Dairy farmer and business entrepreneur Fred Williams has passed away at the age of 78 after suffering a long battle with dementia.
Fred Williams, born 20th May 1936 ; died 8th August 2013.
Fred was a pioneer of dairy industry, having been the first private dairy breeder to market semen from bulls.
Born in 1935 the son of a farmer and preacher, his life was a remarkable success story.
He credited his luck in life to marrying a farmer’s daughter; his wife of 58-years Emily.
They started with a modest five cows and 30 acres of rented land, before moving to the current farm in Glascoed, Pontypool, in 1959, where they continued to increase cow numbers.
Then in 1963 he purchased a bull calf, which – unbeknown to him at the time –would have a massive impact on his business, catapulting him into the realms of the AI industry.
Tredene Jan Alidema went on to win no fewer than 43 championships throughout his lifetime and his son Winton Equator 4 won supreme at The Royal Show in 1970.
Fred claimed his “eureka moment” came to him at the Royal Show, when a German dairy farmer enquired about the possibility of buying semen from the bull.
As a result Fred later went on to market semen from the bull and he became so popular that he started to sell semen globally to the USA, Europe and Australia.
Incidentally, in 1969, he had the first ever semen stand at the Royal Show and it led to the formation of one of first AI companies Semen World Ltd.
By the eighties the company had over 80 bulls at stud, with a growing workforce and it went on to become a key player in the industry under the management of Fred and his daughter Marion.
On the farm Fred continued on his quest to breed profitable dairy cows.
A turning point came in 1982, when on a visit to Canada he realised the benefits of the Holstein breed could offer to stature and production. This led him to move away from the British Freisian and he imported a large number of embryos, females and bulls.
Consequently the Twilight herd was formed and in 1989 he built an iconic £80,000 embryo barn that accommodated 30 cows.
He never faltered in his belief of breeding stylish cows with good conformation, longevity and production. Over the years he bred illustrious cow families.
In 2001 Fred took a backseat in the company and a deal was struck with World Wide Sires to secure exclusive marketing rights for US product. Recently the company was acquired by the Duke of Westminster to form part of the Cogent group.
Today his son Graham is still managing the milking herd, which is comprised of 170 cows, yielding an average of 9,000 kg at 3.9% fat and 3.2% protein.
Fred is survived by his wife Emily; three children Graham, Elaine and Marion; and six grandchildren.
His funeral will take place on 20th August at 10.15am at Mount Zion Baptist Chapel, Glascoed.
Personal note: In 1988 I had the pleasure of meeting Fred and his wife Em when they purchased some cattle from my dad for export during Farmfair in Edmonton. In 1989 I was given the opportunity to spend nine incredibly valuable months with their family in Wales working on the farm and going to shows and sales with Semen World. It was during this time I learned a lot of great things from a humble man who had an incredible passion for great cows and Canadian genetics.
I will always remember Fred for his kindness, his many great stories, his love for fish and chips on Friday night and all of the things he taught me about cows, genetics and the industry. I can not thank the Williams family enough for providing me with a great experience and memories that will last a lifetime. Below are some photos from when I lived at Trostra House with Fred and Em and worked for them.
Lexi
