Restricions on calves?

Why? Potentially the buyer may pay less by choosing to agree to the restriction, so it becomes a win win. If he doesn’t pay less then it suggests a free market sees it as no issue.
I just think it would be much less chance of it going wrong if calf’s stayed with the owner who is seeing I’m guessing a bonus from the company setting the rules
Or a customer who deals directly with arla supplier
Calf going into market is just going to open a can of worms
 
Location
East Mids
I'm not so sure it is. Previously more calves were sent off to market, mixed up and then struggled with all sorts of disease that impacted them through out their lives reducing growth rates and increasing cost. Now more farms are rearing their own calves and selling weaned (we are on 2 farms) or selling to buyers who want calves above a set base weight reared to standards that require much greater care and result in healthier calves (our other farm). These calves become more efficient feed converters. Their is plenty of evidence to back up the huge difference in feed efficiency between calves that have had pneumonia for example and those that have not.
My inefficiency in the beef chain was the unnecessary cost of a TB test by moving them after 8 weeks rather than moving them at 5, I wasn't referring to anything else.
 

RushesToo

Member
Location
Fingringhoe
I have been lazy and skipped from page 1 to here so this may be wrong.
The problem is bull dairy calves, the solution is sexed semen.

Is the problem Arla have actually - not paying, asking, insisting that sexed semen is used?
It doesn't seem like this is a paperwork or legal problem.
 

Kiss

Member
Location
North west
I have been lazy and skipped from page 1 to here so this may be wrong.
The problem is bull dairy calves, the solution is sexed semen.

Is the problem Arla have actually - not paying, asking, insisting that sexed semen is used?
It doesn't seem like this is a paperwork or legal problem.




I don’t think it’s the solution it just moves the problem, as said before the next dairy bull is the small natives

using sexed isn’t insisted on but it’s a string to the bow
 

Sandpit Farm

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Derbyshire
Absolutely, but then we start with the end in mind. If there was no such thing as a B/W bull calf, the AngusX heifer is the new ‘bottom of the league’.

Well if you could finish them at R4s and hit 280-300kg and there were enough of them, couldnt they just be minced with main cuts put into foodservice. It’s just the route to market we lack... there’s a tidy penny in it for someone who can square that circle at the retail/wholesale end.

Sexed semen is the nearest thing to a golden bullet that we have but the market demand needs to be created for the bottom of the league calves. Would love to see more cottage industry and direct sales.
 
Location
cumbria
Ultimately the risk is arla calves will be removed from the market. As your better safe than sorry. Whether that's a good thing, I'm not too convinced.

I had one of the calf buying companies in last year. Offered £160 a head, giving all the assurances, got your best interests, etc. Calves went to market and made £350.

Calf buying company came back to me a month later and bought the lot at £400.
That price wouldn't have been set without the market.

I do have a new shed coming online this year for calves. Making keeping them a bit longer if needs be a possibility. The funny bit is, I can sell at a month for £400 or sell at 2 month for £400. Not sure how other folk are adding it up🤣.
 

dinderleat

Member
Location
Wells
Absolutely, but then we start with the end in mind. If there was no such thing as a B/W bull calf, the AngusX heifer is the new ‘bottom of the league’.

Well if you could finish them at R4s and hit 280-300kg and there were enough of them, couldnt they just be minced with main cuts put into foodservice. It’s just the route to market we lack... there’s a tidy penny in it for someone who can square that circle at the retail/wholesale end.

Sexed semen is the nearest thing to a golden bullet that we have but the market demand needs to be created for the bottom of the league calves. Would love to see more cottage industry and direct sales.
Got angus heifers hitting 330 at 24m a few r’s but most 0+
0232E1B3-809B-4F39-B3DD-58A029B8D25D.jpeg
 
Last edited:
Location
West Wales
Ultimately the risk is arla calves will be removed from the market. As your better safe than sorry. Whether that's a good thing, I'm not too convinced.

I had one of the calf buying companies in last year. Offered £160 a head, giving all the assurances, got your best interests, etc. Calves went to market and made £350.

Calf buying company came back to me a month later and bought the lot at £400.
That price wouldn't have been set without the market.

I do have a new shed coming online this year for calves. Making keeping them a bit longer if needs be a possibility. The funny bit is, I can sell at a month for £400 or sell at 2 month for £400. Not sure how other folk are adding it up🤣.

4-5 weeks is the sweet spot it would seem. At 8-16 weeks somewhere they enter the void where they cost you a fair bit of money but seem to gain no value at all.
 

O'Reilly

Member
You do all realise that this is a rule that red tractor are bringing in for everyone? There's all this talk of arla this, arla that, but red tractor covers nearly every dairy in the country.
 

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

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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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