At the BPA I was able to combine my belief in the quality of UK breeding stock and technology and the need to promote these on the world stage with a passion for the conservation of our native pig breeds to which I had been introduced when supplying Berkshire pigs to the Japanese market.

In the aftermath of Foot and Mouth 2001 it was a clear that a new approach was needed for both exports and conservation and it was out of the Cost and Responsibility Sharing review that the UK Export Certification Partnership was born. UKECP bring together the market access teams in Defra with industry specialists to open new markets and crucially maintain access for existing ones with support from AHDB, other levy boards and industry partners.

I also chair Defra’s advisory committee on Farm Animal Genetic Resources – UKGLE. In this role I bring together my commitment to the UK pig breeding sector and the world class science that it supports as well as my concerns for our native breeds and the need for these to be conserved in a national genebank.