Introducing the Judges for Beef Expo 2019

The judges for the cattle competitions during the National Beef Association (NBA) Beef Expo 2019 have been announced. 

The National Beef Association Commercial Cattle Show is judged over 10 classes and schedules and entry forms are available for download here. The South Devon Herd Book Society Performance Championships are a showcase for breed plan performance-recording South Devon herds. More details available here.

Native & Continental cattle classes and Supreme Championships

Gavin Scott - Lithlingow, Scotland

Gavin Scott of Linlithgow will be judging the Native and Continental classes and Supreme Championships

Experienced judge at many national shows, and award-winner himself, Gavin runs a commercial herd on the farm at home, with keen interest from one of his daughters and his wife. Gateside Farm is home to 90+ cattle, breeding with a pedigree Limousin bull and supplying two local butchers 52 weeks of the year.

Gavin has achieved many show successes including the calf championships at the 2015 and 2017 Scottish Winter Fair, which he won with homebred animals. He has won the Smithfield twice, reached reserve three times and won the Butcher’s Championships at the Scottish Winter Fair no less than seven times.

When it comes to judging experience, Mr Scott has judged the East of England Smithfield Show in 2016, the beef interbreed at the Great Yorkshire show in 2017 and the Scottish Winter Fair in 2006 to name a few.

Baby Beef classes, Baby Championship and Young Handlers Competition

Tudur Edwards - Corwen, Wales

Tudur Edwards, a familiar face on the show circuit, will be judging the Baby Beef classes, Baby Championship and Young Handlers competition. Mr Edwards brings a wealth of experience, both as an exhibitor and a judge, keeping pedigree Limousin and Charolais cattle on his farm at home alongside a Limousin X British Blue commercial herd, of which he fattens near 50 per year.

Tudur has twice been crowned Champion of the Royal Welsh summer show with homebred commercial cattle and has achieved Reserve Champion twice. He was also the 2015 winner of the Agri-Expo Supreme Beef Championships.

No stranger to winter shows, Mr Edwards won the baby beef championships at the Welsh Winter Fair in 2004 with a homebred heifer, also achieving reserve champion at the Royal Smithfield in the same year. He has also judged The Welsh Winter Fair and other local and national shows such as Aberdeen Show and Anglesey County Show.

South Devon Performance Championships

Mervin Rowe – Tregondale, South East Cornwall

Mervin Rowe will be judging the South Devon Herd Book Society Performance Championships, which are back at Beef Expo for the third year. 

Mervin has worked with South Devon cattle his whole life. He runs the 80-strong Tregondale Herd of prize winning South Devons at his family farm in South East Devon in partnership with his son Richard.

An experienced judge, Mervin has judged at prestigious shows throughout the country, including the Smithfield Championship when it was held at the Royal Bath and West Show, and sits on the South Devon Herd Book Society judging panel.

Mr Rowe has dedicated much of his time to the South Devon breed; he is past president of the South Devon Herd Book Society in 2012/13, and was elected President of the World South Devon Association at the World Conference in South Africa in 2017, encouraging closer connections between South Devon organisations around the world.