The Royal Ulster Agricultural Society is pleased to announce that Brendan Kelly from Ballymena will judge the lamb classes and Jean McCollum from Antrim will adjudicate the competitive lamb young handler classes at this year’s Royal Ulster Premier Beef & Lamb Championships.
Brendan Kelly
Brendan has been a member of the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society for many years and plays an avid role in the RUAS’s Sheep Shearing Committee. A beef and sheep farmer from the townland of Crevilly-Valley, Brendan works in partnership with his two brothers and has been purchasing fat lambs since the age of 12.
His passion for the sheep industry has taken him to both local and international rural enterprises, with his adventure to New Zealand in 1988 being a firm Fhighlight as he shore sheep across the islands for six months.
Brendan currently serves as the Northern Ireland representative on the British Wool Board and holds the position of Chairman in the Ulster Farmers’ Union Beef and Lamb Committee. At this year’s Royal Ulster Premier Beef & Lamb Championships, Brendan is looking forward to adjudicating the highly competitive classes and crowning the illustrious Best Butcher Pair.
Jean McCollum
Originally from County Down, Jean learned the basics of stock judging from her time in the Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster as an avid member of Ballywalter YFC.
After marrying her husband Stephen and moving to County Antrim, the couple founded the Carmavy Texel flock in 1994 and, alongside their two daughters, have had numerous successes at local shows over the years.
When she’s not showing her own sheep, Jean regularly acts as a judge for young handler competitions at local agricultural shows and for the YFCU Sheep Stock Judging Competition. Having been awarded the title of Texel Reserve Champion at the Balmoral Show, Jean’s expertise in the ring has made her the perfect judge for these ambitious classes and she can’t wait to see the entrants demonstrating their skillsets in front of an electric crowd.
The seventh Royal Ulster Premier Beef & Lamb Championships will take place on Tuesday 26th November at the Eikon Exhibition Centre, Lisburn. To keep up to date with the latest news and running order for the day follow the Royal Ulster Premier Beef & Lamb Championships on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X.
