Introduction
The Hereford with its gentle white face is known all over the world. There is something special about the soil and water and atmosphere of Herefordshire that has helped to create the unique qualities of this international breed. Herefords will stand out in the arctic snows of Finland, endure the heat of the northern Transvaal, withstand the tough climate and rough grazing of northern Uruguay or the sub - tropical zones of Brazil and still manage to thrive.

The Hereford (A Short History)
In Herefordshire in the 1770's the Herefordshire breed was the first accepted as an distinct breed of cattle. The Hereford breed developed on the rich pastures of Herefordshire and is bred to produce the highest quality red marbled beef from grass alone. Since the early 1800's, Herefords have been bred in Ireland and we have kept the tradition of grass-based beef production at which our breed excels.

The origin of the Hereford is shrouded in the mists of time but it is generally agreed that it was founded on the draught ox decended from the small red cattle of Roman Britian and from a large white Welsh breed once numerous along the border of England and Wales.

The Hereford Herd Book Society was founded in 1878, The herd book was opened in 1846 and since1886 has been closed to any animal whose sire or dam had not been previously entered so that for over 150 years the purity of the breed has remained intact. Because of its performance as a crossing sire on commercial cattle and indigenous breeds in many countries the impact of the Hereford on world beef production can hardly be appreciated. This widespread popularity could only have come about because farmers, ranchers and feeders found the Hereford to be consistently profitable under a wide range of climates and conditions. More than five million pedigree Herefords exist in over 50 countries. The Hereford export trade began in 1817 spreading across the United States and Canada through Mexico to the great beef raising countries of South America. Today, Herefords dominate the world scene from the praries to the pampas and the Russian Steppes. The former USSR has more than two million white-faced cattle, Austrailia and South Africa have vast numbers and they can be found in Israel, Egypt, Romania, Japan, Spain New Zealand and throughout Europe and Scandinvia.

Because of the growth of the breed overseas and the formation of societies in many countries the World Hereford Council was set up in 1951 to deal with problems of mutual interest to pedigree hereford breeders every where.

The Production of Herefords in Ireland
Irish Hereford producers are aiming at a naturally produced top-quality carcass - efficient feed conversion - high growth rate and increased length with a careful watch on conformation, easy fleshing and milk production. It is felt that Irish Herefords have reached the optimum height and the greater emphasis is now on conformation. Fertility and docility and longevity are also major breed assets. The Irish Department of Agricultureís weight recording, performance testing and progeny testing programmes have been an important element and measurement in the progress and adaptation of the breed. The new Irish Cattle Breeding Federation will expand and develop on this in the years ahead.

Our best customer for bulls is the Irish dairy farmer. During this last decade the Irish dairy herd has lost a lot of its dual-purpose character through the introduction of more extreme milk-producing bloodlines. While benefiting the dairyman, this policy has presented the meat industry with difficulties. These can only be overcome by the use of beef sires which have a definite advantage for growth conformation and fleshing ability on this type of animal. We are confident that the Hereford breed is in a position to supply these sires.

Increasingly Hereford bulls are used as terminal sires in continental cow beef based commercial beef suckler herds to provide earlier maturity and improve beef eating quality. 348,030 Hereford sired calves were born successfully in 1999. The Hereford cross beef cow is the top choice of Irish commercial beef suckler farmers producing some 285,673 live calves in 1999.

Ireland's relative freedom from any major epizodic diseases has been a contributing factor in this success.

Ireland exports a large proportion of its agricultural production and thereby adds to the food store in the E.C. Pressure on the E.C. Budget and G.A.T.T. will inevitably force production down and herein lies an opportunity for Herefords to play their part in increasing margins to Irish and European farmers by replacing quantity with quality. The influence of the green lobby and the ban on hormones has already resulted in a noticeable upturn in the demand for Herefords for their early maturity and their ability to finish more economically at lower weights.

On the home market the total size of the food bill, in all sectors of the catering market is £500 million per year and 80% of the butchers kill are Hereford or Hereford cross heifers. The main reason for this superiority being taste and flavour, as Irish consumers dislike the dry meat of Continental breeds. To promote the superiority of Hereford beef Irish Hereford Prime Ltd. was set up and has achieved considerable success including a major French award for quality and excellence.

Irish Pedigree Hereford registrations for the year to 30th June, 2003 were approximately 3,700. (3,578 horned and 122 polled) In the past we have been successful in exporting Herefords to the U.K., Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Belgium, Canada, U.S.A., Argentina, Australia, France and South Africa.

The Irish Hereford
The hereford was introduced to Ireland in 1775, from that time the Irish livestock breeder has found in the Hereford a unique ability to adopt to vairying managements, environments and feed resources. The Hereford female has established herself as a superior mother cow with the capacity to meet producers demands for productivity and efficiency. The Irish dairy farmer has long recognised the merit of using a Hereford sire on his Freisian dairy cattle. The black Hereford cross Friesian animal is always saleable at a premium price.

The modern Irish Hereford is well muscled with good size and volume with strong feet and legs. The modern Irish Hereford sire is built to withstand the rigours of tough breeding seasons. Irish Hereford cross animal is a bye word and its ability to forage is unquestionable. Irish Herefords are bred to realise their maximum potential under extreme conditions. There is a consistancy and uniformity of size in the Irish Hereford. The wide genetic base of the breed allows for specialisation to meet the varity of needs from the beef producer.

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