Ewe nuts

[Bury the Trash]

This thread is on here this time every year, one person says its rubbish, one says its fine, you pay your money you take your chose. Its a mystery what's in some feeds.

That's the problem.

With straights you know what your buying.
Get an good independatant nuitrionist to design a ration for your own requirement, and then it's just the mixing of them up.

 

[neilo]

That's the problem.

With straights you know what your buying.
Get an good independatant nuitrionist to design a ration for your own requirement, and then it's just the mixing of them up.

Or only buy from companies that are willing to disclose ingredients and inclusion rates, and who commit to fixing that formulation for the year. Buying whatever is least money per ton, as many sheep farmers do, is just crazy. Those same farmers would be unlikely to buy the worst replacement ewes in the market, just because they were the cheapest.

I realise that I pay a small premium to buy in the small amount of ewe feed I do, whilst I sell my own barley. I reckon it costs me a couple of hundred quid a year so that I can draw rolls from the bin where the lorry delivered it, and throw it on the bedding. I save time in not sourcing & storing straights in small quantities, not having to mix it, and in feeding it with the ‘bucket & chuckit’ method. I don’t have to buy troughs, risk life & limb getting a home mix into them, and can walk round the lambing pens with a bucket full, trickling a small pile into the front of each pen. Worth every penny imo.

 

[Bury the Trash]

Or only buy from companies that are willing to disclose ingredients and inclusion rates, and who commit to fixing that formulation for the year. Buying whatever is least money per ton, as many sheep farmers do, is just crazy. Those same farmers would be unlikely to buy the worst replacement ewes in the market, just because they were the cheapest.

I realise that I pay a small premium to buy in the small amount of ewe feed I do, whilst I sell my own barley. I reckon it costs me a couple of hundred quid a year so that I can draw rolls from the bin where the lorry delivered it, and throw it on the bedding. I save time in not sourcing & storing straights in small quantities, not having to mix it, and in feeding it with the ‘bucket & chuckit’ method. I don’t have to buy troughs, risk life & limb getting a home mix into them, and can walk round the lambing pens with a bucket full, trickling a small pile into the front of each pen. Worth every penny imo.

That's exactly why mvf feeds never looked so competetitive .

Im lucky enough to Grow my own feed grain and it is viewed slightly differently with regards to farm assurance, than selling grain.

Gives a field or 2 a year a complete break from sheep as well.

 

[neilo]

That's exactly why mvf feeds never looked so competetitive .

Im lucky enough to Grow my own feed grain and it is viewed slightly differently with regards to farm assurance, than selling grain.

Gives a field or 2 a year a complete break from sheep as well.

I grow grain too, letting me into fodder beet, swedes & turnips for winter keep. I sell that grain and buy in what feed I need (not much).

I do make an exception if I want to feed a mob of lambs to fatten, making my own Alkagrain and feeding in a hopper. That’s nearer £80/t saving though, as feed ingredients are less critical than for productive ewes.

 

[D.S.S18]

We are very lucky to have 6 mills within 40 mile radius -

we shopped about for prices, but we were happy with MVF last couple of years so stuck with them - not the cheapest, but we felt it worked previously, and the price was comparable to last year.

 

[Jdunn55]

Hmm not sure what to think of my ewe nuts now... just had them delivered, wish I had seen this thread before I ordered them!

 

[TL100]

Hmm not sure what to think of my ewe nuts now... just had them delivered, wish I had seen this thread before I ordered them!View attachment 856858

That's the best cake so far....in the 'how many ingredients can you cram into a nut' competition ?

 

[Jdunn55]

That's the best cake so far....in the 'how many ingredients can you cram into a nut' competition ?

Thought it was quite a lot! Not sure whether that's a good or bad thing though? Thought the fibre could be a bit high really? Ash slightly better but still high?

 

[muleman]

Will this feed do the job?

 

[northumberland tup]

I seriously wouldn't feed either . A bit of basic knowledge on nutrition is not rocket science ...... Every firm knows what its competitors are doing in any given area , and can price accordingly .....It horrifies me what folk are gullible enough to buy !
Neilo's comment re dearer feed , but less going into ewes , better milking etc , rings true . It's all about the final £s margin that matters ; not trying to cut costs at the most critical time in the sheep cycle ..... Crap rations are the road to sh1te results and longer-term issues ..... And it'd kick through into the next year et al ...... Must see things like wheat , barley , maize , soya , rape etc high up incl listing . Cheap fat was a favourite to jack up the ME levels , but coated particles , so not used in gut and it f's-up the forage digestibility also ! My guy uses some soya oil , but pretty sparingly , and also gets the Rolls to hold together with same formulation . Most compounders still think that you need loads of crap to get Rolls to hold together .
anything on the list of ingredients after molasses isn't going to be in at any great % with molasses circa 6-8% only your top rations generally have any soya in and nine times out of ten it's usually in after molasses

 

[Jim75]

Will this feed do the job?View attachment 856913

youll have to give us a sneak peak of what’s in it

 

[Moors Lad]

Will this feed do the job?
[/QUOTE
Go on, spill the beans that`s not a compound feed...... Bit too much fibre for my liking

 

[northumberland tup]

Will this feed do the job?View attachment 856913

protein balancer that and NPN ( urea) not best for sheep unless mixed very thoroughly

 

[muleman]

 

[Hummin-Cummins]

Have used a 20% roll from a local supplier this year @ £263/t bulk.
Ewes with plenty of milk.
Very impressed with it.View attachment 856370

Now thats some good feed

 

[WRXppp]

As above, I'd be looking for one with decent soya inclusion instead. I changed to a dearer roll for my early lambers this year, which had 15% wheat distillers and 14% soya, albeit at £30/t more than my previous 'premium' roll. I have 2/3 of the quantity and the ewes have milked far better than usual, making better use of the forage, and doing their lambs better as a result. Cost per head has been significantly lower.

If I was forced to take one of the above, it would be the top one, purely because it at least has Megalac and some distillers dark grains in it. Neither very good though IMO.

Why do none of these feeds or any I have ever got quotes for have the ME listed as it is really important!

 

[WRXppp]

GLW supreme ewe:
View attachment 856315

£265/t as rolls in bulk.

Nice to see a full list of %’s aswell, wheat and barley too!

 

[neilo]

Why do none of these feeds or any I have ever got quotes for have the ME listed as it is really important!

Surely that’s a question that any potential buyer should be asking anyway?
The listing I put up (GLW) specifies ME as well as DUP levels, although ME is only a calculation based on some of the other specifications, so only a guide.

 

[Pistonbroke]

Don't forget that it is legal to vary ingredients + or - 10% compared to what is listed

 

[Plain steer]

Surely that’s a question that any potential buyer should be asking anyway?
The listing I put up (GLW) specifies ME as well as DUP levels, although ME is only a calculation based on some of the other specifications, so only a guide.

It is the cheapest nut I’ve seen on here so far because it the best nut yet by a country mile