Oliver McKenna,
Eskra, Co Tyrone
Oliver’s gross margin increased to £963/ha in 2019, although it is still behind that achieved in 2017. A key factor driving the higher gross margin last year was the kilos of beef produced. At 1,008kg/ha, it is the highest output on-farm to date. Had beef prices remained unchanged from 2018, GM/ha would have been approximately £1,020.
The farm runs 30 spring- and 30 autumn-calving cows, with male calves finished as young bulls and heifers not retained as replacements sold as maidens, in-calf at 18 months or slaughtered by 20 months. Breeding is 100% AI using a mix of Angus, Limousin, Simmental and Salers genetics. Cows are productive, with a calving interval of 382 days. One calf was lost from 62 born in 2019. Bull performance increased from 373kg carcase weight in 2018 to 377kg in 2019, with age at slaughter reduced from 15.6 months to 15.1 months. This shows the importance of driving calf weight gains while on the cow in a bull-beef system. Bull calves had a daily gain of 1.28kg/day to weaning in 2019.
Declan Rafferty/Aidan Quinn, Pomeroy, Co Tyrone
Declan and Aidan operate 80 spring-calving and 20 autumn-calving cows, using Simmental x Limousin x Stabiliser genetics. Along with the bull beef system, surplus heifers are slaughtered at 20 months. The farm also carries dairy heifers reared under contract, pushing overall farm stocking rate to a new high of 2.49 CE/ha. Income and costs from contract rearing heifers are excluded from the financial figures. The performance of bulls has steadily improved over the last three years. Average carcase weights have increased from 340kg in 2017, to 347kg in 2018 and 361kg in 2019, with no significant difference in slaughter age. Carcase conformation has improved from R=3- to R+3= last year. While stocking rate is up, there were less sales in 2019 and lower prices. This impacted on GM/ha, which ended at £848. Lower sales were due to less than 30% of calves being male in 2018. There are therefore more heifers and they will be finished in early 2020, which will boost sales for this year. Output from the suckler herd continues to increase, totalling 902kg/ ha last year. Fertility is excellent, with
over 95% of cows consistently scanning in-calf in a 12-week period. However, the focus must be on reducing mortality rates for calves on the farm.
Paul Jamison,
Dromore, Co Down
Paul and his father Thomas operate an intensive suckler bull beef production system on 40.2ha, alongside an intensive dairy bull beef enterprise that has no forage cost from the farm. The Jamisons had a difficult year in 2018, due to an infertile bull and a number of cows aborting, and this had a lasting impact into 2019. However, good herd management on-farm has led to an increase in GM/ha, despite there being fewer bulls for sale, with only 28 male animals finished.
This will be rectified in 2020, with 38 suckler-bred bulls to be slaughtered at under 16 months of age. Bull performance has increased significantly, averaging 385kg carcase weight at 15.4 months, compared to an average deadweight of 363kg at 15.7 months in 2018. There has been a big change in the breeding policy on-farm, moving away from a purebred Limousin cow to a cross breeding programme using Simmental, Shorthorn and Angus genetics. Stocking rate is highly correlated to profit, but Paul is yet to see this filter through in terms of additional sales. All going well, the additional output should see the system settle into a normal trading pattern from 2020 onwards.
Mark Lewis,
Portadown, Co Armagh
Mark moved to 100% spring calving in 2018 to make best use of grass and with the system bedded down, the results boosted GM/ha in 2019, with a 50% increase year on year.
A GM/ha of £912 for last year is a significant increase, given the drop in beef prices last spring. Driving this increase was the rise in stocking rate to 2.5 CE/ha (cow equivalents).
Bull performance remained steady, with carcase weights averaging 373kg at 15.4 months of age and conformation typically around U=3-.
Having more hybrid vigour in cows is filtering through to calf performance, due to improved milk production.The 2019 spring-born males had a daily growth rate of 1.25kg/day from birth to 200 days old, higher than previous years. This saw weaning percentage in cows rising to 46% of body weight at 200 days, meaning calves are heavier at housing and will reach finishing weight earlier, with less feed inputs required.
Combined with increased sales in 2020, this would likely lead to the farm realising its potential gross margin of between £1,000 and £1,100/ha.
However, on realising the farm’s potential to grow forage, Mark has decided to convert to dairying and recently dispersed the breeding herd.
Abbey beef and sheep centre,
Muckamore, Co Antrim
The Abbey KTT (knowledge and technology transfer) herd realised a GM/ha of £958 in 2019, placing it in the top 10% of lowland suckler-to-beef herds. In addition to carrying 80 suckler cows, the 114ha beef and sheep unit also runs 220 ewes and about 160 beef cattle sourced from CAFRE’s hill farm and dairy unit. Stocking rate has increased in the past three years, from 2.18 CE/ha in 2017 to 2.42 CE/ha last year.
This was achieved through continuous improvement in utilising grazed grass and high-quality silage. Fertility is also good, with a calving index of 372 days in 2019. All male calves are finished as young bulls, with 37 animals slaughtered in 2019 at an average carcase weight of 396kg at 14.9 months. This gives an average carcase gain of 0.88kg/day from birth to slaughter. Bulls typically hit U-3+ conformation and were finished on high-quality silage (73% D-Value) on an ad-lib basis, along with a maximum 8kg/day of concentrate. A rise in stocking rate and animal performance saw an extra 85kg/ha of beef produced in the last three years. In 2018, beef price averaged 353p/kg, and had the same price been paid in 2019, GM/ha would have totalled £1,042.
Read more
Newford update: calving progressing well with 30% of cows calved
Management changes delivering higher margins
Oliver McKenna,
Eskra, Co Tyrone
Oliver’s gross margin increased to £963/ha in 2019, although it is still behind that achieved in 2017. A key factor driving the higher gross margin last year was the kilos of beef produced. At 1,008kg/ha, it is the highest output on-farm to date. Had beef prices remained unchanged from 2018, GM/ha would have been approximately £1,020.
The farm runs 30 spring- and 30 autumn-calving cows, with male calves finished as young bulls and heifers not retained as replacements sold as maidens, in-calf at 18 months or slaughtered by 20 months. Breeding is 100% AI using a mix of Angus, Limousin, Simmental and Salers genetics. Cows are productive, with a calving interval of 382 days. One calf was lost from 62 born in 2019. Bull performance increased from 373kg carcase weight in 2018 to 377kg in 2019, with age at slaughter reduced from 15.6 months to 15.1 months. This shows the importance of driving calf weight gains while on the cow in a bull-beef system. Bull calves had a daily gain of 1.28kg/day to weaning in 2019.
Declan Rafferty/Aidan Quinn, Pomeroy, Co Tyrone
Declan and Aidan operate 80 spring-calving and 20 autumn-calving cows, using Simmental x Limousin x Stabiliser genetics. Along with the bull beef system, surplus heifers are slaughtered at 20 months. The farm also carries dairy heifers reared under contract, pushing overall farm stocking rate to a new high of 2.49 CE/ha. Income and costs from contract rearing heifers are excluded from the financial figures. The performance of bulls has steadily improved over the last three years. Average carcase weights have increased from 340kg in 2017, to 347kg in 2018 and 361kg in 2019, with no significant difference in slaughter age. Carcase conformation has improved from R=3- to R+3= last year. While stocking rate is up, there were less sales in 2019 and lower prices. This impacted on GM/ha, which ended at £848. Lower sales were due to less than 30% of calves being male in 2018. There are therefore more heifers and they will be finished in early 2020, which will boost sales for this year. Output from the suckler herd continues to increase, totalling 902kg/ ha last year. Fertility is excellent, with
over 95% of cows consistently scanning in-calf in a 12-week period. However, the focus must be on reducing mortality rates for calves on the farm.
Paul Jamison,
Dromore, Co Down
Paul and his father Thomas operate an intensive suckler bull beef production system on 40.2ha, alongside an intensive dairy bull beef enterprise that has no forage cost from the farm. The Jamisons had a difficult year in 2018, due to an infertile bull and a number of cows aborting, and this had a lasting impact into 2019. However, good herd management on-farm has led to an increase in GM/ha, despite there being fewer bulls for sale, with only 28 male animals finished.
This will be rectified in 2020, with 38 suckler-bred bulls to be slaughtered at under 16 months of age. Bull performance has increased significantly, averaging 385kg carcase weight at 15.4 months, compared to an average deadweight of 363kg at 15.7 months in 2018. There has been a big change in the breeding policy on-farm, moving away from a purebred Limousin cow to a cross breeding programme using Simmental, Shorthorn and Angus genetics. Stocking rate is highly correlated to profit, but Paul is yet to see this filter through in terms of additional sales. All going well, the additional output should see the system settle into a normal trading pattern from 2020 onwards.
Mark Lewis,
Portadown, Co Armagh
Mark moved to 100% spring calving in 2018 to make best use of grass and with the system bedded down, the results boosted GM/ha in 2019, with a 50% increase year on year.
A GM/ha of £912 for last year is a significant increase, given the drop in beef prices last spring. Driving this increase was the rise in stocking rate to 2.5 CE/ha (cow equivalents).
Bull performance remained steady, with carcase weights averaging 373kg at 15.4 months of age and conformation typically around U=3-.
Having more hybrid vigour in cows is filtering through to calf performance, due to improved milk production.The 2019 spring-born males had a daily growth rate of 1.25kg/day from birth to 200 days old, higher than previous years. This saw weaning percentage in cows rising to 46% of body weight at 200 days, meaning calves are heavier at housing and will reach finishing weight earlier, with less feed inputs required.
Combined with increased sales in 2020, this would likely lead to the farm realising its potential gross margin of between £1,000 and £1,100/ha.
However, on realising the farm’s potential to grow forage, Mark has decided to convert to dairying and recently dispersed the breeding herd.
Abbey beef and sheep centre,
Muckamore, Co Antrim
The Abbey KTT (knowledge and technology transfer) herd realised a GM/ha of £958 in 2019, placing it in the top 10% of lowland suckler-to-beef herds. In addition to carrying 80 suckler cows, the 114ha beef and sheep unit also runs 220 ewes and about 160 beef cattle sourced from CAFRE’s hill farm and dairy unit. Stocking rate has increased in the past three years, from 2.18 CE/ha in 2017 to 2.42 CE/ha last year.
This was achieved through continuous improvement in utilising grazed grass and high-quality silage. Fertility is also good, with a calving index of 372 days in 2019. All male calves are finished as young bulls, with 37 animals slaughtered in 2019 at an average carcase weight of 396kg at 14.9 months. This gives an average carcase gain of 0.88kg/day from birth to slaughter. Bulls typically hit U-3+ conformation and were finished on high-quality silage (73% D-Value) on an ad-lib basis, along with a maximum 8kg/day of concentrate. A rise in stocking rate and animal performance saw an extra 85kg/ha of beef produced in the last three years. In 2018, beef price averaged 353p/kg, and had the same price been paid in 2019, GM/ha would have totalled £1,042.
Read more
Newford update: calving progressing well with 30% of cows calved
Management changes delivering higher margins
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