Beef from dairy herds is shaping the future at AgriScot

With British Blue-cross steers and heifers from dairy herds stealing the limelight, this year's interactive beef demo at the UK's leading farm business event is putting "Beef from the Dairy" front and centre.

Hosted by Gavin Hill, senior beef specialist at SAC Consulting (part of SRUC), and Arwel Owen, beef supply chain manager at Genus ABS, the Quality Meat Scotland-sponsored demonstration has become one of AgriScot's must-attend sessions.

Starting at 11.30am, the discussion will focus on whether ‘beef from the dairy’ will continue to play an ever-increasing role in the future, in terms of beef supply, and whether we can do it by breeding cattle with lower emissions. “Beef from the dairy herd has increased over the last few years, while at the same time our suckler beef herd has decreased,” explains Hill.

The session’s popularity lies in its unflinching focus on practical advice and willingness to tackle the talking points that matter most to farmers wrestling with tight margins.

The cattle themselves - currently at the forward store stage and destined for finishing over the coming months - will be handled in the ring by second-year students from SRUC Oatridge. The students have been working with the animals at campus in the lead-up to the event, building both their experience and confidence with livestock while ensuring the cattle are well-prepared for their moment in the AgriScot arena.

"The beef demonstration is popular as it's interactive, allowing plenty of discussion when the audience is asked questions," says Hill. "One of the other main outputs from the demonstration is the experience gained by the students in the feeding, handling and leading of the cattle in the run up to the event. It's a valuable part of their journey in Agriculture."

Hill and Owen will dissect the current market dynamics for beef from dairy herds, examining the specifications processors are demanding and the traits dairy farmers should prioritise when selecting sires. But this isn't just about genetics for genetics' sake. Reducing feed costs through the right breeding decisions will be a key theme, as will Owen's insights into emerging research identifying breeding lines that could help reduce emissions.

True to AgriScot form, audience participation will be central to the session. Farmers will vote via the Voting Pad app to gauge current industry thinking, spark discussion, and inject some competitive fun into proceedings. It's a format that transforms what could be a static presentation into a genuine conversation about where the sector is heading.

Bruce McConachie, head of industry development at Quality Meat Scotland, emphasises the value of the demonstration. "QMS is delighted to once again support the beef demo at AgriScot. The live audience feedback through the app is what makes this session stand out. It captures real-time industry sentiment and reflects what's happening on farms right now," he says. "Events like this give farmers the chance to network, pick up on emerging trends, and gain practical insights they can take straight back to their businesses."

Sheep Demo: efficiency through innovation

While the beef demonstration explores adding value to dairy herds, the sheep demonstrations, running at 10.30am and 2pm, will showcase how technology can transform the daily grind of sheep handling into a faster, safer, and more profitable operation.

Leading the sessions once again will be Cammy Wilson, better known to many as The Sheep Game, who will demonstrate Te Pari's Racewell system - an all-in-one solution that's rewriting the rules on what one person can achieve in a handling system.

According to Giles Devenish from Te Pari, the demonstrations will focus squarely on efficiency gains that matter. "It's about improving the day-to-day efficiency on-farm, but not only that, there’s also the safety of the livestock and people themselves," he explains. “The company's purpose ‘real food and better life’ underpins everything we do.”

The Racewell system integrates weighing, EID recording, auto-drafting, and automatic dose calibration into one streamlined process. But it's the new smart features that will demonstrate how far sheep handling technology has evolved.

Visitors will see the new auto-release function that means once you've pulled the trigger on the dosing gun, the sheep being dosed is automatically released with no need to press additional pedals or buttons. The system now also prevents double-dosing by mistake, while a simple double-tap on the tablet screen allows re-administration if an animal spits out an oral treatment.

For farmers focused purely on sorting stock, ID-only drafting offers substantial time savings. "If you don't need to record a weight, it is significantly quicker," says Devenish. Quota drafting takes this further, automatically stopping once a target number for a specific gate is reached - ideal for preparing animals for sale or transport.

"It's good for farmers to get out and see new technology and its capabilities. The sheep demo at AgriScot is a great opportunity for farmers to see what they could do to improve their efficiency on the farm," explains Devenish. "Who doesn't want to become more efficient, save more money, make more money, and have a better life?"

Alongside the technology demonstrations, the sheep sessions will also feature a sheep dressing demo at 12.30pm from two rising stars on the sheep scene - James Goldie (14) and his cousin Michael Neill (13) – who are making quite the name for themselves despite their youth.

The pair were the overall winners at the NSA Scotland/RHASS Lamb Dressing Competition at the Royal Highland Show and haven't stopped there - they went on to dress 120 tups ahead of the Kelso sale in September. "We've done sheep dressing for the last two years, and together Michael and I won the trophy at the Highland Show, so it's nice to finish off the year doing something like this at AgriScot," says Goldie.

For Neill, the appeal is straightforward. "I like the way sheep turn out when they're dressed compared to how they look when you start off - it's a very satisfying job," he explains. Having met Cammy Wilson a few times before, the pair are looking forward to helping him at the handling demonstrations too.

With practical technology, interactive discussions, and the next generation showcasing traditional skills, AgriScot's livestock demonstrations promise something for everyone - whether you're running a dairy or beef enterprise, managing a sheep flock, or simply looking for ways to work more efficiently.

AgriScot takes place at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston on Wednesday, November 19. To beat the queues on the day and pre-register for this year’s event, with free entry and parking head to www.agriscot.co.uk/registration