The Northeast All Breeds Spring Show (NEABSS) celebrated its fifth anniversary this past April and welcomed 866 head of registered dairy cattle to the infamous Mallary Complex at the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield, MA.

What started as a grassroots effort to continue hosting dairy cattle shows during the pandemic has gained national attention, and it continues to be a destination show for dairy cattle breeders from across New England and beyond.

The show was established in autumn 2020. At the time, many fairs and shows were forced to cancel their events. At the same time, the New York Spring Carousel Show had moved its location farther west into New York, so New Englanders were eager for a spring dairy cattle show experience closer to home. This combination of events established the NEABSS.

In its first year, the committee welcomed 685 head of cattle to the show. It was highly received, so the committee decided to make it an annual experience.

Work for the show begins in autumn when the committee meets to discuss changes for the upcoming year and begin recruiting sponsors. The show is largely made possible because of generous donations from local businesses and agricultural entities. The show is hosted at the Big E, which is an in-kind donation from the exposition board. They believe strongly in supporting new and old agricultural traditions and are excited to welcome dairy breeders from across the country to New England.

After the new year, when final decisions about the show have been made, the next step is hiring judges and collecting entries. Judges are recruited from across the U.S. and have a long list of accolades to support their qualification, some of which include judging at the World Dairy Expo.

Once all the pieces are in place, the committee moves into the facilitation phase which includes setting up the barn, assigning stall spaces and working with ESE for feed and bedding delivery.

Putting on a show of this caliber takes a lot of time and dedication. The committee is made up of several dairy breeders, volunteers and enthusiasts from across New England including Toni Jacque, Scott and Moira Poitras, Betsy Bullard, Zack Tarryk, Scott Davenport, Richard Giddings, Seth Johnson, Martha Seifert, Lori Staib and many others. Putting on this show is something they volunteer to do in their (nonexistent) free time. Everyone works full-time jobs but believes strongly in giving dairy breeders and youth an opportunity to exhibit high quality cattle in New England.

The NEABSS puts a large emphasis on their junior exhibitors, ages 5 – 21. “Our junior exhibitors are the future of agriculture,” noted Moira Poitras. “We want them to have a positive experience and get to know the opportunities that are out there for them in the dairy industry.”

At the show, juniors can participate in showmanship, a judging contest and a career panel. This year there were 134 juniors that participated in the showmanship contest.

Additionally, the show offers judge-shadow and internship programs to youth. In the judge-shadow program, one youth is selected to learn how to oversee a ring with a large number of cattle with one of the official judges. They do not give any official placings or opinions on the class, but the youth gets to practice their own decision-making skills with a large number of high-quality animals in the ring.

In the internship program, selected youth help with all aspects of the show from social media to checking in animals when they arrive to assisting at ringside and anything else throughout the week.

For the exhibitors, the NEABBS has become a place for welcomed competition and a preview of the summer and autumn show season ahead. The majority of the classes include entries in the double digits, creating a competitive atmosphere at the ring. The Jersey show has even received status as a national show, which contributes to the exhibitors’ entries in the All-American contest later in the year.

These statistics speak to the drive and determination that the breeders and exhibitors bring to the show, and the passion they have for breeding elite dairy cattle. New England is often thought of for its traditional dairy industry, and the NEABSS showcases the work the local industry has put into modern dairy cattle genetics.

After the show, the committee reflected on their 2025 experience and noted that one of their biggest accomplishments was simply fitting all the exhibitors in the barn. A show of this size is likely to experience growing pains, but when the number of cattle approaches the capacity of a 129,400-square-foot arena, the success speaks for itself.

The NEABSS has become a place for farmers and breeders far and near to exhibit their dairy cattle and help promote the future of the industry.