The Farmers Mart Jun-Jul 2019 - Issue 63 | Page 32

32 NSA NORTH SHEEP
JUN/JUL 2019 • farmers-mart.co.uk
Travel bursary opens the door to overseas
sheep farming explorations for lucky recipients
THE National Sheep Association
(NSA) and the Merchant of the
Staple of England (The Staple)
are pleased to announce the two
successful recipients of the first
ever NSA Samuel Wharry travel
bursaries to be awarded by both
organisations.
Selected from a high calibre
group of short-listed applicants,
Marie Prebble from Kent and
Charlotte (Charlie) Beaty from
Warwickshire can now begin
to firm up travel plans as both
receive an award of £2,750 to
explore sheep farming enterprises
overseas.
Marie who farms 550 Romney
breeding ewes in Kent is planning
on using her bursary to travel to
Norway and Iceland following
a trip to compete at the world
shearing championships in France
with shearing and sheep welfare
central to her journey. Marie says:
“I am looking forward to putting
my environmental sciences back-
ground to great use in studying
‘practical considerations for wel-
fare during shearing in the North-
ern Hemisphere’ by connecting
animal, social and environmental
sciences with their practical appli-
cations on farm.”
The second recipient, Charlie
Beaty, farms 300 North Country
Mules in Warwickshire alongside
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an arable and beef enterprise
and is planning on travelling to
New Zealand to explore ways of
improving grassland management.
Charlie explains: “With the current
uncertainty facing the UK sheep
industry I feel that sheep farm-
ers should be looking to lower
production costs by maximising
the potential of the cheapest feed
available to them – grass. I have
chosen to travel to New Zealand
as I don’t believe grassland man-
agement can be seen better in any
other country”
Marie and Charlie were se-
lected following interviews with
NSA Northern Ireland Region
Development Officer Edward
Adamson, NSA Wales and Border
Ram Sales Director Jane Smith,
NSA Operations Director Joanne
Briggs and Stephen Fell from the
Staple. Joanne reports: “This is
the first time NSA has awarded a
bursary and we are thrilled with
the outcome so far. This bursary is
named in memory of NSA Chair-
man Samuel Wharry who sadly
passed away suddenly in 2017.”
Marie and Charlie both plan to
set off for their information-gath-
ering trips later in 2019.
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