Starting a beef enterprise?

[exmoor dave]

So your ambition is to be a slipper farmer aka a welfare cheat.

ummmm.....no!! my amibion is that my sheep or cattle should be profitable businesses before the SFP. whats wrong with that @sheepwise ? look back thru my posts and you'll see that! I don't even get any subs for my stock!! so in some way that makes me a wanna be slipper farmer?

as much as I hate to see SFP being claimed with no farming involved, i'll be the first to say it should go to active farmers, but currently its not illegal to be a slipper farmer, as long as the conditions of sfp are met, so how is that in anyway being a "welfare cheat"?

if farmer A can make more from subs with in the law than via cattle, who's to tell him (or her) that's not allowed?

 

[Samcowman]

Well, I'm packing in Sucklers cos I can make more money doing other (easier) stuff.

Weaned 50 calves today and the cows have started on full fattening ration.

Will wean another 50ish over the next couple of months and the cows should be all gone by Christmas.

Why don't you guys that think it's making you loads of money buy them from me and save them from the chop?!

You are probably too far away and we will only be looking at bringing any in after TB and PD in the autumn.
Chop chop

 

[sheepwise]

ummmm.....no!! my amibion is that my sheep or cattle should be profitable businesses before the SFP. whats wrong with that @sheepwise ? look back thru my posts and you'll see that! I don't even get any subs for my stock!! so in some way that makes me a wanna be slipper farmer?

as much as I hate to see SFP being claimed with no farming involved, i'll be the first to say it should go to active farmers, but currently its not illegal to be a slipper farmer, as long as the conditions of sfp are met, so how is that in anyway being a "welfare cheat"?

if farmer A can make more from subs with in the law than via cattle, who's to tell him (or her) that's not allowed?

Not illegal but immoral in my book.

 

[d williams]

Well, I'm packing in Sucklers cos I can make more money doing other (easier) stuff.

Weaned 50 calves today and the cows have started on full fattening ration.

Will wean another 50ish over the next couple of months and the cows should be all gone by Christmas.

Why don't you guys that think it's making you loads of money buy them from me and save them from the chop?!

They'd sell better in feb

 

[Thick Farmer]

They'd sell better in feb

I know, but they will have eaten a fair bit of food by then...

 

[Thick Farmer]

You are probably too far away and we will only be looking at bringing any in after TB and PD in the autumn.
Chop chop

I doubt it would cost a tenner a head to transport them from here to Wiltshire on a decker! They'll be in good nick in the autumn too...

 

[Samcowman]

I doubt it would cost a tender a head to transport them from here to Wiltshire on a decker! They'll be in good nick in the autumn too...

Lol. I'm not going to bite. Unfortunately they are a bit late calving for me. Trying to get calving tight.
I do hate to see half decent cows getting chopped.

 

[Aspiring Peasant]

Lol. I'm not going to bite. Unfortunately they are a bit late calving for me. Trying to get calving tight.
I do hate to see half decent cows getting chopped.

Anyone see the article in yesterday's FG. Chap with blue grey sucklers put to a Charolais leaving gross margin of £400 and net margin of £200?
Selling calves at 6 months as well.

 

[Baling Hay]

Anyone see the article in yesterday's FG. Chap with blue grey sucklers put to a Charolais leaving gross margin of £400 and net margin of £200?
Selling calves at 6 months as well.

No, have you a link?

 

[M-J-G]

The right cow kept on the right farm with the correct marketing can still make money, Cows that aren't making a profit are either the wrong type of animal, the farm is no use for sucklers or value needs to be added to the calf crop.

Also if you come to our area where nearly every fence has disappeared into the long grass in the margins between arable fields, and there aren't enough worms in the land to attract a gull when ploughing, you'd be glad of a few loads of dung since the soil is only good for standing crops up in!

Funnily enough it's the few men who have always kept cattle who are farming well and the purely arable men are left wondering how they manage to do so well, especially in a bad year.

Farms didn't used to be a mix of enterprises for fun! One feeds off the other.

 

[Baling Hay]

The right cow kept on the right farm with the correct marketing can still make money, Cows that aren't making a profit are either the wrong type of animal, the farm is no use for sucklers or value needs to be added to the calf crop.

Also if you come to our area where nearly every fence has disappeared into the long grass in the margins between arable fields, and there aren't enough worms in the land to attract a gull when ploughing, you'd be glad of a few loads of dung since the soil is only good for standing crops up in!

Funnily enough it's the few men who have always kept cattle who are farming well and the purely arable men are left wondering how they manage to do so well, especially in a bad year.

Farms didn't used to be a mix if enterprises for fun! One feeds off the other.

Very very true, but sucklers are not required for mixed farming.

 

[M-J-G]

True, but a good cow, on a suitable farm that is well managed is an asset not a drain.

Plenty of dairy herds can't make money either, otherwise why do so many stop?

A good farmer will make money!

 

[Baling Hay]

True, but a good cow, on a suitable farm that is well managed is an asset not a drain.

Plenty of dairy herds can't make money either, otherwise why do so many stop?

A good farmer will make money!

I think a lot of dairy herds stop primarily due to their systems. I think the Holstein cow is very hard work and sickens people of milking, they have so much health issues with the cows and they require so much feeding etc. If people kept a more robust cow they would surprise themselves how much easier it can be. Also because of Holsteins, people think they need diet feeders, auto id in parlour, and loads of flashy machinery and gadgets to feed cows etc. when a simple system is often better. then they go to 3 x a day milking to help cover these costs and it is just a vicious circle. The farmer then gets older and the children are not interested in dairying because they see all the hard work and then they quit milking. The UK is good at growing grass but yet the avergae dairy cow only produces 1700 litres from grass each year. That says it all really. I reckon South America has a bigger influence on UK milk production than the grasslands of the UK!

 

[multi power]

I think a lot of dairy herds stop primarily due to their systems. I think the Holstein cow is very hard work and sickens people of milking, they have so much health issues with the cows and they require so much feeding etc. If people kept a more robust cow they would surprise themselves how much easier it can be. Also because of Holsteins, people think they need diet feeders, auto id in parlour, and loads of flashy machinery and gadgets to feed cows etc. when a simple system is often better. then they go to 3 x a day milking to help cover these costs and it is just a vicious circle. The farmer then gets older and the children are not interested in dairying because they see all the hard work and then they quit milking. The UK is good at growing grass but yet the avergae dairy cow only produces 1700 litres from grass each year. That says it all really. I reckon South America has a bigger influence on UK milk production than the grasslands of the UK!

plenty will say holstines ruined the beef industry, but as i see it they ruined the dairy industry

 

[Baling Hay]

plenty will say holstines ruined the beef industry, but as i see it they ruined the dairy industry

They ruined both! I can see their purpose in USA were they struggle with grazing and can grow great maize and alfalfa, but the Uk would be better off with the Friesian, Viking Reds, Jersey x's, fleckvieh etc.

 

[multi power]

They ruined both! I can see their purpose in USA were they struggle with grazing and can grow great maize and alfalfa, but the Uk would be better off with the Friesian, Viking Reds, Jersey x's, fleckvieh etc.

definetly agree

 

[Aspiring Peasant]

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home...mic-sense-on-marginal-hill-land/58432.article Link to blue grey article (I hope)

 

[Baling Hay]

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home...mic-sense-on-marginal-hill-land/58432.article Link to blue grey article (I hope)

Does he get this common ground for nothing or next to?

 

[Thick Farmer]

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home...mic-sense-on-marginal-hill-land/58432.article Link to blue grey article (I hope)

Some of those figure seem a bit optimistic...

£700 for a barren blue grey cow. They aren't very big, so must be killing out well.

£1700 for finished cattle at 14-15 months. That must mean a live weight of around 850Kg at 14 months. Is that achievable?

 

[M-J-G]

Some of those figure seem a bit optimistic...

£700 for a barren blue grey cow. They aren't very big, so must be killing out well.

£1700 for finished cattle at 14-15 months. That must mean a live weight of around 850Kg at 14 months. Is that achievable?

The cow part is believable, if those wee cows are fleshed they'll go into £700 ok, I do share your suspicion on the progeny, although we had a few of them years ago, put them to a big rough Simmental bull and their calves were freakishly big and shapely, when finished one wouldn't fit up the crush he was so wide. 850kg is a big beast at 14mth though.