History of the Northern Ireland Blue Cattle Club

The inaugural Meeting of the Northern Ireland Club was held at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Klass Van Zanten, Rowantree Road, Dromore, Co. Down in the Spring of 1988. It was to have taken place before Christmas of the previous year but had to be postponed owing to bad weather.

At that meeting was a handful of breeders who for one reason or another had already registered herd prefixes and who were further contemplating breeding Belgian Blues. A number of members present at that meeting are still active in the Club.

The first Show and Sale was held at Automart, Portadown on Thursday, 30th November, 1989. There was a small entry of twelve bulls and seven females from those early breeders who were K. Van Zanten, J. M. Morrison & Son, Glenavy Belgian Blue Herd, Woodside Pedigree Stock Breeders, Mackey Bros., Martin Bros., A. Cleland and H. A. Lusby. Also included in the catalogue were Grade Register Females, Recipients, Embryos and commerical cross-bred Belgian Blues.

This Autumn sale has run consecutively since then, and in March 1998, a Spring sale was in duced at Automart and is up and running each year, as well as the Autumn sale. Prices have improved over the years and even in the midst of the BSE crisis, have held their own.

Every Sale has had a crowd of 'would be purchasers', an atmosphere and an air of expectancy which augers well for the breed.