200 acre sheep venture

[irish dom]

I have been asked if I would be interested in a local estate to lease. I am currently grazing it for the winter off previous tenant who is cutting back. Good land and more importantly completely ring fenced recently. I currently run 400 ewes on other leased blocks after starting with nothing 5 years ago. I have a contracting business that keeps the wheels on.
I am 30 years old and keen to farm in a substantial way. My question is how would people suggest is the best way to stock 200 acres of land coming on stream this spring? I was thinking ewes and lambs. Kill all dodgy ewes at end of summer and replace with good ewe lambs. Then run maternal team of rams until I get what I want in my flock. Suggestions please

 

[Still Farming]

Crack on you'll only regret it when your mate gets it ?

 

[Yale]

A good option would be to trawl through livestock auctioneers and try to find a complete flock for dispersal.

Would save a lot of bother.

Depends how your finances could cope.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

Not sure if it's applicable but over here there are often substantial numbers of ewes + lambs all counted, which would be how I'd do it.
Or as Yale said; it sounds like a few are going out of sheep, which suggests it's time to go in!!

Go for it, you're a long time wishing you had.

 

[Gator]

Go for it.........you only live once.

 

[Walterp]

Elementary question: are we talking Northern Ireland, or the Republic?

I'm astonished that no one's asked. It's the most important question.

 

[irish dom]

Republic. In the West. Would be very cautious if I was back home in the north. It's looking terrible up there

 

[Joe]

Republic. In the West. Would be very cautious if I was back home in the north. It's looking terrible up there

There are a good few farms in the west converting to Dairy from Suckler/sheep with original plan of lambing in the spring, selling lambs next year, ewes end of summer and starting to milk Feb 2019. Would think could pick up decent size flocks earlier if discussed as would give these farmers chance to focus on other tasks earlier next year than planned?

 

[irish dom]

Sounds like a plan Joe. I must get chatting to a few contacts. Buying wee odds and ends would not be ideal. Been there done that

 

[Yale]

Republic. In the West. Would be very cautious if I was back home in the north. It's looking terrible up there

If you went through 2001,foot and mouth selling lambs for £30,which were worth £80,that was terrible.

Sorry but Brexit will not be that bad.

Hard Brexit will mean dearer beef,processors will change to cheaper lamb for ready meals and underpin the price.

Be it a lower price however at a price lamb will become competitive.

We will just have to deal with it.

 

[Walterp]

Republic. In the West. Would be very cautious if I was back home in the north. It's looking terrible up there

I'm pleased (and envious) that you have a stable business environment - it's a useful opportunity, and I wish you all the best.

My wife Julie may have a similar opportunity coming up, and she will have to turn it down because of the reasons you cite: it's difficult to see how she can justify ponying up the rent, and retaining all her ewe lambs to double her flock when the UK government is determined to leave both CU and SM.

 

[Sheeponfire]

Crack on you'll only regret it when your mate gets it ?

thats a big +1 from me also

"hud her chappin min"

 

[Walterp]

Post Br

If you went through 2001,foot and mouth selling lambs for £30,which were worth £80,that was terrible.

Sorry but Brexit will not be that bad.

Hard Brexit will mean dearer beef,processors will change to cheaper lamb for ready meals and underpin the price.

Be it a lower price however at a price lamb will become competitive.

We will just have to deal with it.

Post Brexit budget selling price for UK lamb would be £40, in Julie's business plan, once the initial price correction is out of the way. No one knows how such a correction would play out.

Dearer beef? There might be a blip upward, but in the medium term there's only one way the UK beef job can go - we have one of the highest-cost beef production systems in the world.

Across the border, the EU has already highlighted that it may need to ramp up meat production in order to replace UK beef and lamb. This is definitely a business opportunity, but, err, not for us.

 

[Yale]

Post Br

Post Brexit budget selling price for UK lamb would be £40, in Julie's business plan, once the initial price correction is out of the way. No one knows how such a correction would play out.

Dearer beef? There might be a blip upward, but in the medium term there's only one way the UK beef job can go - we have one of the highest-cost beef production systems in the world.

The lamb job will correct itself,production will fall in this instance.

It will adjust to a sustainable level eventually,just got to ride it out.

There will be no NZ lamb for starters as it will become uneconomic to import it.

Who says we have one of the highest cost beef production systems?

All I see recently is a shift to large ultra efficient finishing farms.

You have to remember we have a large population on our doorstep.

Currency,currency and currency......the elephant in the room.

 

[Woolless]

I'm pleased (and envious) that you have a stable business environment - it's a useful opportunity, and I wish you all the best.

My wife Julie may have a similar opportunity coming up, and she will have to turn it down because of the reasons you cite: it's difficult to see how she can justify ponying up the rent, and retaining all her ewe lambs to double her flock when the UK government is determined to leave both CU and SM.

Sounds like there's a transitional deal in the offing, which should be pretty much business as usual for an extra couple of years. Also, more time for sorting out future trade arrangements and so hopefully some advance warning regarding what to expect longer term. I am more upbeat than I was a week ago (not saying much!).

 

[Bill dog]

I wish you all the luck ! I know plenty of folk round Newcastle west area. When I was over a month ago there seemed plenty of cows still grazing . Are you near enough the sea to get the winter salt and no need to worm ?
And as above , buying one mob would save buying lots of problems. Then you could even split straight away, with half to a maternal, and half to a terminal to give you some quality lambs and some cash back !

 

[sherg]

Buy ewes with lambs at foot this spring, I wouldn't bother buying ewe lambs though to tup next autumn they'll starve your cashflow I'd go for some older ewes that can do a year or 2 there wont be much difference in price and you'll probably sell twice as many lambs, give it 12 months and you can retain some females then

 

[Nithsdale]

I have been asked if I would be interested in a local estate to lease. I am currently grazing it for the winter off previous tenant who is cutting back. Good land and more importantly completely ring fenced recently. I currently run 400 ewes on other leased blocks after starting with nothing 5 years ago. I have a contracting business that keeps the wheels on.
I am 30 years old and keen to farm in a substantial way. My question is how would people suggest is the best way to stock 200 acres of land coming on stream this spring? I was thinking ewes and lambs. Kill all dodgy ewes at end of summer and replace with good ewe lambs. Then run maternal team of rams until I get what I want in my flock. Suggestions please

When in the spring would you get on the ground? Do you have decent capital to outlay buying more stock? (don't go into figures, that's personal )

Going by the last few years (here at least - maybe isn't applicable to your area) there's 'bargains' to be had at in-lamb sales in February... if you could run extra on your other land then ship them onto the new block ASAP - or even better, get onto the new ground before lambing. That could be the cheapest way forward... even if they are all triplets just lift 1 let them all go as twins.
I've been kicking myself since February - £80 for reg aged Easycares carrying triplets at Longtown. Should've just bought them and worried about it later.


Come the autumn buy draft hill ewes to top up numbers - cheaper than ewe lambs and will give you a better return. Less work, too, as they'll know what they are doing

 

[irish dom]

I wish you all the luck ! I know plenty of folk round Newcastle west area. When I was over a month ago there seemed plenty of cows still grazing . Are you near enough the sea to get the winter salt and no need to worm ?
And as above , buying one mob would save buying lots of problems. Then you could even split straight away, with half to a maternal, and half to a terminal to give you some quality lambs and some cash back !

No good bit away from the sea. In county Roscommon. I scan a few flocks around north limericks in herbertstown and Pallas green. Some fine land in it. One mob might be hard to find. Not many big flocks around here. But you never know

 

[Bill dog]

While at Newcastle west show this summer, I spoke to a boy n he said there was hardly a ewe in the area, all beef and dairy !