AN INTEGRAL element of this year's National Beef Association Beef Expo will be two big farm tours on the eve of the event.

Stepping up to showcase some of the industry's best will be beef finishers the Richardson family from Bracken House, Melsonby, near Richmond in North Yorkshire, and noted Limousin breeders, the Suddes family from South Farm, Cornsay, near Lanchester in County Durham.

NBA chief executive, Neil Shand, said: “The farm tours are always one of the highlights, and a fundamental part of our two-day Beef Expo event programme, as they give farmers the opportunity to get on farm and see how others are operating and planning for the future. Both Cornsay and Bracken House farms have fantastic beef enterprises and I believe that those attending will be able to take a lot of ideas and inspiration home to their own farms.

Read more: A big day at Agri Beef Expo at Carlisle

“I am fully aware of the considerable amount of time and effort that goes into the planning and preparation for such tours, so I’d like to thank both the Richardson and Suddes families for opening up their farms to host this event and for their support to the NBA.”

Rob and Janis Suddes farm alongside their sons Richard and Karl, at South Farm, which has been the family farm for over 100 years. Sitting at 900ft, the 800-acre unit carries 120 pedigree Limousin cows, the Cornsay herd, and 500 acres of arable land, with the remainder being pasture. The family also work an additional 500 acres external to the farm on a shared farming basis, with all crops being established using conservation agriculture techniques, and they have 32,000 free range laying hens.

The Suddes family regularly sell pedigree bulls and heifers from home as well as through Carlisle and other local auction marts, including Darlington and Hexham. Those not suitable for breeding are finished on home-grown rations at South Farm and sold live at 12-16 months old through Darlington market.

Bracken House Farm, Melsonby, which covers 780 acres, has been farmed by the Richardson family since 1916. It currently finishes between six and seven hundred bulls and steers per year, all sourced from live markets. Finished bulls are sold live at Darlington market, whereas steers are sold deadweight through Woodheads or ABP.

The farm is home to two Roundhouses which house a total of 390 head with integrated handling systems. Bracken House was, in fact, the second farm in the UK to build one back in 2004, with the second added in 2019. In addition, the family also own and operate Lowgrange Quarry Ltd.

Following the cancellation of last year's NBA Beef Expo due to Covid-19, this year's event is being held on Saturday May 28 at Darlington Farmers Auction Mart, with the farm tours taking place the day before on Friday May 27. Tickets must be purchased in advance and are available at a cost of £34 for NBA members and £40 for non-members.

For more information on NBA Beef Expo or to purchase tickets for the farm tours visit https://bit.ly/NBABeefExpo.