North Agri Weekend

09 Oct North Agri Weekend

Posted at 12:53h in North by fionasayfc

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Swanson Siblings Take Top Spot at North Regional Prime Lamb Dressing

Members from across the North travelled to compete in the SAYFC North Regional Agri Competitions Day held at Quoybrae Auction Mart on Saturday 12^th October by kind permission of Aberdeen and Northern Marts. The day saw competitors take part in Prime Lamb Dressing and Agri Skill events.

On the day, there were 8 teams competing in the Agri skills, from West Aberdeenshire, Halkirk, Forss and Bower The events included changing plough metal, which was kindly judged By Graeme Sinclair from Gow Agri and James Gunn of Whitefield, fault finding in a tractor which was kindly provided by R Henderson Mechanical and Welding Services, condition scoring ewes and grading lambs, kindly judged by Liam Gunn CLB and a finance and business quiz and silage pit measurement kindly devised and ran by Willie Budge from SAC. It was a great morning with members learning new life skills through the events. . It was a close-fought competition with Bower A – made up of Benjamin Rogers, Ben Mackinnon and Ryan Cormack taking first place with a top score of 49 out of a possible 60. Close behind them was a second equal tie between Halkirk A – Liam Mackenzie, Scott Cormack and Murray Mackenzie and Bower B, Jak Murray, William Campbell, and Lauren Oag with 45 points each.

In the afternoon the North Prime Lamb Dressing saw eight Junior Teams from Keith and District, Bower, Forss and Halkirk along with five Senior teams from Forss, Halkirk, West Aberdeenshire, Bower, and Keith and District. The competition was judged by Michael Gunn and Gemma Duguid who commented ‘We were really impressed with the number of Junior entries and the effort all teams put in. There were some very well turned out lambs on the day’

Andrew Swanson Quarryside kindly provided the prime lambs for the competition along with the ewes and lambs for the Agri Skills events.

The winning team in the Junior section was Forss Members James and Bethany Swanson, scoring a respectable 88 out of a possible 100. Second place went to Halkirk Members Ross Campbell and Erin Mcguire with 75.5 points, and third place went to Halkirk Members Abbie Dunnet and Grace Nicolson scoring 60 points. In the senior section, first place went to Bower members Jak Murray and Lauren Oag with 75 points second place went to the West Aberdeenshire team of Sally Glennie and Callum Simpson with 64 points and third went to the Halkirk team made up of Morven Mackenzie and Murray Mackenzie with 60 points. Best Overall was awarded to James and Bethany Swanson of Forss.

On the Sunday the Agri and Rural affairs committee held a farm tour of Greenland Mains, by kind permission of the Pottinger family. It was a very well attended event with members taking away lots of helpful information and ideas.

North Regional Chairperson Euan Bremner added “We had a really successful weekend in Caithness for our Agri Weekend. Well done to all the teams who competed in the Agri Skills and Lamb Dressing on Saturday with some excellent Hawaiin Shirts on show at night. Thank you to the Agri and Rural Affairs committee for organising a very informative farm tour at Greenland Mains on Sunday.”