Approved finishing unit??

Samcowman

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Cornwall
I am currently looking into setting up an AFU. Have read through all the stuff on the animal health website and it wouldn't take much to make our shed suitable for their requirements.
About half the cattle going in there would be our own which are currently clear but the others could be bought from anywhere.
Benefits would be not having to test finishing cattle which is a waste of time if they are in the last couple of months of slaughter and also being able to buy some slightly cheaper finishing cattle.
Does anyone else run one or have experience of running one?
 

Samcowman

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Cornwall
Maybe I have misunderstood the guidance but not sure how big the risk to mine would be when they would only be spending a few months in the finishing shed and when ours are in there it would be pretty much just ours in there. Just looking at options of using our finishing shed for longer
 

topground

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
North Somerset.
Competition for our stock leading to an increase in price to the producer!
Whatever next?
No wonder the processors and their masters the Supermarkets dont like markets.
 

mo!

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
York
I presume you mean an LFU? We will be going into an LFU as soon as we get a clear test. The whole point is that tb can't get out, so there shouldn't be any risk to the rest of your cattle.
 
Location
Devon
Competition for our stock leading to an increase in price to the producer!
Whatever next?
No wonder the processors and their masters the Supermarkets dont like markets.

Very clear that the deadweight price is only as high as it currently is because of liveweight fat markets, without them ( and in particular butchers pushing on trade in the ring ) then the deadweight price would be nearer £3 kilo.
 

mo!

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
York
Are you TB4 @mo!
Yep, one steer bought in from down south was VL at slaughter and we've been shut down since November. LFU will mean no more post movement testing and the spend to get up to spec is only about a grand so we will break even pretty quickly. Should have done it months ago.
 
Location
Cleveland
Yep, one steer bought in from down south was VL at slaughter and we've been shut down since November. LFU will mean no more post movement testing and the spend to get up to spec is only about a grand so we will break even pretty quickly. Should have done it months ago.
What did you have to spend the grand on if you don't mind me asking?
 
Location
Devon
Yep, one steer bought in from down south was VL at slaughter and we've been shut down since November. LFU will mean no more post movement testing and the spend to get up to spec is only about a grand so we will break even pretty quickly. Should have done it months ago.

What I don't understand is why you haven't been allowed to buy in since November??

Doesn't make any sense to me as one you have done a 60 day sit and any reactor cattle have gone they will then give you a licence to buy in.
 

S J H

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Bedfordshire
Yep, one steer bought in from down south was VL at slaughter and we've been shut down since November. LFU will mean no more post movement testing and the spend to get up to spec is only about a grand so we will break even pretty quickly. Should have done it months ago.
You'll only be able to buy tb4 though won't you? I thought they were trying to keep them out of clean areas, there didn't seem any benefit to having a LFU to me.
 
I am currently looking into setting up an AFU. Have read through all the stuff on the animal health website and it wouldn't take much to make our shed suitable for their requirements.
About half the cattle going in there would be our own which are currently clear but the others could be bought from anywhere.
Benefits would be not having to test finishing cattle which is a waste of time if they are in the last couple of months of slaughter and also being able to buy some slightly cheaper finishing cattle.
Does anyone else run one or have experience of running one?

Can you have an AFU under one set of TB rules, and still operate the holding under another? I thought the whole lot had to be either under .TB2 or not. No isolation units any more, etc.:scratchhead:
 

mo!

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
York
What I don't understand is why you haven't been allowed to buy in since November??

Doesn't make any sense to me as one you have done a 60 day sit and any reactor cattle have gone they will then give you a licence to buy in.
We couldn't do the first test until 60 days after the last on movement and they also clashed with post movement tests. We didn't have the case confirmed through cultures until just before Christmas and even then had to wait for a slot with the vet. Then APHA announced that we needed to Gamma test and then retest. We had positives at Gamma so then you can't do an SIT until 60 days after they have left, which didn't happen for 2 weeks after the test.

After we hadn't heard the results of the 10% of the gamma tests that had to be redone I rang the tb hotline rather than our APHA vet. They offered to put an application in to move on, this had been flatly ruled out previously.

The problem up here is that the APHA are understaffed and unfamiliar with all the rules. While I liked the APHA vet it doesn't help that English is not his first language and my father struggles to understand him at all. Add in the avian flu outbreak and a little self contained tb outbreak doesn't get a look in.

Our neighbours haven't heard anything about radials either.
 

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

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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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