The president of the Irish Moiled Cattle Society, Chris Ball along with his wife Margaret from Uttoxeter in Staffordshire, England will be attending The 157th Balmoral Show on Wed 13th May 2026 at the Eikon Exhibition Centre, Lisburn, to support the Irish Moiled breeders showing off their cattle, which will kick start the centenary celebratory events to mark the 100th anniversary of the Irish Moiled Cattle Society Herdbook.
Chris is the current Irish Moiled Cattle Society (IMCS) president, he was appointed this esteemed title at the 2025 AGM after he retired as a director of the IMCS, having given 30 years of dedication to preserving and improving the Irish Moiled breed. Chris has been a prominent figure in the Society since joining in 1996 right up to his retirement in 2025, during his time he was chairperson for nine years and remains the longest serving chairperson of the IMCS Society. During his time involved with the breed he was very much a dedicated breeder, owner of the well-known Prestwood Herd with huge success in the showring. Chris is also an experienced judge of the breed, having judged Irish Moiled cattle at major events such as Balmoral Show and the (NI) IMCS National held at Antrim Show as well as many other events held in Northern Ireland, Great Britain and Republic of Ireland. Besides his involvement with the Irish Moiled’s, Chris is a trustee for the British Breeds Revival Trust and has been extensively involved with the Rare Breeds Survival Trust to help protect native livestock.
Chris purchased his very first Irish Moiled cattle from Sheila Clarke of Dorset, England, an in-calf cow called Lagan Roisin who went on to have a bull calf Prestwood Roibean. He then also purchased the cow Springfield Charming from Tom Clarke and daughter Libby Clarke from Magheralin, Lurgan, N.Ireland. Chris also purchased 3 breeding females from prominent breeders at that time, Armour and Margaret Kennedy, from just outside Cullybackey, Co. Antrim, the three females were daughter, mother and grandmother Aughnakeally Maisie, Aughnakealy Lass and Aughnakeally Annie. Back in 1997 Chris attended the annual rare breed stock show and sale at the Ulster Folk Museum, Cultra,Co. Down, it was here where Chris purchased the famous Glassdrummond Cherry 3rd as an eight-month-old heifer for £2,000 which was a breed record at that time. Glassdrummond Cherry 3rd was bred by Sam Smiley of Ballynahinch, Co. Down who still remains a very much active pedigree Irish Moiled breeder. Having an eye for quality stock that would not only breed for him but also win in the showring Chris’s investment paid off when this heifer calf became a prominent animal around shows in England and was unbeaten in the showring for many years.
Chris has fond memories from his time in the breed commenting that the day he purchased Glassdrummond Cherry 3rd at Cultra he also purchased Glassdrummond Bluebell on the same day. He took Bluebell out to Stafford Show were she got placed 2nd which he feels didn’t go down well with Bluebell as she kicked the cow which had got first place in the ribs, causing the cow to jump sideways knocking the Judge to the ground – no people or animals were hurt, other than their pride!
Chris loved his trips over to Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland viewing Irish Moiled cattle and besides breeding great Irish Moiled cattle the other thing the breeders had in common was their hospitality, he said every herd he visited which could have been up to five herds in a day, he wasn’t allowed to leave until he had eaten, needless to say you went home with extra weight gain.
A brush with cancer Chris decided he would retire from breeding Irish Moilies to concentrate on his health and the Uttoxeter based herd of Irish Moilies was dispersed. After a time of recuperating and starting to feel better the opportunity came about where he was asked to judge the Pedigree Calf Fair Beef Expo NI held at the Kings Hall, Belfast in 2015. Chris couldn’t resist the temptation of once again being involved with the breed he dearly loved when his champion calf that day was a young heifer – Curraghnakeely Pandora 7thand before he left Northern Ireland to head back to Uttoxeter, Chris had sealed the deal with Irish Moiled breeders Nigel Edwards and Michelle McCauley (N & M Moilies).
In 2017, Chris took Curraghnakeely Pandora 7th, then a young first calver with calf a foot, to the Royal Three Counties Show, Malvern, England. Pandora went on to win several titles that day, starting with the Irish Moiled breed champion, then Rare and Minority Interbreed Champion and finally the overall Champion of Champions of the show. A title Chris had so many times tried to win but always just fell short getting Reserve Rare and Minority Breed Champion on 2 other occasions and for his one and only Irish Moiled to win all that she could win on that day, he is not ashamed to say, he broke down in tears that day on winning a lifetime dream. His comment about Pandora was “she was born to wear a halter”!
When Chris joined the Irish Moiled Cattle Society, the breed was struggling hard for survival, they were Category 1 ‘At Risk by the RBST Watchlist, the breed is now officially classified as Category 4 ‘At Risk’ by the RBST Watchlist. He went on to comment that is it was remarkable that in 2024 there was a record number of calf registrations, over 300 female calf registrations in that 1 year.
The Irish Moiled breed is going from strength to strength due to their perfect alignment with sustainable, high value quality beef, and farm to table food production, alongside the hard work and dedication of breeders, the breed is now highly regarded for their exceptional hardiness, producing premium, well-marbled beef while thriving in low-input farming systems. Their ability to graze on rough terrain makes them ideal for conservation grazing. With farming costs at an all time high, the breed is so appealing because of how resilient and low maintenance they are. The breed can cope with the wet climate and terrain. They are extremely efficient forages, capable of thriving on poor quality pastures whilst still rearing a calf year on year. Handling is minimal as they are naturally polled and generally require minimal veterinary intervention. The meat is highly sought after, due to the flavour and buttery taste, described as having “an old world” taste representing the quality of meat that would have been put on the plate by our ancestors.
Chris says,” the breed is very much in safe hands, current breeders are doing a great job, their knowledge and experience to maintain the breed standard will ensure a future for the next 100 years”
The judge of the Irish Moiled breed this year at Balmoral show is the well-known Steven O’Kane of Keadyview Cattle Grooming based in Newtown in Mid Wales. Keadyview provide several specialist livestock services across the beef sector for both pedigree and commercial cattle. Steven originally from Northern Ireland has been long associated with the Irish Moiled breed, having worked with and shown Irish Moiled champions in Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and in GB.
Straight after Balmoral Show the Society will be holding an online Centenary Irish Moiled Spring Sale hosted by Ballyjamesduff Mart, taking place from 7pm Friday 22nd May finishing at 7pm Monday 25th May. The online catalogue for the sale will be available to view on the Irish Moiled Cattle Society website. Don’t miss this opportunity to purchase Irish Moiled stock with a fantastic line up of top-quality females and bulls for sale. For further details please contact breed secretary on ++44 7842185008.
