Axa Insurance National Pure Friesian Herds Competition is on!

Day three of four days of judging today, Wednesday June 25th. The trees are proving interesting too.

The Axa Insurance Irish Pure Friesian National Herds Competition kicked off on Monday when the IHFA's Donal Carey met Paddy Quealy and this year's judge Roberta Dunbar at Oliver Dempsey's Barrowvale herd.

Roberta travelled to us from her Barncluth Herd, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Last year, her herd won the prestigious Holstein UK, Herd of the Year competition, and she has had several bulls in AI and won several other accolades over the years. Roberta also runs Dunbar Daisies farm shop and vending machines, adding incredible value to her herd's milk.

Club chairman Patrick Quealy, Roberta Dunbar of Barncluth Herd is this year's judge, Oliver Dempsey and his dad Michael Dempsey, club president, respectively, and Donal Carey of IHFA at Barrowvale Herd.

Roberts is knowledgeable and generous with her knowledge. Her openness about what has worked and not worked down the years in her herd's breeding is of immense value to the club's competition entrants, so there are lots of detailed conversations being had as Paddy and Roberta make their way from herd to herd.

The revamped inspection focused competition has been made possible through the support since 2023 of Axa Insurance. On Tuesday, in the rain, Axa Insurance's Regional Manager Tom McCarthy met Paddy and Roberta at Gearoid Meagher's Killuragh Herd.

Patrick Quealy Club chairman, Roberta Dunbar competition judge, Barncluth Herd and Tom McCarthy, Regional Manager, Axa Insurance

Branching out

Last year we featured gates as we traveled around to the herds.

This year, we've decided to branch out and show a few of the trees on farms - and we have not been disappointed. Here's a collection of images from members' farms.

This weekend we'll put up a report on the competition, a brief word with the judge and a few pictures of the cows she met!