scaling up - whats the best approach?

[farmgineer]

Hi all, not sure if this is the right place for this question. We currently farm 50 ac as beef sucklers, we also sell silage as we have a little too much ground for our stock but are rearing heifers to expand our herd over the next few years. We have just been offered another 50 ac to farm next year and I am wondering what to do with it...
I have considered beef,pigs, corn and silage and done some costings for each. Ideally we would introduce diversity into our cropping to lower the potential risks. We have the kit to do everything ourselves apart from round baling and wrapping, for which we use a contractor.
And I have no idea or experience with sheep...
Thanks for any replies.

 

[Hilly]

Do you have sheds ? Do you have or access sensabke price straw ?

 

[farmgineer]

We have 1 shed which is 90 x 60ft, so not huge... Straw we bought off the field, this year was about £50/ton. I'm pretty sure that access will be there for a bit

 

[Woolless]

Depends how sheep-phobic you are but store lambs might be a good fit with cattle and extra ground for silage. Less demanding of shepherding skill than breeding sheep and numbers/length of keep can be adjusted to suit.

 

[farmgineer]

I'm open to all ideas. With sheep I dont know the prices etc or stocking rates to be able to work out whether its better/worse than more cows etc... Also what are the typical losses expected?

 

[Woolless]

I'm open to all ideas. With sheep I dont know the prices etc or stocking rates to be able to work out whether its better/worse than more cows etc... Also what are the typical losses expected?

Plenty of threads regarding store lambs on here and/or have a Google.

 

[Farmer1001]

Hi all, not sure if this is the right place for this question. We currently farm 50 ac as beef sucklers, we also sell silage as we have a little too much ground for our stock but are rearing heifers to expand our herd over the next few years. We have just been offered another 50 ac to farm next year and I am wondering what to do with it...
I have considered beef,pigs, corn and silage and done some costings for each. Ideally we would introduce diversity into our cropping to lower the potential risks. We have the kit to do everything ourselves apart from round baling and wrapping, for which we use a contractor.
And I have no idea or experience with sheep...
Thanks for any replies.

Identify a market then work back. Not wishing to sound like I’m dismissing your post but too many start with production rather than market opportunities. Best wishes. ?

 

[farmgineer]

Cheers, I think I know what you mean. I will take that into account

 

[HarryB97]

I would not expand the cattle much all your eggs in one basket and all that, store lambs are a potential option especially smaller longer keep ones and are very easy to look after as well as requiring a fraction of the capital. If you are a gambling man though could buy some weaned calves this year whilst they are very cheap and hope to make some serious money next year. You could always put a percentage down to spring barley for the grain for feed and straw for bedding to minimise your current variable costs like bedding then turnips over winer for your store lambs or a neighbours sheep. Are you in a horsey area at all could make a percentage into small bale hay and straw or lucerne hay for high end yards. Like everything there's so many options which only makes it harder!