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Livestock launched - Dairy Event and Livestock Show rebranded and rescheduled

18 November 2011

The Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers is rebranding and rescheduling the Dairy Event and Livestock Show. The annual two day specialist business to business event staged at The NEC, Birmingham will be called Livestock Incorporating Dairy Event from next year and will be held during the first week in July from 2013 onwards.

Livestock 2012 will continue to build on the event’s current successful format offering comprehensive technical, business and financial information for the entire UK ruminant sector, and provide a one-stop shop for not only for dairy, beef and sheep farmers, but in future, it will also welcome pig and poultry producers.

From 2013, Livestock will be staged annually on the first Wednesday and Thursday in July, dates more in line with farmers’ buying decisions and which avoid overlapping with the major regional shows.

“We have organised and staged the UK’s leading event in the dairy sector for 136 years,” explains RABDF chief executive, Nick Everington. “Over the past 10 years, the number of UK dairy farmers has fallen by approximately 11,500 to 15,000 yet at the same time exhibitor numbers have increased by 70%, from 280 to 480, and visitor numbers by 42% to over 16,000 as we have widened the event’s appeal to not only beef and sheep farmers, but also to our dairy farmer visitors, almost 60% of whom have additional livestock or arable enterprises.

“While dairy farmer visitors continue to remain dominant at the event milking 78% of the UK’s cows, more and more visitors have non-dairy enterprises. In fact at this year’s event, 57% of farmers were rearing beef, 27% sheep, 11% pigs and 7% poultry. Our exhibitor profile featured 68% offering products for beef farmers, 51% to sheep farmers, 40% to pig producers and 33% to poultry producers.

“In future, there will be no dilution of the dairy content; the milking and genetic zones, foot trimming demonstrations and National All Breeds Show competitive classes will all remain key features.

“However, being realistic the event has become much more than a dairy show and its present title does not convey its true scope. Consequently, we are rebranding to appeal to and embrace all livestock farmers, in particular those specialist producers who previously may have been discouraged from visiting because of its strong dairy association.

“Rebranding and rescheduling will enable us to focus on the entire livestock industry and build on the event’s reputation and success. It will increase our target audience in the UK from 15,000 to over 200,000 producers and thereby massively expand the potential for business, from both UK and overseas markets.

“Furthermore, The NEC with its large, modern, easy accessed venue, which has repositioned the event from being a good farming show to a very professional exhibition reflecting the true worth of the industry, will help further expansion as we continue to build the event to become the flagship not only for the UK industry, but also to rival its European counterparts.”

Martin Redfearn, head of agriculture at Barclays commented: “We are pleased to again give our support as principal sponsor of the event and to see it appeal to a much wider audience, which will embrace our broader livestock farming customer base. The change of date for the show will make the event even more accessible not only to dairy producers, but also all livestock farmers and enables us to welcome them to what is scheduled to be an outstanding event within the agricultural calendar.”

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