£10,000 Guaranteed for Winning Bull at Beef Expo
2010-03-23

Farmers attending the National Beef Association’s Beef Expo 2010 at Hexham Auction Mart in Northumberland on Thursday, May 27, will have the opportunity of winning a top pedigree beef bull valued at £10,000 in a unique judging competition being held for the first time in the UK.

Pedigree breeders from all the main beef breeds are being invited to enter bulls for judging in the Bull Survival Competition. The entry fee is £500 for a 6.5m x 2.6m pen to display their bull and promote their herd. It is anticipated that breeders will be able to secure sponsorship for the entries. A minimum of 16 bulls will be entered.

The winner of the judging competition will take home the bull receiving the most votes and the owner will win the £10,000 top prize.

“This novel judging competition will give pedigree breeders a huge opportunity to promote their herds and bulls to an audience of more than 5000 beef producers attending Beef Expo as well as the chance of receiving £10,000 for their bull,” said Sheila Eggleston of Hexham-based Eggs-Port Ltd, who has devised the competition with Geoff Hubbuck of agricultural merchants, J S Hubbuck Ltd also of Hexham. Both are members of the organising committee for Beef Expo.

Participants in the judging competition will pay £25 to enter and tickets will be available to purchase in advance on the internet or from the event organiser, as well as on the day at the event. All those buying tickets will require to attend Beef Expo to participate in the judging.

Bulls will be paraded at 10.30am and those who have purchased a ticket will vote for one bull which they consider to be the best. The eight bulls attracting the most votes will go forward to a second round of judging. Only those who voted for one of the eight bulls will be eligible to participate in the second round but will not be told the order of placings in the first round.

The same procedure will be followed to reduce the number of bulls to four for the third and final round. The winner will be chosen in a prize draw for which only those who chose the bull gaining the most votes will be eligible.

“The competition is bound to create a great deal of excitement and the winner will finish up with a bull worth £10,000 for an investment of only £25,” said Mrs Eggleston.

All bulls entered for the competition will undergo a veterinary inspection for correctness. The remaining bulls can be offered for sale at Beef Expo, either privately or by auction, although owners will have the option to retain them.

Beef Expo 2010 chairman, Scott Donaldson: “This is the first time a competition like this has been held in the UK and I’m sure will capture the imagination of both breeders and farmers entering the judging competition. It is another first for the National Beef Association and Beef Expo.”

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