Grass: Grass is in plentiful supply, especially in the south of the country. However, grazing conditions are more difficult in the north and northwest after a lot of rain in the last three weeks. This presents challenges and has left things tight on farms that haven’t managed to get all silage cut yet. It has left a conundrum around heavy covers. Many in this situation will have to graze them, as it’s too wet to bring in heavy machinery to bale the extra grass. Topping will be necessary in this case and sometimes topping on the last day of grazing will help get the paddock cleaned up again, as cows will graze some of the cuttings or aftermath. If the situation is very bad, autumn-calving cows could be weaned and housed for a week or two until conditions improve.
Under-16 month bulls: The bull market is a difficult one at the moment. I’ve had a few calls from farmers wondering whether to hold off killing for a few weeks to see if things improve. The problem is going over the age limit and off the grid could mean a €0.30/kg penalty along with a poor price. The other factor is if a bull is laying down fat at the end of an intensive finishing period, then the margin they are leaving is reducing. Bulls are expensive to feed and should be slaughtered the minute you think they are ready.
BDGP update: Last week, the Department of Agriculture relaxed the rules in relation to stock bull requirements as part of BDGP. Participants in the programme using a stock bull are required to have at least one bull on their holding on 30 June 2019 that was a minimum of 12 months old and was rated at four or five stars on the replacement and/or terminal index, within and/or across breed on the first genomic evaluation or the genomic evaluation at the time of purchase. There have been two simplifications:
Some bulls’ genomic evaluations are under way and more tissue samples may be sent to the ICBF this month. The next rounds of genomic evaluations will be published on 22 July and 23 September. If you send samples before 30 June and your bull is confirmed to be four- or five-star in either of those rounds, he will be eligible. Where a bull on the holding had a published genomic evaluation and had been deemed ineligible as it was rated at three stars or less on that first genotyping evaluation, it can now be deemed eligible if the bull is now rated at four or five stars.If a herd fails the stock bull requirement, 60% of the 2019 BDGP payment will be cut. This is equivalent to a 10% clawback for each of the years 2015 to 2019 plus a 10% penalty.
The ICBF has advised participants in the scheme to check their herd’s compliance by logging into their ICBF herdplus account. Once logged in, go to the ‘View Profiles’ dropdown and select ‘BDGP Eligibility’.
If your herd is non-compliant on any of the breeding requirements, it will be highlighted by an X in a red box. If you do not have access to a computer, you can call the ICBF on 023-883 288.
Grass: Grass is in plentiful supply, especially in the south of the country. However, grazing conditions are more difficult in the north and northwest after a lot of rain in the last three weeks. This presents challenges and has left things tight on farms that haven’t managed to get all silage cut yet. It has left a conundrum around heavy covers. Many in this situation will have to graze them, as it’s too wet to bring in heavy machinery to bale the extra grass. Topping will be necessary in this case and sometimes topping on the last day of grazing will help get the paddock cleaned up again, as cows will graze some of the cuttings or aftermath. If the situation is very bad, autumn-calving cows could be weaned and housed for a week or two until conditions improve.
Under-16 month bulls: The bull market is a difficult one at the moment. I’ve had a few calls from farmers wondering whether to hold off killing for a few weeks to see if things improve. The problem is going over the age limit and off the grid could mean a €0.30/kg penalty along with a poor price. The other factor is if a bull is laying down fat at the end of an intensive finishing period, then the margin they are leaving is reducing. Bulls are expensive to feed and should be slaughtered the minute you think they are ready.
BDGP update: Last week, the Department of Agriculture relaxed the rules in relation to stock bull requirements as part of BDGP. Participants in the programme using a stock bull are required to have at least one bull on their holding on 30 June 2019 that was a minimum of 12 months old and was rated at four or five stars on the replacement and/or terminal index, within and/or across breed on the first genomic evaluation or the genomic evaluation at the time of purchase. There have been two simplifications:
Some bulls’ genomic evaluations are under way and more tissue samples may be sent to the ICBF this month. The next rounds of genomic evaluations will be published on 22 July and 23 September. If you send samples before 30 June and your bull is confirmed to be four- or five-star in either of those rounds, he will be eligible. Where a bull on the holding had a published genomic evaluation and had been deemed ineligible as it was rated at three stars or less on that first genotyping evaluation, it can now be deemed eligible if the bull is now rated at four or five stars.If a herd fails the stock bull requirement, 60% of the 2019 BDGP payment will be cut. This is equivalent to a 10% clawback for each of the years 2015 to 2019 plus a 10% penalty.
The ICBF has advised participants in the scheme to check their herd’s compliance by logging into their ICBF herdplus account. Once logged in, go to the ‘View Profiles’ dropdown and select ‘BDGP Eligibility’.
If your herd is non-compliant on any of the breeding requirements, it will be highlighted by an X in a red box. If you do not have access to a computer, you can call the ICBF on 023-883 288.
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