QMS Building Better Lamb Workshop

A workshop hosted by QMS, featuring industry experts, to help producers utilise the supply chain and improve their product & profitability.

Hosted by Lanark Agricultural Centre, this event will allow producers to discuss, with industry experts and leading producers, how decisions made on farm can affect the final quality of the carcass, as well as understanding how the market functions and the best ways to maximise productivity and profitability by providing a product that buyers want.

Attending this workshop will allow producers to better understand how to select, breed, draw and market stock that buyers want to pay for.

Tea & coffee will be available on arrival and lunch will be provided. A full overview is below.

10.00am - Registration and teas and coffees

10.20am - Welcome to Building Better Lamb

10.50am - Station 1

11.30am - Station 2

12.15pm - Lunch

12.45pm - Station 3

1.25pm - Station 4

2.10pm - Butchery demonstration

3.00pm - Close of event

Throughout the day you will hear from:

Emily Grant is an independent consultant and facilitator. Her business, Forrit, specialises in helping sheep and beef producers develop resilient pasture-based farming systems. She works both one-to-one and with farmer groups or innovation projects. Emily is based in Perthshire, where she farms. Initially the business focused on producing prime lambs from pasture, but with a strong interest in genetics and performance recording, the opportunity arose to partner with Innovis producing Abertex and Abermax rams.

Dr Mike Denholm is a vet and a clinical director at Clyde Vets. Following graduation in 2005, Mike was lured to the farming industry in New Zealand and ended up staying for 12 years. Returning to Scotland in 2017, Mike joined Clyde, becoming Clinical Director in 2019. He is motivated by adapting to changes in the farming and veterinary industries, particularly supply chain challenges.

Scott Ferrie is Business Operations Director at Lawrie & Symington at Lanark Market. His career in auctioneering began at United Auctions before then going on to work for a livestock agent for two years. Mr Ferrie has also gained a huge amount of experience working at St Boswells and York Auction Mart.

Michael Blanche is well known as the host of ‘The Pasture Pod’, a podcast that looks at the highs and lows of farming. As well as podcasting, Michael farms 550 ewes and 200 hoggs as a tenant at Culteuchar near Forgandenny, Perth. He also owns a share of a growing suckler herd of 45 Aberdeen-Angus cross Welsh black females and contract farms sheep for a neighbour, as well as being a farm consultant. More recently Michael has been an industry pioneer in how he looks at time, efficiency and productivity in farming.