A NEW drive has been launched to help farmers in Cumbria, north Lancashire and the Dales improve the productivity of their flocks and reduce costs.

The web-based initiative has been set up by a group of Hampshire Down ram producers to highlight the breed's 'incredible growth rate and cost effectiveness'.

Nine breeders around the country are involved in the project, including South Lakeland sheep farmer Judith Galbraith, who has started her own pedigree flock of Hampshire Downs.

The website - highindexrams.co.uk - has been launched ahead of the autumn sales as an online resource for commercial farmers.

The aim is to provide 'easy access' to a network of breeders alongside information on the breed and rams for sale including their Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs).

“We were so pleased with the performance of our cross bred lambs when we first tried a ‘Hamp’ ram that we decided to start our own pedigree flock," said Judith. "We feel strongly that this breed, which has made great strides in the last 15 years producing faster growing, leaner lambs with improved muscle depth, could play a significant role in modern sheep farming.

“The pressure on profitability in the sheep sector is a real concern and farmers are looking for ways to reduce the cost of production and become more efficient. There’s new interest in the native Hampshire Down Sheep as a terminal sire but it’s not easy to find out where producers are and the quality of animals they breed. This website will change that.

"It can be difficult for farmers to find performance information for rams at local auctions and often rams that fed concentrates to look good on sale days can have problems with maintaining weight and full fertility after the sale. This website is a modern way to source rams that are fit to work from day one with the bonus of knowing that their lambs are likely to perform well too.”