Red Poll cattle: A resilient breed, farmers say (2024)

Red Poll cattle breeders from around the world converged on the Shannon farm of Kelvin and Cath Lane earlier this week. They were part of a larger congress that gets together regularly, somewhere in the world, to discuss their favourite breed.

Many of the national and international delegation already knew each other from previous congresses held in Australia and the US for example. A meeting in Jamaica is being planned. “We all know each other which helps. Now we got to see how the Kiwi breeders live and farm,” said veterinarian Erick from Kenya.

“Red Polls are versatile animals, they are docile and they survive well in our climate. We milk them and sell the breed to smallholders who are spread throughout the country and have half acre or one or two acres each, so they can take one or two animals.

“The cows are grass fed and really easy to deal with when it comes to calving. The colour is lovely too.”

He said the local farmers use the breed primarily for milking, so they have milk to sell. Elsewhere in the world the breed is also use for meat.

Erick said the tour leaves plenty of time for delegates to explore the country they are visiting, so attending is not just work and gathering information. “We have been to the Antarctic Centre in Christchurch and Te Papa in Wellington.”

This is his third tour, having previously visited the US and Australia. The Red Poll Congress is held every three years and attracts a lot of delegates from the US, Australia and New Zealand.

Another visitor is Orville Palmer. He hails from Jamaica and is chief technical director for the Ministry of Agriculture there. He said Red Poll cattle are big business where he is from.

“[The breed] has a lot of potential. It is our beef cattle of choice. Our Government is looking to secure a good source of protein for its people and Red Polls allow farmers to become self-sufficient in beef.

“I am here to identify new genetic material to try and get into Jamaica and I am scouting in preparation of the next congress which will be held in Jamaica in three years’ time.”

He said Jamaican farms are small compared to those in New Zealand, though they are big compared to those in Kenya.

“Most have between 10 and 30 cows. We are looking for an animal that grows faster and gives more meat.”

It is his first congress, though he has travelled widely throughout the Caribbean and has seen much of the US. He has also visited Ghana and Denmark.

“New Zealand is the first country I have visited that I find as beautiful as Jamaica,” he said.

“Red Polls taste nice,” is all breeder Neil Wilton from Carterton, one of many Kiwis on the tour, wanted to say.

Cath Lane had rounded up her local discussion group to help cater for a lunch for the visitors, while Kelvin organised Robert Ketu to attend for the karakia and represent local iwi. He had rounded up his Red Polls in a paddock near the road, so delegates had easy access.

For Lane, Red Polls have a dual purpose: milk as well as meat. He said he believed Red Polls are popular in warmer climates as they can stand the heat much better than black cows.

Red Polls have a nice deep red/brown colour. While the breed’s hair is red, the skin is white. Lane has had Red Polls since 1990. “It is the third or fourth most popular breed in the UK, where breed books go back much further than here,” he said.

Red Polls came to New Zealand in 1898, and hail from Norwich in England.

“English settlers brought them here and also to other places, like South Africa and Jamaica,” he said.

“They are also popular in the Pacific, because of their heat reflection.”

He said New Zealand is setting the standard for several breeds, including Red Poll, hence overseas breeders being keen to come and have a look at the work our breeders have been doing.

“Our isolation helps when breeding cattle. New Zealand has the standard for many breeds. We are like the seed bank in Norway. You can go back to the original here.”