Concerns over the cost and availability of winter fodder have resulted in suckler farmers being slow to replace cull cows with in-calf heifers. Mart managers are reporting that farmers are much slower to restock herds, preferring to hold off until spring.
Concerns over the cost and availability of winter fodder have resulted in suckler farmers being slow to replace cull cows with in-calf heifers.
Mart managers are reporting that farmers are much slower to restock herds, preferring to hold off until spring.
Stephen Hannon of Mohill Mart said: “There are big numbers of cows moving – not that much different to last year – but they are not being replaced.
“It’s a fear of fodder going into the winter,” he added. “The suckler herd is under pressure in this area and it’s climate-related rather than price-related.”
Manorhamilton Mart manager Ivan Moffitt added: “Normally they would be selling cows and replacing them with in-calf heifers but they are not all doing that.”
Fodder costs
Fodder costs are variable across the country, with one agent selling in Longford, Leitrim and neighbouring counties quoting €40 for a round bale delivered and €4.50 for small squares.
A 4x4 round bale of wheaten straw delivered is quoted at €30 to €31, while an 8x4x3 bale of barley straw for feeding is at €50/bale delivered.
In Cavan, good quality silage is being bought at €25/bale while mediocre quality silage is making €20/bale. Round bales of hay are selling at €35 delivered on a long-haul basis, while straw delivered from the southeast is €22/bale.
In Galway, good quality silage bales left over from 2016 recently sold for €18/bale, while top-quality after-grass from reseeded land sold for €22 per bale between neighbours.
In Kildare, silage is selling for €20 to €27/bale ex-yard, with average quality hay making €15 to €20 and very good hay making €25 to €30. Straw is selling for €17 to €18 ex-yard.
In Limerick, one farmer sold 100 bales at €22 for a 4x4 round bale, with the buyer planning to sell them at €30 delivered to Sligo. Second-cut silage was sold at €30 for 4x4 rounds. Straw is making €25 for 4x4 rounds.
Up north, round bales of silage are making £35 to £40, with reports of £50/t in strong dairying regions.
Round bales of straw are making £20-£22, while 8x4x4 squares are making £80 to £100. Hay is making £40/bale.
Read more
'It’s been winter since July… The situation is the worst I’ve ever seen it.'
Straw being imported from Spain
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: