Finishing cattle a 'tricky' business
September 21, 2006
Finishing cattle a 'tricky' business. Check it out:(Farmers Weekly Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)
Higher beef prices may be tempting some beef finishers to cash in and sell early, but Martin Howlett is hoping to maximise the potential of his cattle by holding on that little bit longer.
And, with such a dry summer, it is proving tricky to predict fat class, so the finishing period has become a balancing act between feeding and accurate selling.
"At the recent South West Beef and Growing Cattle event, the cattle entered in the hoof-and-hook competition looked fat, but came in at just class one and two. According to the abattoirs it has been a common problem all autumn - so we're going to hold back and be cautious not to sell too early."
Mr Howlett is already feeding 2kg of cake per head daily, but may increase that to 2.5-3kg, alongside some big-bale silage to balance the poor quality autumn flush. "Our own round bales are not ready to use yet so we're going to try to buy some in - but people are reluctant to part with silage in September after the season we've had."
Mr Howlett has got 72 fat cattle to sell this autumn, with the first group picked to go to Jaspers abattoir at Treburley this week. As well as the Continental-cross steers, he has 48 Welsh Blacks, which tend to take slightly longer to finish, causing another problem.
"Ideally they will finish at around 30 months, but they do need a month or two's leeway to reach their target weights. We are still being faced with a 100 discount if we allow them to go over age, which is a big knock. It is ludicrous to be in this position despite the over-30-month scheme having been scrapped."
Mr Howlett plans to carry slightly more cattle than normal through the winter, with 150 12-18-month-old stores on the home farm and nearby Kit Hill. He will therefore be buying fewer calves at the autumn sales - particularly if prices are too high.
"EBLEX says we need to be paying no more than 120p/kg liveweight for Continental cross sucked calf steers on average, and selling finished cattle at an average of 226p/kg deadweight if we are to break even. We are some way off that deadweight price. We need to buy 75 calves but if the steers are too dear then we'll get heifers instead - they have a smaller carcass but should be cheaper and finish quicker."
Another investment is a new hard standing feed area and corral in the 8ha (20-acre) over-wintering field. "We got a 1000 grant from the Farm Environment Link Project to meet cross-compliance requirements on poaching. But I've also put in a corral to handle the fattening cattle over the summer, which should make life a lot easier."
Meanwhile, Mr Howlett has bought another 80 big square bales of wheat straw off a neighbouring farmer to see the cattle over the winter. "It works out at 36-40/t ex-field - cheaper than the loads we brought in from up country, but the quality won't be as good."
The second-cut silage has also come in, averaging about 15.8t/ha (6.4t/acre) "It's not a fantastic yield but we are pleased with it under the circumstances."
Meanwhile, the White Star stubble turnips are growing well and will provide forage for the fattening hoggets in October and November. This year Mr Howlett has reduced his sheep flock to 240, down from almost 400 at one point. "Sheep are always a secondary enterprise and the more we have the more grass they eat. In a summer, like the one we've just had, we need all our grass for the cattle."
However, at the recent National Sheep Association sale at Exeter he did invest in three Suffolk rams to improve the quality of the flock. "They averaged 252gns which is 50-60gns down on last year. People just seemed to have lost confidence in the trade - in contrast to the cautious optimism now finally returning to the beef sector."
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<E051> Deer Park Farm, Luckett, Cornwall is a 113ha (280-acre) beef, sheep and arable family partnership run by Martin and Geoff Howlett. A further 61ha (150 acres) of rough grazing is rented.
<E051> The land is grade 3 peaty soil overlying shillett, running up to 500ft
<E051> Beef is the mainstay, with 150 head fattened each
year. There is a small 32-cow suckler herd
<E051> Welsh Black and Highland cattle are fattened
for a local butcher; numbers are set to increase,
replacing Continental crosses
<E051> The farm also supports 240 Continental cross
ewes - a Suffolk tup is used to produce fat lambs,
a Texel for replacements
<E051> About a third of the grass is permanent, the rest
five-year leys. 20ha (50 acres) of arable crops,
mainly winter barley, are grown for feed
<E051> A holiday cottage complex and a tipi green
holiday enterprise tap the tourist market
<E051> The farm relies on family labour
Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information - UK. All Rights Reserved.
Related Tags: continental cross, cattle, Howlett, howlett, autumn, continental
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