Opinion

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Charolais breed suits farmers and modern market requirements

* I feel I must take issue with Harry Hope's letter (Opinion, 23 June), which flew the flag for native breeds, and denigrated Charoláis cattle by claiming "their contribution to current supermarket demand is questionable". Has he not been to the shows and livestock markets and seen the fantastic Charoláis cattle that breeders are producing?

If the breed is as out of touch as he suggests, perhaps he can explain why beef finishers continue to pay a substantial premium for Charolais-sired stores over all other breeds.

Likewise, why do Charoláis cattle consistently achieve by far the highest average price of all other breeds at the Stirling bull sales if they are not in demand? Is he suggesting that all of these fanners are making an error of judgement.

Farmers aren't daft, they recognise the old maxim - when you've stopped weighing they've stopped paying.

What he fails to recognise is that, over the past half century, since the first Charoláis cattle were imported to Britain, we British breeders using a long tradition of pedigree breeding (remember when we were hailed as the stockyard for the world) have developed the modem easy-care Charoláis to meet the criteria of 21st century farmers and consumers.

Within our herd, both last year and 2015, we achieved a 100% calving rate and, so far this year, have already sold 26 poll Charoláis bulls and 35 poll pedigree females direct from the farm. This is by far the most pedigree Charoláis cattle we have ever sold in this timeframe. Hardly an indictment for a breed whose existence is "questionable".

Yes, Charoláis cattle were once used in France as draught animals and looked, as did their British equivalents, quite different over 100 years ago to today's cattle, but things move on and breeding development takes place.

Ralph Needham

Louth, Lincolnshire (past chairman and president, British Charoláis Cattle Society]

The interest in top-quality Charoláis stock, such as this bull at the Royal Highland Show, Kilbline 1 Instigator, demonstrates the popularity of the breed

Seventies was a greatdecade

* I could not disagree...