Why We Need A Genes Genie

Setting up a genetic bank is a complex and expensive ambition, with the cost of each collection varying from £900 to more than £6,000 depending on the species.

- Adam Henson

If you’ve visited the Cotswold Farm Park anytime in the last 40-odd years you may have noticed a large white plaque close to the entrance. In the middle of this metal sign is the White Park cattle logo of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST) and underneath are the words Approved Centre No.1. It’s simple and understated but it’s something which makes me feel immensely proud every time I walk past it. It dates back to the early 1970s and the time when the Trust was set up to preserve and promote the UK’s wonderful native breeds of farm livestock; not just our own county breeds like the Cotswold sheep, but dozens of others from the Golden Guernsey goat way down in the Channel Islands, right the way up to the Shetland cattle off the northeast coast of Scotland. Not long after it was created, the RBST decided to officially approve farm parks, city farms and rare breeds centres to guide the public to those attractions which were properly run, genuinely concerned with rare breeds and serious about conservation. As we were the first farm destination of its kind anywhere, we were honoured with the first plaque in the country.