AHDB Pork Board
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Robert Beckett
- Name
- Robert Beckett
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork Board
- Job Title
- Producer
- Introduction
Yorkshire pig producer Robert Beckett runs a multisite indoor breed-to-finish pig business. He is the son of a Shropshire farmer, where he started off as a stockman, progressing through all levels of management to his current position of Joint Managing Director.
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Rick Buckle
- Name
- Rick Buckle
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork Board
- Job Title
- Producer
- Introduction
Rick Buckle returned to the family farm in 1992 after completing an NDA at Bishop Burton College of Agriculture. The family partnership owns, rents, and contract farms more than 5,000 acres of arable land in East Yorkshire. He runs the pig enterprise on the farm which consists of a 1050 sow farrow to finish indoor unit.
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Adam Cheale
- Name
- Adam Cheale
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Processor
- Introduction
Adam Cheale is a director of the family firm Cheale Meats and is also on the board of the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers. He joined the firm doing the engineering before moving on to IT then day-to-day running. He is now responsible for the sale of the sows and boars processed by the firm.
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William de Klein
- Name
- William de Klein
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Processor
- Introduction
William de Klein studied Meat Science and Agricultural Economics at Wageningen Agricultural University and completed an MBA with TIAS Business School.
As son of a Dutch farm manager, he feels closely aligned with all aspects of pig production. He started his career 12 years ago as a meat quality researcher in a Dutch pig abattoir. He has been Site Director of the Malton Bacon Factory for the last 3 years. William currently is a Board member of the Karro Food Group.
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Barry Lock
- Name
- Barry Lock
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Processor
- Introduction
Barry joined the AHDB Pork board in 2012 and has 24 years’ experience in the UK pig processing and Agriculture sectors. Having recently left Vion where he was Agriculture Director Barry is now Site Director at Cranswick Norfolk’s manufacturing facility.
His time within the industry has seen him in Operational, Commercial and Agricultural roles dealing with many customers in both retail and manufacturing sectors.
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Robert Mutimer
- Name
- Robert Mortimer
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork Board
- Job Title
- Producer
- Introduction
Robert Mutimer and his wife Helen currently run 750 outdoor sows with indoor straw based finishing, producing pigs for the Waitrose supply chain. They have developed Swannington Farm to Fork, a wholesale and retail butchery with business with two shops and 200 wholesale customers in Norfolk and North Suffolk.
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Andrew Saunders
- Name
- Andrew Saunders
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Tulip UK
- Introduction
Andrew is agricultural director of Tulip, the UK’s largest vertically integrated pig production, slaughtering and processing business.
His responsibilities include overseeing BQP, the largest UK pig production business covering 250 farms predominantly in East Anglia covering all aspects from grain supply to the abattoir and the sourcing of pigs for Tulip’s four slaughter facilities.
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Mike Sheldon
- Name
- Mike Sheldon
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Chairman
- Introduction
Mike Sheldon worked with PIC before setting up Greenway Farms, a 1200 sow unit producing parent boars and grandparent gilts, which he sold in 2014. He is a former member of the BPEX board and the founding Chief Executive of the NPA. From 2012 he has been the chairman of the Pig Sector Board of Red Tractor Assurance and also chairs the Red Tractor Marketing Committee.
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Robert Shepherd
- Name
- Robert Shepherd
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Producer
- Introduction
After leaving school Robert served as an officer in the Light Infantry.
He studied agriculture at The Royal Agricultural College before coming home to a mixed farm on the Hampshire/Dorset border. The farm runs 600ha of arable, a 300 cow suckler herd (selling progeny finished) and 2000 outdoor sows (selling half the progeny finished). Robert has served on various boards over the years and is involved in running the IAM Leadership Development Course.
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Simon Watchorn
- Name
- Simon Watchorn
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Producer
- Introduction
Suffolk pig producer Simon Watchorn runs a 600-sow outdoor breed-to-finish unit and has been involved in the industry for the last 20 years. Simon, is also a director of Thames Valley Cambac, a former member of the NPA producer group and also sat on the Real Welfare review group.
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Iain Wylie
- Name
- Iain Wylie
- Organisation
- AHDB Pork
- Job Title
- Independent
- Introduction
Iain graduated from London University, Wye College with a degree in Horticulture and Business Management. He then had a career in retail working for Sainsbury’s, Homebase and the garden centre sector, most recently as managing director of Grosvenor Garden Centre. He served on national committees including the Horticultural Trades Association Council and, recently, the Garden Industry Marketing Board.