The Farmers Mart Aug/Sep 2015 - Issue 41 | Page 59

Andrew Fisher
“The cattle are a pleasure to
work with. My cows are hardy
and would be happy to stay
out but I bring them in during
winter and they fatten off a beef
barley blend I get from Carrs
Billington.
This has already been a
good year for Andrew in the
show rings. Although just
pipped at the post for Supreme
Champion at both the Royal
Welsh and Great Yorkshire,
his cattle won five out of
the seven breed classes at
Harrogate – including male
champion, junior champion,
reserve junior champion,
reserve female champion
and reserve breed champion.
At the Royal Welsh in Builth
Wells he had male champion,
reserve breed champion and
reserve female champion. Bull
Nidderdale Ryan is set to take
the breed’s Bull of the Year title
at the National Show and Sale

that may be taking place as
you read this edition (Sale and
Show 12 September). It’s a feat
he managed two years ago with
Nidderdale Tornado. He also
had Senior Heifer of the Year
last year with Nidderdale Cleo
– and Nidderdale Athena may
take the Cow of the Year title
this year. He’s in the running for
Herd of the Year too, which he
also won in 2013.
“Nidderdale Ryan has bulled
14 cows and heifers this spring
and since he was by a different
bull that I’d hired in, and was
the only calf that I kept by that
bull, I should get three years
out of him.”
Andrew’s show team,
however, a bit like a top football
club, isn’t a one-man team by
any means. He already has his
sights set on next year.
“I have two younger bulls
coming on that I reckon have
the potential to be as good as

Ryan. The thing is that in this
game you have to be constantly
coming up with good stock to
keep up your reputation.”
Around 75 per cent of
Andrew’s sales are direct to
Weeton’s with the other 25 per
cent to pedigree breeders. He
sold his 2013 breed champion,
Nidderdale Tornado, for 2000
guineas at the breed sale.
Andrew would like to see
pedigree British Whites going
for more and believes they
can as the breed continues to
increase in popularity.
“This is the reason why I’m
pushing to get them bigger
and with greater muscle, so
they have increased weight.
At the end of the day weight
pays.”
Sheep also play an important
role in his farm business.
Andrew has 400 commercial
ewes made up of Texel X and
Mules.

“I’m moving more towards
the Texel X to get a better fat
lamb. I now have a Beltex X
Texel ram that is the best tup
I’ve ever had. You get a bit
more size and weight that way.
During the last few years it has
been sheep that have been the
better bet but with breeding
sheep currently down £30-£40
a head on last year, and fat
lambs £25-£30 down, the cattle
trade could make nearer to half
of the overall enterprise.”

‘The thing is
that in this game
you have to be
constantly coming
up with good
stock to keep up
your reputation’
Another sector that is
performing well is the trade in
wool from Andrew’s Teeswaters
and Wensleydales. He only has
10 Teeswater breeding ewes
and four Wensleydale breeding
ewes but the value of their wool
has increased massively in
recent years.
“I enjoy showing the
Teeswaters which I’ve been
doing since I was 15 years
old,” smiled. “I started with the
Wensleydales three years ago
because there was a lack of
numbers at the shows and I felt
they needed support. I show
at around 10 shows a year.
You make more off them for
their fleeces as they are in big
demand for their long, lustrous
staple. Fleeces are going for
£15 per kg and with an average
of 6 kgs off a hogg, it can mean
their fleece is often worth more
than the lamb they rear. I had
a text just the other day from a
lady wanting 15 fleeces.”
Andrew rents just over 200
acres on various locations in
a 5-10 mile radius from Well
House Farm.

www.farmers-mart.co.uk Aug/Sep 2015 59