Beef / Lamb & Pig Price Tracker

Al R

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
West Wales
Thanks, you have helped get the point i have been trying to get across. I wonder to what point you could cut numbers using less fert to make the same overall profit, not easily done without trying it. If we all tried it then production would drop and demand /prices would rise. Unless the sods just imported more🤣
Going off the experience we had when we went organic in 2000, the farm had 900 ewes and around 140 ewe lambs the next year 850, the year after 800 then went to 600 ewes for 4-5 years then crept back up by 30-40 ewes a year. Currently at 850 ewes and 220 ewe lambs plus growing double the corn and more green crop than we have had since before converting. Clover is key though!
 
Going off the experience we had when we went organic in 2000, the farm had 900 ewes and around 140 ewe lambs the next year 850, the year after 800 then went to 600 ewes for 4-5 years then crept back up by 30-40 ewes a year. Currently at 850 ewes and 220 ewe lambs plus growing double the corn and more green crop than we have had since before converting. Clover is key though!
Did the land adjust or did you start putting more clovers in etc?
 

Al R

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
West Wales
Be plenty joining you!!
Read my post above, their numbers will drop severely unless they already have clover rich leys and don’t use much fert anyway. Plus there is little incentive with no payments for converting now and all organic environmental schemes not taking new contracts and I don’t know of many meat buyers wanting more organic produce either
 

Northern territory

Member
Livestock Farmer
Going off the experience we had when we went organic in 2000, the farm had 900 ewes and around 140 ewe lambs the next year 850, the year after 800 then went to 600 ewes for 4-5 years then crept back up by 30-40 ewes a year. Currently at 850 ewes and 220 ewe lambs plus growing double the corn and more green crop than we have had since before converting. Clover is key though!
Are you purely sheep ?
 

Al R

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
West Wales
Did the land adjust or did you start putting more clovers in etc?
The land adjusts, my roots all go down deep, my new leys look sh!te for the first 2 years as the roots are living off the OM on the surface after the cereals and turnips and then by year 3 their hammering on!

Most heavily fertilised grass leys I see all of the roots are in the top 2-3”, no roots go down as they don’t need to as their being fed from the surface with prills, by not feeding from above the roots go down and get the nutrients from well below
 
Location
Devon
Thanks, you have helped get the point i have been trying to get across. I wonder to what point you could cut numbers using less fert to make the same overall profit, not easily done without trying it. If we all tried it then production would drop and demand /prices would rise. Unless the sods just imported more🤣
But you will have to cut ALL your fixed costs as well including wages/ or what you draw out of the business to live on, how do you do that when everything that you need on a personal level like gas/ fuel/ etc etc is rapidly climbing in price?

All you are on is a race to the bottom!
 

z.man

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
central scotland
A man in this area (sadly no longer with us) who was a master at winning carcase competitions always said the shoulder was the most important part when assessing live lambs. A lamb with a good shoulder always had a good carcase overall. He used to come look at our tups before the premier sale and always put his hand on the shoulder before anything else.
Not to mention the extra kg on the shoulder gets payed at the same rate as the hindquarter
 

z.man

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
central scotland
But you will have to cut ALL your fixed costs as well including wages/ or what you draw out of the business to live on, how do you do that when everything that you need on a personal level like gas/ fuel/ etc etc is rapidly climbing in price?

All you are on is a race to the bottom!
Unfortunately I agree completely with you here, the economic model of ever decreasing circles is doomed to failure , Optimising inputs however is prudent.
When I was younger I was envious of the huge farms with massive turnover however I now look admiringly at the small self sufficient farm that’s providing an adequate living for the minimum expenditure unfortunately I feel stuck somewhere in the middle 🙈🙈🙈
 

Al R

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
West Wales
Yes they are and something/someone is driving that to reduce Fert usage and its not the price of gas that is the main driver.
There are supply issues from Russia etc, LPG tankers are being diverted last minute from European/British shores to China or wherever the highest bidder is. People off due to covid etc worldwide.

tried ordering anything new recently? Huge waits for anything!
 
Yes they are and something/someone is driving that to reduce Fert usage and its not the price of gas that is the main driver.
China and India were being forced to use fertiliser on any land that would grow for food security at the beginning of Covid almost two years ago it was a kind of forced subsidy that farmers had to take up on.
At the same time a hell of a lot of fert or ingredients for fert were on the move everywhere
Not been right since
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 79 42.5%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 65 34.9%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.1%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 6 3.2%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,287
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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