Lot of stood grass in cornwall.

Jrp221

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Cornwall
Really? Admittedly livestock numbers have fallen over the last few years, larger dairy herds on zero grazing too so less stock out but they would still be cutting. Lots of grass been cut down around us (Falmouth)
 
Location
Cleveland
Just back from a week down there.
Normally most grass cut by now.
LOT of stood seeding grass, not much livestock about either...
There’s not much livestock about anywhere when you’re driving about…..went to Lincoln last week and didn’t see a single field of cattle and not many sheep all the way. Came back through Newark and that was the same
 
We have had a catchy week last week so nobody cut much then although a fair bit has been done before 🤗 mowers are starting to go again today for hay and yes cattle numbers have dropped down here although those with cattle seem to keep more 🐄
 

Jackov Altraids

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Devon
Last week.
Down to fistral.
Normally go half term and always notice lot been cut.
Week later this year and hardly anything cut. Field after field of grass in seed.

If you came up the A39 through North Cornwall / Devon, you would be driving past a lot of sheep farms.
It has been extremely dry since mid-march and without fresh growth, sheep weren't removed from cutting fields until very late. These fields then always have a lot of seed heads waiting for the fresh grass to grow in the bottom.
This has been accentuated by no or late fertiliser applications.
 
Location
Devon
Really? Admittedly livestock numbers have fallen over the last few years, larger dairy herds on zero grazing too so less stock out but they would still be cutting. Lots of grass been cut down around us (Falmouth)
i did 150 miles on a route today that i have not done since pre covid @Jrp221 !

Back pre covid on this 150 mile route there would be field after field of suckler cows/ store cattle and sheep grazing at this time of year!

Today i ONLY saw one field of sheep along the entire 150 miles, now it is either wall to wall corn or fields ( steep so cannot be cut ) that clearly have not been grazed for at least 12 + months and thus left to go to waste!

The stock are just not there, if you can plough/combine your land then unless you are in dairy then you are better off putting it under the plough given the current diabolical prices for prime beef/ lamb in the UK.

Oh and used to be a very big outdoor pig farm on this route as well! now all gone and yep you have guessed it all down to corn!!
 

bluebell

Member
that says it all? if theres no profit in it? why bother with all the worry and work? Agricultural food production will only go up if its profitable to produce? Read a book called 70 summers by Harman, he farmed in the 1930s, when war was immenient, suddenly farming became important and profitable?
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
used to look across the somerset levels, field after field, full of cattle, now, very few cattle, but an awful lot of rushes, and f-ed fields.
But you only have to look at the number of dairy dispersals that have been, in the last few years, removes a lot of cattle, not only cows, but hfrs, and the calf crop from both. Talked to a haulier, just taken a load of cull cows, to abattoir, a lot of decent cows there, with lot numbers on their backs, cull price is more, on some cows, than farmers prepared to pay, chuck in TB as well.
But the most obvious signs of less stock, across the whole country, is the values of stock, pigs, very unfortuantly, the exception, everything is high. In the dairy field, milk is at record prices, as are culls, and milking cows, and still processors are short of milk.
But we should all realise, current prices are only where they are, because supply, is less than demand, reverse that to supply, greater than demand, and prices would drop like a stone.
There is huge pressure on processors and retailers, to keep prices low, the consumer is being hit very hard, with energy price, and now food inflation, guv is desperate to keep both, at lowest price possible.
Economics, are very simple, its demand, versus supply, until politicians bugger it up.
 
used to look across the somerset levels, field after field, full of cattle, now, very few cattle, but an awful lot of rushes, and f-ed fields.
But you only have to look at the number of dairy dispersals that have been, in the last few years, removes a lot of cattle, not only cows, but hfrs, and the calf crop from both. Talked to a haulier, just taken a load of cull cows, to abattoir, a lot of decent cows there, with lot numbers on their backs, cull price is more, on some cows, than farmers prepared to pay, chuck in TB as well.
But the most obvious signs of less stock, across the whole country, is the values of stock, pigs, very unfortuantly, the exception, everything is high. In the dairy field, milk is at record prices, as are culls, and milking cows, and still processors are short of milk.
But we should all realise, current prices are only where they are, because supply, is less than demand, reverse that to supply, greater than demand, and prices would drop like a stone.
There is huge pressure on processors and retailers, to keep prices low, the consumer is being hit very hard, with energy price, and now food inflation, guv is desperate to keep both, at lowest price possible.
Economics, are very simple, its demand, versus supply, until politicians bugger it up.

With the price of fertiliser is it no wonder people are sending on cows or getting out? Big money for a load of fertiliser and a lot of that land on the levels isn't in good heart to begin with. It would not surprise me at all if people were waiting until now for their first cut to get the bulk out of it because I am near certain that a lot of the land on the levels will not do much at all without any bagged magic.

Much of it is wet, acid or overgrown with problematic species, it's not the sort of land you can really farm on a shoestring because it wants to revert to it's old ways quite quickly. I can think of some medium or even large farms in the area and you can spot the fields they operate on very readily as they will be growing something and stand out miles amongst the others.

Truth be told with things as they are now I bet a few dairy farms should have got rid of those cows last autumn, saved on work, saved on silage and the remainder of the herd would have done better because of having a bit more space around the place.

Regarding sheep and beef on the levels I couldn't tell you, in my experience, neither of these sub-divisions spend much money on running their land anyway. A large portion of the levels isn't farmer that intensively at all. It's actually probably the traditional way of farming there and been practiced for decades. I remember a client telling me about how in the drought of 76 a lot of farmers on the levels dried all their cows off, cut down all the withys and let the cows have a holiday all summer.
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
With the price of fertiliser is it no wonder people are sending on cows or getting out? Big money for a load of fertiliser and a lot of that land on the levels isn't in good heart to begin with. It would not surprise me at all if people were waiting until now for their first cut to get the bulk out of it because I am near certain that a lot of the land on the levels will not do much at all without any bagged magic.

Much of it is wet, acid or overgrown with problematic species, it's not the sort of land you can really farm on a shoestring because it wants to revert to it's old ways quite quickly. I can think of some medium or even large farms in the area and you can spot the fields they operate on very readily as they will be growing something and stand out miles amongst the others.

Truth be told with things as they are now I bet a few dairy farms should have got rid of those cows last autumn, saved on work, saved on silage and the remainder of the herd would have done better because of having a bit more space around the place.
alas, but you are right.
its not so much the price of fert, as finding the big lump to pay for it, even if split over 3 months.
But we all need to work out a strategy, to cope with that price, reps tell us, its still economical at £900 ton,
like many, we reduced our N to 40units/ac, with sulphur, and despite the tack sheep leaving mid march, had one of the heaviest first cuts, for decades, all quality grass. Grazing wise, we had plenty of grass, and clover, for 1st round, only used 30n/s for second. Slurry been applied to cut ground. Now, grass is slowing down, because of dry weather.
But, 1st cut, is enough, to see us through, with some autumn silage, and we are making hay.
considering we usually do multi-cut, we have acres, to feed the cows, if necessary. That's great, its the why, l don't get.

back to the somerset levels, its a shame they want to revert back to marshland, all the work done over several 100 yrs, just thrown away. And at a time, when food security issues are becoming more important, it would take time, to return those pastures to good use, again
Guv seems to be sleepwalking into a massive shock, for us, ag inflation is running at 30%, that cost, will be passed on, to the consumer, farmers simply cannot carry that, retailers won't, so consumer pays, then add energy costs ......... There is a mighty big wall to hit. Imported food, is rising in cost, transport costs are rocketing.
Am pretty certain, neither guv, or s/mkts, realise the extent of that supply/price problem, the guv, because for most of the MP's, they have known nothing but, a readily available, huge range, of cheap food, some may even remember, bursting intervention stores, so, what problem ? S/mkts, their response has always been, up the price, farmers up production, they drop the price. Todays food availability problems, are global, not national, and their up/down price strategy, isn't going to work.
good for farmers though.
 

primmiemoo

Member
Location
Devon
i did 150 miles on a route today that i have not done since pre covid @Jrp221 !

Back pre covid on this 150 mile route there would be field after field of suckler cows/ store cattle and sheep grazing at this time of year!

Today i ONLY saw one field of sheep along the entire 150 miles, now it is either wall to wall corn or fields ( steep so cannot be cut ) that clearly have not been grazed for at least 12 + months and thus left to go to waste!

The stock are just not there, if you can plough/combine your land then unless you are in dairy then you are better off putting it under the plough given the current diabolical prices for prime beef/ lamb in the UK.

Oh and used to be a very big outdoor pig farm on this route as well! now all gone and yep you have guessed it all down to corn!!
For feeding AD, or to feed the animals that aren't there?
 

Cowabunga

Member
Location
Ceredigion,Wales
Don’t know about elsewhere but second cut silage is suffering from a distinct lack of rain. I’ve had to increase the grazing area more than planned as well, to keep the cows fed and milking.
If it continues this dry for the next 12 weeks, which is a distinct possibility, then Winter fodder and Summer and Winter milk will be in short supply whatever the price. Many have had enough of farming and are on the cusp of throwing in the towel, so there is not likely to be a food surplus any time soon. Beef is probably going to continue to be plentiful until late Autumn of course, due to farmers not spreading fertiliser and offloading a high proportion of their herds, leading to a distinct shortage of home grown beef over Winter and into next year.
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 77 43.5%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 62 35.0%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 28 15.8%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.7%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.7%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 4 2.3%

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

  • 1,286
  • 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/
Top