Beef / Lamb & Pig Price Tracker

[Northeastfarmer]

Or....... you buy a load of barren cows and try your luck

Well personally I wouldn't touch anything that had seen a bull but plenty do

 

[bobk]

Well personally I wouldn't touch anything that had seen a bull but plenty do

I'm not fussy.

 

[bread and jam]

or you buy a heifer with a calf by its side and been running back with the bull.

 

[exmoor dave]

I can't see folk going from sheep back to beef in a area like the SW unless there is a serious income in balance (in favour of beef)
Or the ground nesting pigs are gotten under control


Honestly farming under tb restrictions is a complete nightmare and it really does knock your confidence to keep any (more) cattle

 

[gone up the hill]

In the short term yes but what could happen by the time those calves are sold, if May sells us all own the river for cheap food then we could be flooded with cheap beef as well as lamb

Any suckler calves being sold now should be long gone before brexit has an effect!

Two risks to the beef job are people quitting sheep for cattle ( which will happen if lamb drops thru the floor regardless of TB etc ) and American/ Argentina etc beef imports post brexit, the latter will be a disaster for UK producers, if it happens there is no way we can compete with hormone beef lot feed beef cattle.

 

[gone up the hill]

I can't see folk going from sheep back to beef in a area like the SW unless there is a serious income in balance (in favour of beef)
Or the ground nesting pigs are gotten under control


Honestly farming under tb restrictions is a complete nightmare and it really does knock your confidence to keep any (more) cattle

If you are farming cattle in the SW then you have to be set up to fhinsh them, how people can farm sucklers selling store cattle in this part of the UK is beyond me.

TB movement rules for cattle are becoming unworkable and are totally unjustified imo..

 

[Old Tip]

Any suckler calves being sold now should be long gone before brexit has an effect!

Two risks to the beef job are people quitting sheep for cattle ( which will happen if lamb drops thru the floor regardless of TB etc ) and American/ Argentina etc beef imports post brexit, the latter will be a disaster for UK producers, if it happens there is no way we can compete with hormone beef lot feed beef cattle.

I assume he was talking baby calves @gone up the hill so in 18/20 m things could be a lot different

 

[gone up the hill]

yes but when they look at what store cattle are making at the moment, surely some will think its worth more than putting the plough in, thats if they have ground suitable for ploughing in the first place

No money in corn at the current prices!

Suckler farms that are not in a TB hotspot area ( like the SW ) who do the job right with plenty of grazing/ cheap straw etc and push the calf's from day one ( creep feed ) then sell them off the cow at 9/10 months old have the best chance to make the biggest profit in the beef job.

But you have to treat your sucklers like dairy cows ( ie make sure everyone calves once a year for example ) and have the right breed/ conformation of cow to make it pay.

 

[gone up the hill]

I assume he was talking baby calves @gone up the hill so in 18/20 m things could be a lot different

Baby calf trade has been far too high for 1/2 + years, utter madness to be paying £400 + for a bull calve at 30 days old when it will only be worth £1200/1300 20/24 months later!

 

[Lovegoodstock]

I think suckler numbers rose the other year? But I cant see a swing back to people wanting cows. Yes surely better returns than corn at the minute, but staffing is geared up to what you do, too much change to add 50/100 suckler cows than plough up a few more acres and maybe use a bit of contractor. Plus tb issues, think will see new money setting up 300/400 easy run sucklers to finish prodgeny, sign of this surely in store cattle price? As @gone up the hill says, calf trade been mad for ages, but way of having cattle but not cows. A one off buy admittedly but bought a heifer pd in calf with 4 m.o steer e/u grade, probably e, at 1325 last oct, folks don't want cows for sure in this area. Great trade in thame again today, sadly real clearings up went today but well pleased

 

[J 1177]

They seem to dip then come back up to around 400. This may be prolonged i dont know

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Isn't wheat nudging 150/t at the minute...better return than cows for only 8 weeks work a year

 

[bread and jam]

A one off buy admittedly but bought a heifer pd in calf with 4 m.o steer e/u grade, probably e, at 1325 last oct,

That was a good buy.

 

[gone up the hill]

Isn't wheat nudging 150/t at the minute...better return than cows for only 8 weeks work a year

Will cost you £350 acre to grow, average wheat yield is about 3.27t acre so about £450 acre, fine for two years but then you will need a break crop that will break even at best!

 

[Henarar]

If you are farming cattle in the SW then you have to be set up to fhinsh them, how people can farm sucklers selling store cattle in this part of the UK is beyond me.

Really

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Will cost you £350 acre to grow, average wheat yield is about 3.27t acre so about £450 acre, fine for two years but then you will need a break crop that will break even at best!

There's probably a lot of people keeping sheep at break even at times...you just crack on with it

 

[Lovegoodstock]

That was a good buy.

As I said a one off! Honestly nearly had her at 1150, as always happens when your waiting for hammer to come down, it never does. I calve all year round, guess fact she calved md summer didn't help her

 

[gone up the hill]

There's probably a lot of people keeping sheep at break even at times...you just crack on with it

More money in sheep than anything else at the moment.

Trouble is it takes a lot of lambs at £75 head to get 10k but it only takes 7/8 cattle to make 10k.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

More money in sheep than anything else at the moment.

Trouble is it takes a lot of lambs at £75 head to get 10k but it only takes 7/8 cattle to make 10k.

There's more money in cattle than sheep at the minute

 

[gone up the hill]

Really

I mean that with the risk of getting a IR/ reactor at a pre movement test is so great that it would be a nightmare if you have 20/30 cattle to sell and cant move them for 5 months at least, just such a risk with TB now and movement controls on cattle have got totally out of control.

Total respect for farmers like yourself that do it thou.