Dave is Emeritus Professor of Dairy Farming Systems at SRUC. He studied Agriculture at Reading University, followed by a PhD at Wye College. On leaving University Dave joined the East of Scotland Agricultural College and moved to Dumfries in 1982, subsequently as Head of The Dairy Research and Innovation Centre (Crichton Royal Farm) and then Head of Agriculture and Business Management Dept. at SRUC before retiring in 2021.

Dave is Vice Chair of Borders College Board, a Trustee at Lantra, and executive officer of The Hannah Dairy Research Foundation . He is a Nuffield Farming Scholar, and a Fellow of both the Society of Agriculture and of the Royal Agricultural Societies.