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One-month-old Irish calves on a veal unit one hour east of Amsterdam. The Dutch producers are delighted with the quality of the Irish animals and lament the fact that our supply is seasonal.
Cirsten and Henk Klarenbeek of the Klarenbeek veal and milk powder company.
Slaughter-fit Belgian Blue calves on a seperate veal unit. These animals are approximately 300kg.
Cirsten and Niek Klarenbeek of the Klarenbeek veal and milk powder company.
Earlier this spring, weekly live calf exports from Ireland surpassed the 10,000 mark for the first time since March 2014. This was, and remains, a significant positive for primary beef producers, currently contending with a number of uncertainties regarding their future outlook.
Getting as many live cattle off the island as possible creates competition – only a good thing for Irish beef farmers.
So where are they going? Earlier this month, we followed some Irish calves to the heart of the Netherlands, the largest veal producer in Europe.
The Klaremelk company is a family-run business, based in Ermelo. It produces 1,000 veal calves for slaughter each week, as well as 800t of milk replacer which goes to all corners of Europe, including Ireland.
The company owns eight specialised veal units and has 40 contract producers on its books. Given that Dutch dairy systems are typically enclosed and calving year-round, there is a constant supply of calves for the veal operation. In this way, Klaremelk can manipulate its supply chains such that the same number of animals are coming slaughter-fit every week of the year.
One thousand calves per week
I met the Klarenbeek siblings, Niek and his sister Cirsten. Niek is responsible for sourcing calves for the company, while Cirsten runs the milk powder business. Their father Henk owns Klaremelk, along with his brother Aart-Jan. Their grandfather established the company in the 1960s and today it employs 25 people and is one of only a handful of Dutch companies producing both veal calves and milk replacer.
Before venturing out to see their farms and how the Irish calves are doing, the pair give me the veal production 101 at the company’s headquarters.
“Our calves arrive between 14 and 35 days of age. In the north, we have our collection centre, but only for the Dutch calves. The Irish calves are going straight to the farmer. At present, we’re paying €90 to €100 per calf (Holstein Friesian) and we want an animal between 40kg and 65kg liveweight.
“All calves are checked by two representatives before they leave the collection centre and they are checked when they arrive at the stable. They spend no more than eight hours at the centre before moving on to the farms and no farmers are allowed in the collection centre. Biosecurity is crucial. We make up one batch every week at the centre of between 800 and 1,000 calves and there could be 650 different source farms represented,” Niek told me.
Irish suppliers
Hallissey Livestock Exports Ltd and William O’Keeffe are Klaremelk’s principal Irish calf suppliers at the moment.
Klaremelk’s veal production line operates on an all-in-all-out basis. This means that every animal on a given farm is the same age. On every farm, there is one batch of uniform animals that arrive as calves and leave the farm slaughter-fit together. After this, facilities are completely disinfected and a new batch of calves is in within a week.
“The system is 100% indoor – like the vast majority of Dutch livestock systems. Calves are in one slatted pen, with rubber mats, for the duration of the system. Typically, group size is between six and eight calves,” said Cirsten.
“All of our barns are designed to provide the optimal environment for the animals. They are well lit and mechanically ventilated. Driving herd health is crucial – we must be preventers of, and not reactors to, problems. There is growing pressure from both the antibiotic resistance lobby and animal welfare groups in the country. Antibiotics are only administered following a veterinary inspection and recommendation. Our current mortality rate is 1% to 3%, depending on the breed of calf.
“Our big problem period is the first fortnight. Pneumonia and scour are the main ailments. After around 10 weeks, you’re out of the woods generally. If treatment is needed, it can be on an individual or pen basis, via feed. The vet makes this call. Calves are inspected at feeding morning and evening and once again during the day,” she added.
Klaremelk takes in mainly Holstein Friesian calves, though Belgian Blue animals are used too. Both bulls and heifers are suitable for veal, but Niek stressed that he prefers a bull. Veal can be white or rosé, which is to do with the diet that the animal is raised on.
A white veal calf is on a milk-based diet for the complete production system, while a rosé calf moves on to concentrates prior to slaughter. White veal accounts for around 70% of production systems in the Netherlands and 90% of Klaremelk’s output.
Calves arriving on Klaremelk farms receive water and electrolytes on day one and then begin on four litres of milk replacer, split in two feeds. After seven weeks, the milk replacer switches to a lower-protein mixture, which white veal animals will consume until the end of the system.
A muesli and straw mixture is available to calves at all times, as is fresh clean water. A white veal calf reaches slaughter fitness after approximately 28 weeks, at which point they will be consuming 14 litres of milk replacer daily.
Target carcase weights for Friesian and Belgian Blue animals are 150kg (280kg liveweight) and 175kg (300kg liveweight) respectively. Rosé veal animals are slaughtered slightly older (around 12 months of age) at 200kg carcase weight.
The farm on which I saw the Irish calves was in Garderen and home to almost 850 identical animals, of which 750 had come from Ireland. In the style of true Dutch efficiency, one man was running the whole operation.
Milk replacer is mixed mechanically in a large vat daily and piped to each pen of calves. The farmer, Wim Van de Leest, told me consistency was the key to success of the operation.
“The environment, the feed, the herding, the type of calf – everything must be kept consistent.”
Meat colour
Meat colour is hugely important in the veal industry – processors require pale meat, lighter than the beef we are used to. Iron is one of the big factors determining meat colour.
Calves are blood-tested repeatedly during the production system and dietary iron levels manipulated accordingly to try to ensure that meat colour is optimal.
As well as the conventional EUROP grading system, there are potential penalties on slaughter price where meat is deemed too red. Around 10% of Klaremelk’s calves fall into this category and the severity of the penalties depend on how dark the meat actually is.
When I visited, Holstein Friesian white veal calves were commanding €4.75/kg carcase after grading, with Belgian Blues reaching €5.20/kg. Rosé veal base prices were at €3.60/kg.
As expected, veal is seen as a luxurious meat in the Netherlands. Peak demand comes around Christmas and Easter and this drops back during the summer months when people eat less meat in warm weather.
External pressure
The Klarenbeeks were quick to acknowledge the pressure that not just veal, but all farming, was coming under in the Netherlands.
“The Party for Animals has gained five seats out of 150 in the government. They are pushing unbalanced propaganda and talking about things that happened 20 years ago. We have had to jump through many hoops, namely those put in place by the Foundation for Quality Guarantee of the Veal Sector (SKV) – the equivalent of Bord Bia Quality Assurance. They restrict the medicines we can use, the animal movements, outline target weights and housing guidelines and monitor feed. You can’t sell veal without this mark, but political groups like the Party for Animals ignore this,” Cirsten told me.
“We have also had to greatly curb our antibiotic usage and move from single stalls to group penning (2004), but we have made all these changes and continue to run farms to the very highest welfare standards. We have nothing to hide – no secrets. Anyone is welcome to come and see our calves. Veal is lovely meat to eat, once someone tries it they love it straightaway,” said Henk. He wasn’t wrong.
Understanding veal
White veal is the meat from an animal slaughtered less than eight months of age at 280kg to 300kg liveweight from a predominantly milk replacer-based diet.
Rosé veal calves move on to concentrates as slaughter (less than 12 months) approaches.
Average Irish person eats 18.5kg of beef. This figure includes veal products, but it is almost non-existent in the Irish diet.
The average European eats 15.5kg of beef annually, of which 1.3kg is veal.
France is the biggest consumer of veal at 3.5kg per head, followed by Italy at 3.3kg, Belgium and Holland at 1.5kg, Germany at 0.8kg and Spain at 0.6kg per year.
In 2016, there were almost 4.5m white veal carcasses produced in the EU – 1.4m of these came from Holland.
Ireland produced 2,400 white veal carcases in 2016.
Earlier this spring, weekly live calf exports from Ireland surpassed the 10,000 mark for the first time since March 2014. This was, and remains, a significant positive for primary beef producers, currently contending with a number of uncertainties regarding their future outlook.
Getting as many live cattle off the island as possible creates competition – only a good thing for Irish beef farmers.
So where are they going? Earlier this month, we followed some Irish calves to the heart of the Netherlands, the largest veal producer in Europe.
The Klaremelk company is a family-run business, based in Ermelo. It produces 1,000 veal calves for slaughter each week, as well as 800t of milk replacer which goes to all corners of Europe, including Ireland.
The company owns eight specialised veal units and has 40 contract producers on its books. Given that Dutch dairy systems are typically enclosed and calving year-round, there is a constant supply of calves for the veal operation. In this way, Klaremelk can manipulate its supply chains such that the same number of animals are coming slaughter-fit every week of the year.
One thousand calves per week
I met the Klarenbeek siblings, Niek and his sister Cirsten. Niek is responsible for sourcing calves for the company, while Cirsten runs the milk powder business. Their father Henk owns Klaremelk, along with his brother Aart-Jan. Their grandfather established the company in the 1960s and today it employs 25 people and is one of only a handful of Dutch companies producing both veal calves and milk replacer.
Before venturing out to see their farms and how the Irish calves are doing, the pair give me the veal production 101 at the company’s headquarters.
“Our calves arrive between 14 and 35 days of age. In the north, we have our collection centre, but only for the Dutch calves. The Irish calves are going straight to the farmer. At present, we’re paying €90 to €100 per calf (Holstein Friesian) and we want an animal between 40kg and 65kg liveweight.
“All calves are checked by two representatives before they leave the collection centre and they are checked when they arrive at the stable. They spend no more than eight hours at the centre before moving on to the farms and no farmers are allowed in the collection centre. Biosecurity is crucial. We make up one batch every week at the centre of between 800 and 1,000 calves and there could be 650 different source farms represented,” Niek told me.
Irish suppliers
Hallissey Livestock Exports Ltd and William O’Keeffe are Klaremelk’s principal Irish calf suppliers at the moment.
Klaremelk’s veal production line operates on an all-in-all-out basis. This means that every animal on a given farm is the same age. On every farm, there is one batch of uniform animals that arrive as calves and leave the farm slaughter-fit together. After this, facilities are completely disinfected and a new batch of calves is in within a week.
“The system is 100% indoor – like the vast majority of Dutch livestock systems. Calves are in one slatted pen, with rubber mats, for the duration of the system. Typically, group size is between six and eight calves,” said Cirsten.
“All of our barns are designed to provide the optimal environment for the animals. They are well lit and mechanically ventilated. Driving herd health is crucial – we must be preventers of, and not reactors to, problems. There is growing pressure from both the antibiotic resistance lobby and animal welfare groups in the country. Antibiotics are only administered following a veterinary inspection and recommendation. Our current mortality rate is 1% to 3%, depending on the breed of calf.
“Our big problem period is the first fortnight. Pneumonia and scour are the main ailments. After around 10 weeks, you’re out of the woods generally. If treatment is needed, it can be on an individual or pen basis, via feed. The vet makes this call. Calves are inspected at feeding morning and evening and once again during the day,” she added.
Klaremelk takes in mainly Holstein Friesian calves, though Belgian Blue animals are used too. Both bulls and heifers are suitable for veal, but Niek stressed that he prefers a bull. Veal can be white or rosé, which is to do with the diet that the animal is raised on.
A white veal calf is on a milk-based diet for the complete production system, while a rosé calf moves on to concentrates prior to slaughter. White veal accounts for around 70% of production systems in the Netherlands and 90% of Klaremelk’s output.
Calves arriving on Klaremelk farms receive water and electrolytes on day one and then begin on four litres of milk replacer, split in two feeds. After seven weeks, the milk replacer switches to a lower-protein mixture, which white veal animals will consume until the end of the system.
A muesli and straw mixture is available to calves at all times, as is fresh clean water. A white veal calf reaches slaughter fitness after approximately 28 weeks, at which point they will be consuming 14 litres of milk replacer daily.
Target carcase weights for Friesian and Belgian Blue animals are 150kg (280kg liveweight) and 175kg (300kg liveweight) respectively. Rosé veal animals are slaughtered slightly older (around 12 months of age) at 200kg carcase weight.
The farm on which I saw the Irish calves was in Garderen and home to almost 850 identical animals, of which 750 had come from Ireland. In the style of true Dutch efficiency, one man was running the whole operation.
Milk replacer is mixed mechanically in a large vat daily and piped to each pen of calves. The farmer, Wim Van de Leest, told me consistency was the key to success of the operation.
“The environment, the feed, the herding, the type of calf – everything must be kept consistent.”
Meat colour
Meat colour is hugely important in the veal industry – processors require pale meat, lighter than the beef we are used to. Iron is one of the big factors determining meat colour.
Calves are blood-tested repeatedly during the production system and dietary iron levels manipulated accordingly to try to ensure that meat colour is optimal.
As well as the conventional EUROP grading system, there are potential penalties on slaughter price where meat is deemed too red. Around 10% of Klaremelk’s calves fall into this category and the severity of the penalties depend on how dark the meat actually is.
When I visited, Holstein Friesian white veal calves were commanding €4.75/kg carcase after grading, with Belgian Blues reaching €5.20/kg. Rosé veal base prices were at €3.60/kg.
As expected, veal is seen as a luxurious meat in the Netherlands. Peak demand comes around Christmas and Easter and this drops back during the summer months when people eat less meat in warm weather.
External pressure
The Klarenbeeks were quick to acknowledge the pressure that not just veal, but all farming, was coming under in the Netherlands.
“The Party for Animals has gained five seats out of 150 in the government. They are pushing unbalanced propaganda and talking about things that happened 20 years ago. We have had to jump through many hoops, namely those put in place by the Foundation for Quality Guarantee of the Veal Sector (SKV) – the equivalent of Bord Bia Quality Assurance. They restrict the medicines we can use, the animal movements, outline target weights and housing guidelines and monitor feed. You can’t sell veal without this mark, but political groups like the Party for Animals ignore this,” Cirsten told me.
“We have also had to greatly curb our antibiotic usage and move from single stalls to group penning (2004), but we have made all these changes and continue to run farms to the very highest welfare standards. We have nothing to hide – no secrets. Anyone is welcome to come and see our calves. Veal is lovely meat to eat, once someone tries it they love it straightaway,” said Henk. He wasn’t wrong.
Understanding veal
White veal is the meat from an animal slaughtered less than eight months of age at 280kg to 300kg liveweight from a predominantly milk replacer-based diet.
Rosé veal calves move on to concentrates as slaughter (less than 12 months) approaches.
Average Irish person eats 18.5kg of beef. This figure includes veal products, but it is almost non-existent in the Irish diet.
The average European eats 15.5kg of beef annually, of which 1.3kg is veal.
France is the biggest consumer of veal at 3.5kg per head, followed by Italy at 3.3kg, Belgium and Holland at 1.5kg, Germany at 0.8kg and Spain at 0.6kg per year.
In 2016, there were almost 4.5m white veal carcasses produced in the EU – 1.4m of these came from Holland.
Ireland produced 2,400 white veal carcases in 2016.
A high level of mycotoxins in some second cut silage has had a costly impact, writes Jessica Pollock.
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I met the Klarenbeek siblings, Niek and his sister Cirsten. Niek is responsible for sourcing calves for the company, while Cirsten runs the milk powder business. Their father Henk owns Klaremelk, along with his brother Aart-Jan. Their grandfather established the company in the 1960s and today it employs 25 people and is one of only a handful of Dutch companies producing both veal calves and milk replacer.
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