Winter finishing has always been a tight-margin game with a high level of risk taken by producers when going out to purchase stock each autumn but the winter of 2022-2023 looks set to bring this to a whole new level.

On Tuesday 13 September, Teagasc held a winter finishing event in Kilkenny Mart to outline both the physical and financial performance required to make a winter finishing operation viable this year.

Figures presented by Paul Crosson, beef enterprise leader at Teagasc Grange, show the breakeven cost required next spring to range from €5.78/kg in a continental steer system up to as much as €5.98/kg for a Friesian steer system.

Margin

To add a €100/head margin on to each animal the beef price needs to increase anywhere from 25c/kg to 30c/kg for continental steer systems and 30c/kg to 35c/kg for Friesian steer systems. This would push the beef price required up to €6.08/kg on continental systems and as high as €6.33/kg for Friesians.

Paul said: “Every farmer will have a different expectation for their return on investment. This is why we present the figure required for each €100/head margin over the cost of production and farmers can adjust that to their own situation.”

Winter finishing systems

On the night, Paul outlined a number systems for both suckler-bred continental cattle and Friesian bullocks, some of which are shown in Table 1.

The table illustrates the main costs such as meal and forage, but the total costs include all input costs, as well as fixed costs for each system.

The main factors affecting winter finishing systems were outlined as being animal purchase price, concentrate price, animal performance and beef price. Crosson stressed that in each system a high level of performance was required to achieve these target weights and slaughter dates and a mortality figure of 2% is included in each system.

Mark McGee, principal research officer in Teagasc Grange, explained some of the relevant research findings for winter finishers in trial work carried out both in Grange and internationally.

Most of these studies were based around the fact that feed costs account for around three-quarters of all variable costs in beef production systems and so anything that can be done to reduce the cost per kilo gained can have a huge effect on overall system profitability.

One study looking at the feed efficiency of Charolais versus Friesian cattle offered a high concentrate finishing diet. Intake for the Friesians was 10% higher while growth rate was 7% poorer, meaning a feed conversion efficiency difference of 17% in favour of the Charolais cattle.

Interestingly, when this feed efficiency is expressed over carcase weight instead of liveweight, the Friesian cattle consumed 30% more feed per kilo of carcase while when expressed on a per kilo of meat produced basis, the Friesians were eating 50% more to produce a kilo of saleable beef. From an environmental perspective, this could be something that has relevance in years to come.

Another study looked at the performance of suckler-bred steers, fed either silage plus 5kg of meal or ad-lib concentrates over a 132-day finishing period. In both cases, feed conversion efficiency was much better in the first half of the finishing period than in the second half, by as much as 52% in the case of ad-lib feeding and 34% in the 5kg concentrate group. What this means is that the longer the finishing period is, the poorer the return on feed cost investment.

Also, as animals reach mature weight they become less efficient as they start to lay down more fat compared to lean meat. Farmers need to carefully plan finishing strategies so that stock are only fed intensively for the shortest period necessary. Regular drafting in these systems is critical to keep stock moving as soon as they meet carcase specifications for fat score.

Feed ingredients

Looking at ration ingredients, trial work in Grange comparing rolled barley with maize meal saw no differences in liveweight gain, feed conversion efficiency, carcase weight, conformation or fat score. In four previous studies with similar comparisons the findings were similar with no difference in carcase fat score between the two diets and only one study finding an increase in animal performance with maize meal versus rolled barley.

Protein

In trials looking at protein levels in finishing diets, where barley-based concentrates were supplemented with protein, the findings showed that once silage quality was high (72% DMD+ and >12% protein) there was no response to increased protein levels in finishing diets. Where poorer quality silage was being fed, there was a response. McGee outlined that crude protein percentage in diets on a dry matter basis should be 11% to 12% for heifers and steers, 13% to 15% for growing young bulls and 12% to 13% for finishing bulls.