World Guernsey Cattle Federation president Amy Cleggett said the conference was held every three years and the last time it hit our shores was in 2007.
She said the conference would be an opportunity for breeders to showcase their animals on farm, along with the wider Australian agricultural industry, but it wasn’t all just about cows.
The conference will also highlight some of the many iconic tourist highlights across Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, NSW and Queensland.
The World Guernsey Conference will be held in Devonport, Tasmania, on March 10 and 11, and will be a global gathering of breeders, farmers, industry leaders and enthusiasts, all united by a shared passion for the Guernsey cow.
“The conference will foster international collaborations, connect communities and cultivate the future by showcasing the best of our breed.
“It also allows for a celebration of what we have achieved here in Australia and will act as catalyst for continued growth,” Amy said.
The theme of the conference is ‘Leading the way’, and over two days speakers and sessions will cover a variety of topics important to the breed and wider dairy industry.
Highlights include an overview of the Australian dairy industry and Guernsey breed, a progress report on genomics and the development of a global Guernsey genomic database, moving forward in a climate-focused economy and fertility.
There will also be a chance to engage with sponsors and their trade stalls during breaks.
The Guernsey Federation includes delegates from across the member associations, which include the United Kingdom, Guernsey Island, Canada, USA, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Italy and Kenya.
Amy said genetically there was a global Guernsey population and it was important people continued to collaborate globally.
She said here in Australia, Guernseys were known for producing the world’s finest milk.
“They are a very docile breed with a great temperament and if you grew up around Guernseys, it is very hard to move away from the breed because there is just so many positives about them,” Amy said.
She said they produced delicious drinking milk and provided the perfect foundation for niche products, including butter and ice cream, due to their high milk solid content.
“Guernseys are feed efficient, adaptable and tolerate heat really well,” Amy said.
“Naturally they have the highest percentage of the A2A2 gene at around 90 per cent.”
The Guernsey breed was first imported to Australia in 1898 by a dairy expert in the NSW Department of Agriculture.
The initial import included three bulls and six cows, with an emphasis on utilising the bulls in commercial herds to upgrade to Guernsey. Further imports followed in the early 1900s to establish the breed in Australia.
With interest growing, breeders held a conference in 1911 in Sydney and the Guernsey Cattle Society of Australia was formed.
In 1912, with numbers expanding, the society decided the time had come to create an Australian Guernsey Herd Book. Admission into the herd book required animals to have been registered in a recognised herd book prior to being imported into Australia or be the progeny of these animals.
The first Australian Guernsey Herd Book was then published in 1914.
Since then both the Guernsey cow and the Australian Guernsey Society have undergone steady progress.
Today there are approximately 90 members across six states and the society itself has expanded into NSW, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania and a combined SA/WA branch. There has also been the development of sub branches and district clubs in some states.
The first showing of Guernsey cattle was recorded in 1906 at the Sydney Royal Show. The Bull class was won by Flaxly’s Prince, exhibited by Mr Sylvester Brown. Prince was sired by Rose Price 54 out of Flaxy 52, who were both part of the original import to Australia.
The cow class was won by a cow called Creamer, exhibited by Mr George Ray of the Picton Stud.
Championship classes were not introduced in Australia until 1910, and today the Guernsey breed is exhibited extensively at calf days, country and royal shows all across the country and at International Dairy Week.
For more information on the breed and the conference, visit guernseyaus.com
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