The British Milksheep originally was known as the Alderbred and is a breed of domesticated sheep developed by Lawrence Alderson and his wife Mary in Wiltshire and Northumberland.
It now can be found mainly in the UK, Hungary and Canada, although the population in Britain was decimated during the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 2001.
The exact composition of the breed has never been declared but it was based on high-performance animals in existing flocks of Dorset Horn, Bluefaced Leicester and Eastrip Prolific sheep kept by the Alderson family.
The animals were exposed to rugged conditions in the upper Pennines in northern England to develop robustness and adaptability.
The British Milksheep is a white-faced, clean-headed, polled sheep, with a large robust body that does well in conformation.
In comparative trials in Hungary for meat production, crossbred lambs sired by British Milksheep had a superior carcase grading, a higher killing-out percentage than crosses sired by Ile de France, Suffolk and Mutton Merino rams, and the meat was the most tender as measured by shear force.
Average milk yield depends on the standard of management of the flock and can vary from 250 to more than 400 litres in a 210-day lactation, with 6% fat and 6% protein.