Glenkiln Farms’ manager George Somerville was faced with re-stocking a herd of 500 suckler cows, so he set about listing all the traits he saw as a priority for the 1,500 ha, mostly-hill estate, run by a staff of only five. Cumbrian marginal land farmer Tony Wood is convinced that the Beef Shorthorn is the key to survival since decoupling of agriculture for the family farm. A mission to find a particular type of duck led to the foundation of the successful Newfield herd of pedigree Beef Shorthorns in north Yorkshire 20 years ago. The Blelack herd prefix which is synonymous with top quality pedigree cattle breeding now lends itself to a herd of Beef Shorthorns. The Whitebred Shorthorn has played an integral part of the farming system on an upland Dumfriesshire unit for more than half a century.