2012 THE YEAR OF CELEBRATION!
What a year! The Royal Jubilee, the London Olympics and UK Sire Services celebrate their 10th Anniversary!
Ten years ago (On April 1st!) we opened the doors for business and started collecting semen from the first bulls on stud. Our aims and ambitions were to provide an independent service to the British cattle breeding sector by collecting, storing, distributing semen across the UK and around the world, adding value where we could by finding markets for that semen. Those simple aims have not changed, but on looking back it is amazing to see how the business has developed almost beyond recognition.
Soon we were being asked to import, store and distribute semen for retail companies here in the UK. The obvious attraction being that we are completely independent and are not a threat to their business. The progress on this front has been remarkable and we have had to move stores again to cope with the capacity required. UK Sire Services now works with many different AI retail companies to store and distribute semen and with some we are the European hub, re-exporting to countries all over the EU.
An On Farm Collection service was quickly established with contractors collecting semen throughout England, Scotland and Wales and sending the semen to us for processing, storing and distributing. This service continues to grow rapidly as breeders either want to add value to their product (the bull) by looking for markets here domestically or simply to act as an insurance policy should they lose the bull. By working with some of these retail outlets mentioned above we are often able to find a market for this semen.
But of course it is semen that is collected on stud, either at Venton or at Redpath Farms, Kelso where we established a satellite unit four years ago, that is immediately qualified for the EU and can be tested for many other worldwide markets. The development of this export trade has been fraught with difficulties, firstly the hangover of BSE and the 2001 FMD outbreak, then the 2007 FMD outbreak in Surrey, closely followed by Bluetongue. Through all of this the export of semen from British bulls can be a lucrative addition to the bottom line of a business. British stockmen have built up a fantastic reputation for breeding cattle that are stylish, functional, efficient and productive. The pressures on the livestock businesses here in the UK are enormous. We pay more for fuel than almost any other developed country and our labour costs are some of the highest in the world. Add to this the extreme shortage of land available for livestock production and you will immediately see the need to make the very best of every hectare and every cattle shed space. The world is starting to notice and we work hard to bring those customers to your door.
How far have we come? Since we started we have collected and processed several million doses of semen from over 1300 bulls from 44 different breeds! Semen from British bulls collected by UK Sires has been exported to over 30 countries so far with new enquiries all the time.
We are here to run a profitable business and help British breeders to run profitable businesses by creating additional income and to also to help and assist overseas agents and contacts find exactly the genetics they require for their specific needs.
We look forward to the next 10 years of growth and support for this Great British resource which can be summed up as UK Genetics.
Rob Wills
Director
Please click on one of the below links for updates in this area.
• THE NEW STORE
• DISTRIBUTION
• RETAIL PARTNERS
• CALF GROUPS
• EXPORT NEWS
• DOMESTIC COLLECTIONS
• CHARGES
