The 2009 Dairy Show, sponsored by Dairy Crest, once again achieved a record attendance of 6249 visitors against last year's figure of 6052. The number of trade stands had also increased to a healthy 279 and organisers are delighted that the Show continues to steadily grow year on year. The atmosphere was superb amongst visitors and exhibitors alike and the Show was heard to be hailed by many as the best specialist Dairy Show in the country.
The Supreme Championship was won by Blue Grass Jazzman Panama, a Jersey born in 2003, owned by Mr A H Wilson from Tregibby Farm, Dyfed, Wales and bred by B & J Daw, who also won the Cattle Presentation earlier in the day. She is the first Jersey at the Dairy Show to ever win this esteemed award.
The Reserve Champion was an Ayrshire Sandyford Anne 9, owned by Mr Bown from Worcestershire and was bred by E T Tomlinson who was the owner of last year's Supreme Champion.
The Interbreed Heifer Champion, sponsored by Natwest, was won by Shanael Duplex Delight, a Holstein owned and bred by the Miller family from Shanael Farms Ltd, Worcester who were delighted with their win.
Lyndsay Chapman from Dairy Crest who have a long history as main sponsors for the show says "This event is an excellent opportunity for us to get together with our direct supplying farmers from all over the South West area. We were really pleased by the number of our farmers that came to our stand and this created a very positive atmosphere".
Exhibitors were encouraged and pleased with the amount of business generated during the Show. Nigel Bond from Mole Valley Farmers said "the Dairy Show is a hugely strategically important show for us and we had an excellent Show during which we saw our core farming customers. We also took the opportunity to launch five new important products which were received with great interest".
Jeff Radnor from Dairy Spares Ltd said "this is our sixth year of being at the Show and it was very very successful, we were hit from 11:00am - 3:30pm non-stop and took loads of orders from visitors all over the country including Cornwall, Kent, Shropshire and Wales, which we were delighted with. A tremendous show which left us tired but very happy!"
The winner of the prestigious South West Farmer of the Year Award, sponsored by Milk Link and Clydesdale Bank plc, was Bill Blake who milks 380 cows at his farm near Crediton, Devon and the runner up R& G Fowler of Braunton, North Devon.
The Dairy Industry Reception and Dinner sponsored by Dairy Crest, Burges Salmon LLP and Lloyds TSB Agriculture was held the night before the Show and was hailed by those attending to be the best Industry Dinner on the circuit, the Reception alone being the best networking opportunity there is throughout the year.
The Dairy Industry Award was presented to Martin Dare from Greenslade Taylor Hunt, Odcombe, Yeovil, who has been based in the South West for over thirty years and during this time has been Club Secretary and Treasurer of the original South West Friesian Breeders Club. Martin was very much involved with the original formation of the Dairy Show and his expertise is widely recognised by other cattle breeders which led to him being appointed as the official auctioneer for several Breed Societies.
Plans are already well in hand for the 2010 Dairy Show which will include a major celebration to mark its 30th anniversary. The event has come a long way since its inception in 1980, when the idea for the Show grew from a South West British Friesian sale held here on the Showground.
Organisers plan a spectacular Show on the 6th October 2010 with an International Judging panel including judges from Canada, Denmark, France and Australia. Other new features planned are a Herd Person of the Year Award and an award for Best New Product. Show Manager, Alan Lyons said "the format for this show is tried and tested and it works well for both the trade stands and the visitors, enabling networking and business to be combined in one day, together with the opportunity to see some of the top cattle in the country.
The livestock classes run alongside topical and thought provoking Seminars, with top speakers from the industry, to aid and inform visitors".