This year鈥檚 UK Dairy Day showcased a sector that was very much looking to the future and how to drive increased profitability and sustainability, rather than one that was content to rest on its laurels.
Held at Telford International Centre in September, the event featured cattle competitions, industry exhibitors, biosecurity talks and practical demonstrations on lung scanning, calf painting, type classification, and foot trimming, blocking and knife sharpening.
It also included talks on tax changes and planning options for farmers and the importance of focusing upon marginal gains to improve business sustainability.聽
Panel discussions focused upon the struggle to recruit and retain staff and the importance of harnessing data for the benefit of the whole supply chain while ensuring farmers are amply rewarded.
The GB Calf Strategy 2025-2030
But it was the launch of the GB Calf Strategy, with a packed panel discussion, that really demonstrated the commitment to forward thinking and industry improvement.
Launching the strategy, Sarah Tomlinson, Lead Veterinary Science Expert at AHDB and Technical Director of the TB Advisory Service (TBAS), reflected on the success of the 2020-2023 iteration and the determination to build upon its foundations.聽
She said: 鈥淲e鈥檝e come an awfully long way, and the GB Calf Strategy is a really good example of what the industry can do when we come together to face a problem, find solutions and get real tangible benefits.鈥�
The number of dairy bull calves being born has been reduced and replaced with dairy beef, she said, with the dairy beef supply chain continuing to grow, and on farm calf survival increasing. However, not all calves were reaching their potential, and this would be the focus of the next phase of the strategy.
鈥淲e want to move away from just defending dairy welfare to actually promoting it as world leading and to see dairy beef as a co-product - not a by-product - of the dairy industry.鈥�
Gabby Emery, who farms two approved finishing units, welcomed the focus upon strengthening bio-secure routes to market for herds affected by bTB, saying that if these routes to market were not available to all dairy and beef producers it would be a huge obstacle to progress.
鈥淲e want to move away from just defending dairy welfare to actually promoting it as world leading and to see dairy beef as a co-product - not a by-product - of the dairy industry.鈥�
Sarah Tomlinson, Lead Veterinary Science Expert at AHDB
Farmer Laura Awdry said she saw the new strategy as helping to support dairy and beef farmers to make the right decisions to boost profitability and improve transparency and communication between sectors and across the supply chain.
Tim Potter, of Westpoint Farm Vets agreed. 鈥淚t offers an opportunity for people to work together and celebrate professionalism and ensure people get paid for doing things right, using the new technology and information coming out most effectively.鈥�
NFU Dairy Board Vice-chair Ian Harvey added the strategy would be a success if in five years鈥� time there was an effective partnership between the value chain and farmers, ensuring that everyone was getting the best possible value.
Association of Dairy Producer Organisations
Over on the NFU stand at UK Dairy Day, the four recognised dairy producer organisations (DPOs) launched the Association of Dairy Producer Organisations (ADPO) 鈥� the first organisation of its kind in Great Britain.
The ADPO has been established by its members to give a unified voice to farmers who are members of Davidstow Creamery Direct (DCD), MMG Dairy Farmers, the Milk Suppliers Association (MSA), and Selkley Vale Milk Group (SVMG).
The ADPO also aims to support other dairy farmers seeking to formalise and professionalise their relationships with milk buyers, recognising the need for structured, effective and respectful dialogue between farmers and the dairy processing sector, to address shared challenges and deliver key priorities such as the UK dairy roadmap and greenhouse gas emissions reduction.
NFU Dairy Board Chair Paul Tompkins said: 鈥淭his is a new start for a number of dairy farmers in the way they can be represented. It鈥檚 something that we鈥檝e seen working across the Channel and envied for a number of years. 皇家华人has always been a been a supportive partner on this journey and will remain so moving forward.鈥�
Rory Christie, Chair of the ADPO added: "We now have a robust governance framework capable of addressing the real-world challenges that dairy farmers and processors face together. Most importantly, this is a shared opportunity to understand what a successful, interdependent relationship should look like 鈥� and to build it, together."
