WINTER NEWSLETTER

posted Dec 13, 2019, 12:42 PM by Ciaran Culkin   [ updated Dec 26, 2020, 11:14 AM ]
Winter Newsletter from the Chairman 2019

The current Republic of Ireland committee of this group have completed five years in office now. It is time to elect new officers and committee members. I would like to thank the outgoing committee for their five years of work during which time membership of the Dexter Cattle Society has increased from 96 to 199.
So, we need volunteers to form a new committee at our 2020 AGM, which will be held on Sunday 16th February at 2pm in the Hodson Bay Hotel, Roscommon Road, Athlone. I would ask the membership to think carefully if they feel able to help out and continue the great work in the growth of the National Herd of Dexter cattle.  Please get in touch with our Secretary, Anne Strahan, if you wish to volunteer to get involved in taking our group forward by participating in the following committees/working groups:
  1. Promotion and marketing of Dexter Beef to the wholesale/retail trade. We need three members to work on this together.
  2. Steer procurement for ABP Nenagh kill. Tom McDonald needs two assistants (1 from Connaught/Ulster and 1 from Leinster) to liaise with suppliers of quality finished steers and to arrange kill dates.
  3. Linear Assessment. A working group of three people is needed to liaise directly with Mr Andy Ryder, secretary of DCS UK, who will organize the Assessment Officer. Details of Linear Assessment are available on the DCS website.
  4. A working group of three or four people needed for showing and exhibiting. They would need to work with Agricultural Show Secretaries around the country in order to promote our Dexter cattle as widely as possible.
  5. We hope to set up three provincial committees, one each for Connaught/Ulster, Leinster and Munster. This is to help new members in each province to get up to speed with knowledge and the opportunity to network with members on a county/provincial basis.


The Dexter Cattle Herd has expanded rapidly in the past five years. Up until now the demand was greater than the supply. The gap is closing, so it is important that new outlets be found for the increasing supply of livestock.  This is the reason why we need members to step up to the mark and play a part in finding new outlets for our beef.


We have a premium beef product which needs to be promoted to the public at every opportunity. Current committee working groups need assistance from members in order to lighten the load, and to invigorate the effort through member participation.
Linear assessment is used as a method to improve the quality of our breeding stock. Members put their best cows and bulls forward for assessment. The scheme is managed by the DCS and details are available on their website, DCS, UK. 

Showing is a shop window for our Dexter Breed and is a way of promoting it to the public

Wishing all our members a very happy Christmas and a prosperous new year in 2020.

Sean Flannery 
Chairman

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