Award marks service to sheep industry (From Redditch Advertiser)

Award marks service to sheep industry

7:20am Sunday 14th March 2010

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DAVID Jones, who spent 25 years as regional manager with the British Wool Marketing Board, has been presented with the 2010 George Hedley Memorial Award.

The award is the National Sheep Association’s top accolade and is made annually to an individual to reflect outstanding contribution to the UK sheep industry.

Mr Jones, who spent 50 years in the wool industry, retired from the British Wool Marketing Board in 2008.

During his career, he was involved with the British Wool Marketing Board’s training programme from its instigation in 1998 and maintained a close liaison with several sheep breed societies on their breeding schemes on wool production and quality.

In his role as regional manager for the BWMB, he was responsible for maintaining quality standards and implementing new technological improvements for grading wool to ensure only the finest product reached the market.

He is also a wool handling judge with the British Isles Shearing Competition Association (BISCA), a fleece judge and a judge of wool on the hoof.

He has served on the shearing committee of the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society for 24 years and is a committee member of the National Sheep Association, Cymru region.

Last year, Mr Jones was awarded the John Gittins Memorial Award, presented by the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society, for his contribution to the Welsh sheep industry.

“It’s a great privilege to have won the George Hedley award but to have received two such prestigious awards within a year is certainly icing on the cake,” he said.

“I feel greatly honoured. The British Wool Marketing Board is fundamental to the effective marketing of wool and deserves sheep producers’ continued support.

“The price of wool is substantially better this year. If it had always been at this level it would certainly have made my life a lot easier after all those years of attending farmers’ meeting.”

Frank Langrish, chairman of the British Wool Marketing Board, said the George Hedley Award was “hugely well deserved”.

He added: “David has had a lifetime working with wool and his technical knowledge and grading experience is second to none.

“The industry is very fortunate to have David’s continued commitment to wool through his ongoing work with shearing and wool handling at the Royal Welsh Show.”

Married to Kate and with a son, Iwan, working in the USA, Mr Jones’s retirement has enabled him to continue his passion for country sports.

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