Under the theme “Breeding solutions for a changing world”, the conference will explore sheep breeding topics within the wider role of genetics – the essential building blocks for the future of the UK sheep industry. Over the weekend, attendees will gain insight into sustainable solutions, industry resilience, policy direction, profitability and breeding to meet market demands.
Event Details
📍 Where: Radisson Blu Hotel East Midlands, Derby, DE74 2TZ
📅 When: Friday 20th – Sunday 22nd November 2026
⏰ The conference starts at 2pm on Friday and finishes after lunch on Sunday.
The weekend programme will feature expert speakers from across the UK sheep industry alongside commercial farmers and pedigree breeders, all sharing their experiences of putting science into practice.
Headline speaker for 2026 is Mark Ferguson, CEO of neXtgen Agri in New Zealand and host of the well-known Head Shepherd Podcast. Mark will provide his perspective on the global sheep industry and will also offer delegates the opportunity to enter a competition for one-to-one consultancy support, with further details to be announced soon.
Programme Highlights
A brief flavour of the programme includes:
- Friday afternoon – Sheep for the environment and using genomics in breeding decisions
- Saturday morning – Breeding for a sustainable future using data to guide productive enterprises
- Saturday afternoon – Genetics worth the investment and use of performance for economic progress
- Sunday morning – Healthy genetics – sheep survive better with them
The full conference programme is now available here.
Tickets & Booking
Tickets are available here.
For group bookings, please contact directly to request the online booking form.
For further information go to the NSA Website. https://nationalsheep.org.uk/events/sbrt/sheep-breeders-round-table-sbrt-2026/