Meet The Judges

Boomer Birch is Beef Programme Manager at Cogent Breeding Ltd, where he has worked for over 16 years. Coming from a farming background in Staffordshire, he plays a key role in driving genetic development and selecting bulls for pedigree, suckler, and beef-on-dairy markets.

Alongside his professional role, Boomer is a highly accomplished showman. He runs the Sky High Hereford and Boomer British Blue herds with his wife Millie, who also has the highly successful High Sky Shorthorn herd. The family has achieved multiple breed and interbreed championships across the UK and have broken the UK record for the highest-priced Hereford female sold at public auction twice.

Recent highlights include interbreed success at the Royal Welsh Show and being part of the winning pair for the prestigious Burke Trophy in 2024. The Birch enterprise focuses heavily on pedigree breeding and embryo transfer work across their multiple breeds.

Boomer is no stranger to Agri Expo, having competed there for over a decade and won several championships, including Hereford and Shorthorn titles.

 “I’m very honoured and excited to be asked to judge at Agri Expo. It always brings out the best of the best from across the country. To judge at an event like this is every stockperson’s dream, and I’ll be looking for stylish, correct cattle with real commercial value.”

 

Balfour Baillie of Sebay View Farm in Tankerness is a well-known face on the Scottish show circuit and runs a successful suckler herd alongside his family. Farming in partnership with his father and brother Hamish, the Baillie family manage around 500 acres, with a mixed enterprise of sheep and cattle.

Balfour runs approximately 80–90 Limousin and Belgian Blue cross suckler cows, selling progeny as spring stirks at 11–12 months of age. The farm also carries around 500 ewes, making it a busy family operation.

Having been involved with cattle all his life, Balfour has judged at a number of local and Aberdeenshire shows from a young age. A standout achievement came in 2023 when he bred a heifer that went on to win at the Welsh Winter Fair. All show calves are sold off farm, typically at 400–450kg, including prize-winning animals sold to noted buyers.

He regularly sources stock bulls through Harrison & Hetherington at Borderway Mart and currently runs six stock bulls.

“I’m absolutely honoured to be asked to judge at Agri Expo. It’s a big, big show that I’ve heard fantastic things about but never managed to attend due to calving, so this is a great opportunity. I’ll be looking for correctness, a strong top, good legs, and something with a bit of flash that really stands out in the ring.”

 

Jack Smyth of S&J Smyth, Smyths Livestock, in Tyrone runs a progressive beef and sheep enterprise. Based in Northern Ireland, the business includes pedigree Charolais cattle, commercial show cattle, and a flock of around 300 ewes.

The sheep enterprise focuses on pedigree Suffolks alongside Suffolk-cross Texels, with a strong emphasis on performance and presentation. The Smyth family have built a strong following for both males and females running successful online sales through Harrison & Hetherington and utilising embryo transfer.

Under the “Suffolk Smashers” name, the Smyths have achieved major commercial success, including selling the most expensive gimmer lamb ever recorded in the UK in 2025, alongside multiple five-figure sales. They also hold a commercial record for Suffolk-Texel cross ewe lambs.

Jack has also enjoyed success in the show ring, including interbreed championships at the Balmoral Show, and previously bred the Baby Beef champion Tabasco at Agri Expo in 2019.

 “I don’t do a lot of judging, so to be asked to judge at Agri Expo is like being asked to judge a Royal Show. It is without a doubt the crème de la crème of shows, and in judging I’ll be looking for something well fleshed, balanced, and with a bit of pizzazz – real showring presence and style.”

Martyn Archer of Carry House Farm near Hexham in Northumberland is highly respected for his work breeding Bluefaced Leicesters and producing high-quality Mule ewe lambs for the commercial market.

Farming all his life, Martyn has just retired from his sheep farming enterprise at Carry House Farm near Wark and he now lives in Haydon Bridge.  Over the years, he built a strong reputation for breeding a modern crossing-type sheep, with a focus on producing quality Mule lambs.

He has enjoyed considerable success selling at Borderway including two record breaking female sales to disperse his Bluefaced Leicester flock. A former chairman of NEMSA, Martyn brings a wealth of experience in breeding, showing, and judging.

Having previously judged at Agri Expo, he is looking forward to returning to the ring this year in the updated format of both pairs and single mules lambs.

“I’m delighted and honoured to be asked back to judge at Agri Expo. I thoroughly enjoyed it the first time and I know I will again. I’ll be looking for quality, conformation, and a modern Mule with power and strong breed characteristics.”

Craig Drysdale, 29, is no stranger to the show ring, having worked alongside Robert Paterson of the renowned Auchenlay Herd and shown cattle for him for many years. During this time, Craig saw them acheive considerable success, the herd secure breed championships at both the Royal Highland Show and the Royal Welsh Show.

Two years ago, Craig established his own British Blue herd, the Kinneswood Herd, near Kinross, Scotland. He has previously judged at the Stars of the Future Calf Show in Stirling and is honoured to have been invited to judge at Borderway Agri Expo.

Craig will be looking for a correct, stylish animal with plenty of presence and is looking forward to seeing some of the country’s most promising young cattle in the ring.

Based at Pepperstock, a small hamlet near Luton on the Hertfordshire/Bedfordshire border, Pepperstock Polled Herefords forms part of a mixed family farm. The herd was established in 2006 and today comprises around 100 pedigree Hereford cows, with breeding bulls and females sold to pedigree and commercial herds.

The Herd has achieved success in the sale ring, most notably top price at the Hereford society sale with 10,000 guineas for a heifer in February this year.

Jimmy has previously officiated at the Royal Cornwall Show and the Hereford Show and Sale in the South of England and he said: “I’m very pleased to have been asked to judge at Borderway Agri Expo and I’m really looking forward to it. I love Hereford cattle and it will be great to travel north and see what breeders are producing. There may not always be the same numbers of Herefords in the North as there are in the south, but I know that there is certainly the quality.

“I’ll be looking for cattle with shape, length and style, but also plenty of future potential for the year ahead and the seasonal sales. Ultimately, I’ll be looking for the type of animal I would be very happy to see in one of our own fields at home.”

Reece Simmers runs the Backmuir pedigree Simmental herd, based on the family farm near Keith in Aberdeenshire. Established in 2018, the herd now comprises around 120 pedigree Simmentals and has enjoyed significant show success, winning the Simmental section at the Royal Highland Show for the past five years, as well as taking the Interbreed Championship once and Reserve Interbreed twice.

Backmuir has also achieved notable success in the sale ring, with Simmental bulls selling to a top price of 28,000gns. Reece also broke the Shorthorn breed record with the first Shorthorn bull he sold, which realised 40,000gns. Earlier this year, Backmuir sold a pen of nine Simmental bulls to average more than £15,700.

Reece has previously judged the Next Generation Simmental Female Sale at Borderway and the Irish Premier Sale at Roscommon. He is a regular visitor to Borderway Agri Expo, although he has not previously exhibited cattle at the event.

He said: “I’m delighted to have been asked to judge at Agri Expo. There is always a very high-quality show of cattle and I’m really looking forward to it. I’ll be looking for animals with plenty of power, style and quality throughout.”

Thomas runs the Glenrock herd of 60 pedigree Limousin breeding females, comprising cows and in-calf heifers, alongside his father, David. The herd also uses high-health-status sires as part of its embryo programme.

Founded in Yorkshire by Thomas’s grandfather in 1982, the Glenrock herd has been developed using some of the finest Limousin bloodlines. Since 1995, it has been based at Howgillside Farm, near Lockerbie.

Thomas has judged throughout all four nations of the UK and is no stranger to Borderway. The family regularly sells pedigree stock, as well as prime cattle and sheep, through the Carlisle centre.

Speaking about what he will be looking for in the ring, Thomas said: “I like an animal that is flashy and eye-catching from the moment it enters the ring. It must also be structurally correct, stand well on its feet and have plenty of soft fleshing, with width carried right through from the front to the hindquarters.”

 

A regular visitor to Borderway Agri Expo, this will be Thomas’s first time judging at the event. He is particularly pleased to be involved in the first dedicated Limousin calf section.

He added: “I was delighted to be asked to judge at Borderway. It is one of the biggest events in the autumn showing calendar, so it is fantastic to see the Limousin breed represented in the calf classes for the first time.

“I expect to see a tremendous show of calves from across the country. The Limousin is such a versatile breed, with an important role across the pedigree, commercial and dairy sectors, and I am really looking forward to a great day.”

Matthew Milne farms at Elgin in Morayshire, on the family’s 600-acre mixed farming enterprise which combines malting barley and beef production and is home to the noted Elgin Charolais herd of around 40 pedigree cattle.

 

The herd has enjoyed success at some of the country’s leading shows and sales, including the Royal Highland Show and bull sales at Stirling and Carlisle, with a top price of £28,000 achieved at Stirling.

 

Matthew has judged Charolais cattle at events across the UK and Ireland. Although this will be his first visit to Borderway Agri Expo, he is well aware of the event and its reputation for showcasing some of the country’s best livestock.

 

He said: “I’m delighted to have been invited to judge at Agri Expo and in this the breed’s first calf show at the event I hope we see a great turnout across the Charolais classes.

 

“I’ll be looking for a good commercial animal with all the qualities needed to do the job, but it also needs to have that important extra bit of spark that makes it stand out in the show ring.”