'Best of the best' in beef industry come together in Darlington for National Expo

The venue, off the A1 at Burtree Gate, hosted the National Beef Association (NBA) Beef Expo on Saturday, which included the National Commercial Cattle Show.

The expo attracted a number of animal rights protestors, who berated people attending around the entrance gate. Several scaled the roof of the mart, refusing to come down, despite the efforts of police.

In response, Neil Shand, NBA chief executive, said: “The place is jam packed as you can see. There is a massive crowd here. We understand that there are people in the country who don’t want this industry but it is a mainstay of of rural life and they won’t change the mindset of people coming through the gates.”

Mark Dent, chairman of the mart, said: "Everybody has the right to protest, once you go down the route of trespass and criminal damage, for me you lose your argument.

"There are ways and means of getting your opinion across.

“The police will not remove them because they say how can we do that without putting themselves at risk. And they said they won’t come down willingly so they can’t forcibly remove them without putting them and the police at risk.”

Protesters on the roof of Darlington Farmers Auction Mart

In addition to the cattle show, there was a plethora of trade stands, and a series of seminars looking at the big issues affecting the industry, including future agriculture support from the government, sustainable beef sourcing, and animal health and welfare. Speakers included John Powell, head of the agriculture sectors team at Defra, Daniel Zeichner MP, shadow farming minister, Christine Middlemiss, the UK's chief veterinary officer, Sarah Tomlinson, vet and technical director of the TB Advisory Service, and Prof Alice Stanton, director of human health at Devenish.

The seminar ring at the National Beef Expo at Darlington Farmers Auction Mart

Mr Shand said there were more trade stands than ever before, and they had sold ten times more pre-booked tickets than normal.

"In terms of the market, the beef industry did pretty well through Covid, but we are starting to feel the challenges now," he said. "We have put calls out to government that they need to be aware that the real challenges are coming. Feed, fuel and fertiliser prices will come hard on the industry later in the year."

Mr Shand also raised concerns about national suckler cow numbers, adding: "If we are going to feed ourselves, we need to address that. There is an awful lot of uncertainty about suckler beef production. All the home countries are looking at different options. One of the big concerns is if there is direct support outwith England, where does that leave the English suckler herd? One of our next calls will be direct support."

Cattle in the National Commercial Cattle Show

Regarding the ongoing cost of living crisis, Mr Shand said farmers are facing a "cost of production crisis". "Their inflation is far higher," he added.

Mr Dent said the "best of the best of the industry" was represented at the expo, and it was great to be able to stage the event at the state-of-the-art new mart site. "This is what this building is about," he said. "It isn't just a livestock market, it is a rural hub, a place to come and socialise. It's a really important place for people to come together, especially in the farming community, when you can be so isolated."