The Irish beef industry is changing and every year we are seeing a higher proportion of dairy beef animals being slaughtered as part of the national kill. Like all beef enterprises, dairy beef systems are tight margin businesses with very little room for error.
Teagasc has identified dairy beef as an area which requires more progress and launched the Dairy Beef 500 campaign in recent years, which aims to demonstrate technical efficiency on different commercially run beef farms situated in different locations around the country.
The aim of the programme is to deliver a €500/ha net margin for the farmers involved.
All are operating a wide range of dairy beef enterprises on different land types. To complement this programme, Teagasc has just set up a new dairy calf-to-beef demonstration farm just outside Fethard in Co Tipperary.
Speaking on the project, Teagasc’s Padraig French said: “We see a significant opportunity with dairy beef in the next few years for beef farmers. We are estimating that we could have up to 1.1m dairy beef calves available for finishing by 2030, so it’s important that we finish these efficiently from a profitability and environmental point of view.” The aim of this demonstration farm is to:
Set financial and technical benchmarks for an efficient dairy beef farm.Demonstrate the impact of technical innovation on farm profitability.Demonstrate best practice in environmental parameters while operating a profitable business.Demonstrate the benefits of dairy and beef integration.Teagasc has embarked on the project with the financial backing of Shinagh Estates Ltd (the farming wing of Carbery Co-op) and Dawn Meats, one of Ireland’s largest beef processors. The project commenced in April 2022, with Teagasc taking up possession of the 276ac on 24 April on a 15-year lease.
The plan is to rear 300 dairy calves on the farm and bring them through to beef on an annual basis.
A grass-based bullock and heifer finishing system will be employed on the farm. Teagasc will provide the land free of charge to Dawn Meats and Carbery Co-op and in turn, Teagasc will have a management contract with the two parties to draw up a business plan, provide technical support and direction to a farm manager, provide regular updates to the farm board and disseminate all information gathered as part of the demonstration project.
Teagasc will be contributing over €100,000 annually to the project in the form of land rent. Dawn Meats and Shinagh Estates will employ a farm manager and farm staff and will have full control of the day-to-day running of the enterprise, including the finances of the project. A Teagasc technician and/or researcher/specialist will work in close conjunction with the farm manager, similar to the Newford farm model operated at Teagasc in Athenry.
Progress
Since taking over the farm on 24 April, two staff members have been recruited for the project and 222ac have been reseeded. New fencing for paddocks, along with new water troughs and cattle handling yards, have been installed. Calf rearing facilities have also been completed.
To date, about €430,000 capital expenditure has been incurred on the farm. A total of 500 cattle have been transferred over from Teagasc projects, however a TB outbreak on the farm has halted progress in recent months. The majority of calves will be purchased from Teagasc farms, with inseminations carried out across Teagasc farms in 2022 with the project in mind. Dairy cows with a very low beef sub index have been mated to beef bulls with high carcase weight to make sure the progeny have an average of four stars on the Commercial Beef Value Index.
The Irish beef industry is changing and every year we are seeing a higher proportion of dairy beef animals being slaughtered as part of the national kill. Like all beef enterprises, dairy beef systems are tight margin businesses with very little room for error.
Teagasc has identified dairy beef as an area which requires more progress and launched the Dairy Beef 500 campaign in recent years, which aims to demonstrate technical efficiency on different commercially run beef farms situated in different locations around the country.
The aim of the programme is to deliver a €500/ha net margin for the farmers involved.
All are operating a wide range of dairy beef enterprises on different land types. To complement this programme, Teagasc has just set up a new dairy calf-to-beef demonstration farm just outside Fethard in Co Tipperary.
Speaking on the project, Teagasc’s Padraig French said: “We see a significant opportunity with dairy beef in the next few years for beef farmers. We are estimating that we could have up to 1.1m dairy beef calves available for finishing by 2030, so it’s important that we finish these efficiently from a profitability and environmental point of view.” The aim of this demonstration farm is to:
Set financial and technical benchmarks for an efficient dairy beef farm.Demonstrate the impact of technical innovation on farm profitability.Demonstrate best practice in environmental parameters while operating a profitable business.Demonstrate the benefits of dairy and beef integration.Teagasc has embarked on the project with the financial backing of Shinagh Estates Ltd (the farming wing of Carbery Co-op) and Dawn Meats, one of Ireland’s largest beef processors. The project commenced in April 2022, with Teagasc taking up possession of the 276ac on 24 April on a 15-year lease.
The plan is to rear 300 dairy calves on the farm and bring them through to beef on an annual basis.
A grass-based bullock and heifer finishing system will be employed on the farm. Teagasc will provide the land free of charge to Dawn Meats and Carbery Co-op and in turn, Teagasc will have a management contract with the two parties to draw up a business plan, provide technical support and direction to a farm manager, provide regular updates to the farm board and disseminate all information gathered as part of the demonstration project.
Teagasc will be contributing over €100,000 annually to the project in the form of land rent. Dawn Meats and Shinagh Estates will employ a farm manager and farm staff and will have full control of the day-to-day running of the enterprise, including the finances of the project. A Teagasc technician and/or researcher/specialist will work in close conjunction with the farm manager, similar to the Newford farm model operated at Teagasc in Athenry.
Progress
Since taking over the farm on 24 April, two staff members have been recruited for the project and 222ac have been reseeded. New fencing for paddocks, along with new water troughs and cattle handling yards, have been installed. Calf rearing facilities have also been completed.
To date, about €430,000 capital expenditure has been incurred on the farm. A total of 500 cattle have been transferred over from Teagasc projects, however a TB outbreak on the farm has halted progress in recent months. The majority of calves will be purchased from Teagasc farms, with inseminations carried out across Teagasc farms in 2022 with the project in mind. Dairy cows with a very low beef sub index have been mated to beef bulls with high carcase weight to make sure the progeny have an average of four stars on the Commercial Beef Value Index.
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: