NBA & RSC to host new Live and Dead beef competition at Beef Expo 2011

NBA & RSC to host new Live and Dead beef competition at Beef Expo 2011

Beef Expo 2011, organised by the National Beef Association with Lloyds TSB as major sponsors, will be the venue for an exciting new live and dead beef competition.
The competition, organised jointly by the National Beef Association and The Royal Smithfield Club, will see cattle judged alive and then a four-bone forerib will be judged once the entries have been slaughtered.
Live judging will take place at Newark Market on Wednesday 11 May, with the ribs judged on the evening of Wednesday 25 May at Beef Expo, Newark Showground. The ribs will then be on display throughout Beef Expo on 26 May.
Entries are being invited in two classes, one for steers or heifers by native sires and the other for steers or heifers by Continental sires, with classes sub-divided if sufficient entries are received.
National Beef Association director Kim-Marie Haywood said the new competition was designed to help producers increase their understanding of how their cattle killed out. “All too often farmers see their role ending with the delivery of cattle to the market or abattoir. But having a better understanding of how their cattle perform on the hook and as prime cuts can make a major difference to how they breed, feed and select their slaughter cattle.”
Royal Smithfield Club secretary Geoff Burgess said he hoped that finishers would see the value in entering and gaining a fuller understanding of their cattle. “This is an exciting development for the industry and should offer a unique insight into the relation between live cattle and the prime beef which ends up on the butchers counter.”
A prize fund totalling more than £1000 is up for grabs, with the supreme champion live animal taking home £100 and the same sum on offer the champion ribs.
Entries for the Live and Dead competition close on Monday 18 April and schedules are available from Euan Emslie Tel; 01430 441 870 or email [email protected] or Newark Livestock Market Tel: 01636 676 741: or email [email protected]

Notes to editors:
Press release issued by Mooandbaa.com on behalf of the National Beef Association & Royal Smithfield Club for further press information contact Jonathan Long on 01233 749 177 or 07974 303 306 or email [email protected]
Beef Expo 2011 takes place at the Newark and Nottinghamshire Showground on Thursday 26 May 2011, with farm tours visiting two local beef farms the previous day.
For any enquiries contact the event organiser, Euan Emslie, on Tel: 01430 441870. Fax: 01430 448432. Mobile: 07718 908523. Email: [email protected]  Website: www.beefexpo.co.uk, or Helen Dobson, NBA Office, Tel: 01434 601005, Email: [email protected]