A key aspect of the BETTER farm programme is the discussion group meetings held on farm. While getting one-to-one advice from the programme adviser Francis Breen is invaluable to the programme farmers, it is also beneficial to get the input of the other farmers on how a particular system is operating.

Last week, the BETTER Farm participants met on Ryan McDowell’s farm at Gleno, Co Antrim. Ryan started his suckler herd in 2013 by buying in Hereford- and Angus-sired heifer calves from a known dairy herd.

These animals calved down in 2015 and the herd has been in expansion mode since then, building to almost 100 cows during the 2017-18 winter. The farm itself consists of 142 acres of owned grassland, with an additional 66 acres rented, giving a total of 208 acres farmed.

Ryan farms alongside his father Raymond, with their spring-calving herd producing Angus and Hereford steers for slaughter at 18 months of age.

Heifers have mainly been retained for breeding, but some were sold as in-calf replacements last autumn and realised an average of £1,150 at 18 months of age.

The group meeting was used as an open forum to discuss the farming system, what is working well and where possible changes could be made.

Issues

Like the majority of farmers across the country, Ryan has experienced a long winter housing period, which has pushed the farming system to its limit.

The poor spring has delayed turnout of cattle until May. While stock did manage to get out to grass in April, they were rehoused. Pressure on housing has increased, with higher stocking rates on farm.

The farm is also fragmented. Cattle are housed between two yards, which is time-consuming when it comes to feeding and herding animals.

Ryan was keen to get the views of the other farmers in the programme on how his system could be streamlined in future, especially around the workload with the larger herd and possible alternatives, housing set-up for feeding cattle in winter and the value of retaining rented land.

Herd size

Since 2015, the herd has quickly grown towards a target of 100 spring-calving cows.

However, this spring has pushed cattle housing facilities to the limit, as cows were unable to get to grass shortly after calving, as in previous years.

Ryan decided to ease the pressure on housing by selling 24 cows with calves at foot in April.

This leaves Ryan with 69 cows and 71 calves on the ground, with four cows to calve, and is similar to the breeding numbers in 2017.

Cows were sold directly from farm and averaged £1,400, which the group agreed was a good price for stock.

Cow type is predominantly Angus-cross-Friesian cows, crossed back to Angus or Hereford sires.

The group discussed the cull value of cows, with the consensus agreeing a figure of £700 to £800 per cow, which gave a calf value of £600 to £700 when sold, and similar to what the calf would have been worth as a weanling in autumn.

By selling the cows now, Ryan has greatly reduced the pressures on housing and to provide grazing this summer.

Dairy calf to beef

The topic of rearing dairy calves to beef alongside the current suckler herd was discussed at length. Grass growth on the farm last year was a little over 8t/ha of dry matter and above the NI average.

However, Ryan outlined that while his farm could grow more grass by increasing fertiliser rates, the weather plays a key role in utilising grass.

The challenge for grazing comes in the shoulders of the year. In a wet spring or autumn, it is difficult to manage large numbers of cows at grass on Ryan’s farm.

As an alternative, he is considering the merits of running a group of dairy-bred calves in early spring and autumn to make better use of grass during these periods.

These cattle would then be taken through to beef as steers after a second grazing season and housing would be able to accommodate them.

After much discussion, there was a consensus that there could be a role for some dairy-bred cattle to run alongside the current suckler herd of 73 cattle.

The group agreed that both systems could operate well in tandem, but that to move to a 100% dairy calf to beef system would be too high risk, as would returning to a 100-cow suckler unit.

Using continental sires to increase carcase weight

The average carcase weight for steers slaughtered in autumn 2017 was 297kg. With cattle qualifying for premiums through breed-specific schemes, steers generated between £1,100 and £1,200 per head when slaughtered.

Ryan discussed the merits of using a Limousin sire on cows in an effort to increase carcase weights in cattle.

Having Limousin-sired cattle could increase carcase weights by 30kg to 50kg. But with no breed premiums available, the consensus was that the farm would be no better off in terms of income.

In addition, the current system allows steers to be killed in October each year at 18 months of age, which does not affect housing space.

With continental steers, the age of slaughter would have to be increased to 20 or 21 months of age. Therefore, cattle would require a longer housing and finishing period, which increases finishing costs.

Calf mortality is low on farm by using easy-calving Angus and Hereford sires, with little assistance required during calving. Calf mortality and assisted calvings would most likely increase if a continental sire was introduced to the herd, which could reduce total output.

Fragmented land

The farm is in four main land blocks, which limits the options for grazing and silage. With one rented block, Ryan discussed with the group the options for making best use on the land.

Cows and calves are currently grazing in this block in paddocks, but the group felt that using the same block predominantly for silage would be more beneficial in terms of time management, with as many cattle as possible grazing closer to home.