Why should we be putting resources into conserving them?

So why rare breeds matter and why native breeds matter really goes under three categories.

We've got genetic diversity and resilience.

We've got food security, conservation grazing, cultural and agricultural heritage and climate adaptation.

If I start with genetic diversity and resilience, we don't yet know which livestock genetic characteristics will be vital to tackling the challenges of the future, such as the impacts of climate change and future diseases.

But what we do know is once these genetics are lost, we can no longer draw them back to tackle any future challenges.

As for food security, If we think back before the 1940s, our native breeds today were the standard breeds that you saw on farms.

Is that a threat to these rare breeds that some of these breeders are going to be, you know, retiring or passing their farms on to the next generation or, you know, selling up? I mean, is that a big challenge or do you find that young people, I mean, as you just mentioned there with some of your examples, are young people really receptive, you know, are young people driving, you know, children asking for a rare breed for Christmas? You know, what do you think the future is going to look like?