing!

Border & Lakeland Spring Bull Sale – April 8th 2026

Congratulations to the Blamire family with their Whinnow herd, topping the price charts with two exceptional sons of Inch Jake. The top price of 11,000gns was achieved by Whinnow Jewel, a 72% British Friesian. Selling for 10,000gns was Whinnow Maxim (97%)

Averages

30 Bulls £4486.03

21 Holstein Bulls £4215.75

9 British Friesian Bulls £5086.66

Reminder of the June 23rd / 24th - Herd Visit June to Cornwall

Please be advised that your accommodation options are already limited so, if planning to stay overnight, please book as early as you can. Our first visit is to the Nattle family’s Rosewarrick herd at Rosewarrick Farm, Lanivet, Bodmin, PL30 5JS and the Tripconey’s Goonhilly herd at Priske Farm, Polhorman Lane, Mullion, TR12 7JP will be on the second day. Both days start at 11 am. Dan Nattle has kindly agreed to collate the responses for catering purposes. Please contact him on dannattle@hotmail.com or telephone 0781 3018380 if you hope to attend. We will be enjoying an informal dinner on the evening of June 23rd.

We know that our last Newsletter featured the following summaries from our hosts, but as this is the last Newsletter before the visit, it might be useful to remind ourselves anyway:

Rosewarrick British Friesians

Dan. Liz, Angel and Max run a herd of 220 Pedigree British Friesian based cows on a predominantly spring calving grazing system in mid-Cornwall. The British Friesian cow lends herself well to our grazing system, grazing daily here from late January until mid-November. We supply ARLA on a manufacturing contract maximising the solids produced from the British Friesian and ensuring a market is available for every calf born. In recent times we have introduced a small August calving portion to ensure a consistent milk supply for our on-farm Milk vending machine and farm shop which opened in 2024. In addition to the Friesians, we also have a small herd of Ayrshires formed mainly from the dispersal of Liz’s family’s Rosehill herd in 2024. The breeding policy for our herd is for cows that can walk on strong legs and feet with tidy tight udders and well-placed teats which will last. Fertility is paramount to keep a tight spring block. We expect our heifers to grow well and calve down at two years of age. We look forward to welcoming all breeders, be they pedigree or commercial, to view the herd and spend some time with us in June.

Goonhilly British Friesians

James and Clare Tripconey run a herd of 150 pedigree British Friesians on the Lizard peninsula in Cornwall. We have moved from Autumn calving to Spring calving to suit the milk profile

Required by our milk buyer, Roddas, which rewards us for high butterfat milk to make clotted cream. Our whole farm system revolves around the attributes of the British Friesian with her ability to graze throughout most of the year on grass and fodder crops through until Christmas, producing low cost, high value milk, being easily managed and highly fertile to maintain our Spring block. The calf she produces provides a good beef animal and, when crossed with our Hereford stock bull, the heifers are sold to make a first-rate suckler cow. Our breeding policy has always concentrated on milk quality, as well as good udders from strong cows able to walk to grazing and calve every year for many years. We calve our heifers at two years old and enjoy seeing them mature through their second and third lactations to make lovely cows that average eight lactations.

HUK Herd of the Year Competition (Type & Production)

Congratulations to the Winners, the Macpherson family and their Beaufort herd.

British Friesian Club Herd Competition on Inspection

This competition is held on alternate years and is due to be held this year.

Other Local Show Results

Our best advertising is presenting our breed at the local shows, and we have been pleased to see the Tucker family’s success with their Mudgleyhill herd at the North Somerset Show. In the Any Other Breed Heifer under 18mths, two were placed 2nd and 6th out of 17, as well as achieving Third in the Champion Any Other Dairy Breed, and a mention in the main parade. They also hope to attend the Devon County Show. See photos etc on the Facebook page.

NATIONAL BRITISH FRIESIAN SHOW RESULTS

Judge: Sally Howarth

Premier Breeder : Blamire, I & GM

Premier Sire : Lakemead Jingle

MILKING

Grand Champion - Irthingelt Balmoral Spirit 4

Reserve - Lismulligan Empress 69

Hon Mention - Whinnow Jingle Pauline 16 ET

Class 48 - 2 Year Old (Born 1st March 2023 – 29th February 2024)

1 Whinnow Jingle Pauline 16 ET Blamire, I & GM

2 Irthingelt Goldstar Angela 2 Moscrop, Thomas

3 Shorne Kathleen 178 Pattinson, Ross & Lexi

Class 49 - 3 & 4 Year Old (Born 1st March 2021 – 28th February 2023)

1 Whinnow Jingle Pauline 5 Blamire, I & GM

2 Whinnow Milk Pauline 2 ET Blamire, I & GM

3 Lismulligan Tina 13 Lawson, B & Sons

Class 50 - Senior Cow (Born 1st March 2017 – 28th February 2021)

1 Irthingelt Bamoral Spirit 4 Moscrop, Thomas

2 Lismulligan Empress 69 Lawson, B & Sons

Class 51 - Iron Grandma (Born 1st March 2018) / David Bailey Oldest Cow

1 Whinnow Solo Pauline 3 Blamire, I & GM

YOUNGSTOCK

Junior Champion - Lismulligan Pricilla 73

Reserve - Lismulligan Empress 86

Hon Mention - Irthingelt Microwave Birch 3

Class 19 - Calf Class (Born 1st March– 31st December 2025)

1 Irthingelt Microwave Birch 3 Moscrop, Thomas

2 Whinnow Mint Pauline 3 Blamire, I & GM

Class 20 - Maiden Heifer (Born 1st September 2024 – 28th February 2025)

1 Lismulligan Pricilla 73 Lawson, B & Sons

2 Whinnow Demon Pauline Blamire, I & GM

3 Irthingelt Gold Star Bianca Moscrop, Thomas

Class 21 - In Calf Heifer (Born 1st March 2024 – 31st August 2024)

1 Lismulligan Empress 86 Lawson, B & Sons