Farmer Writes: trip to Tipp got me thinking

The discussion group I’m in paid a visit to the Teagasc dairy calf to beef farm at Ballyvadin recently. It’s impressive and it will be interesting to see the performance of the cattle, particularly the kill out information, with Jersey genetics.

That kind of data on a wider scale has been lacking to date and the gap has largely been filled with anecdotal evidence, so maybe this project will shine a bit of light on that area.

Coming from west Cork I’m always envious to see such a large land block all together and it needs the research element involved to justify the enterprise choice. If it was strictly business, it wouldn’t be a runner but the scale is necessary to get the data this farm will provide.

Heifer rearing platform

After viewing it, I’ve been wondering is there scope for it to be replicated as a heifer rearing platform if farmers were to come together.

There’s similar happening on a small scale already and it would need to succeed where a group of farmers with a similar breeding plan pool resources. But is it an opportunity for those exiting dairy production to stay involved and keep the ground locked within the sector?

Those farmers who may wish to stay farming but want to step back from milk production have the facilities and skill set for it to work and it could take pressure off dairy farmers, especially at a busy time of year. Calf rearing and replacement breeding could all take place on one site for a number of farms.

Now maybe that’s me looking at it purely with west Cork eyes but if there’s succession and labour issues facing the sector maybe this could be a release valve where all calves from a group of farms are centrally reared.

Beef calves can be sold at whatever stage with heifers taken through until the point of calving.

Wishful thinking

It might be wishful thinking and I know there are a lot of bridges to cross for it to work but it could be an option. Health plans would have to be made and there would have to be set plans when it comes to breeding but it could work.

Breeding is nearly the piece where I see it falling down most. Look through any parish in the country where livestock breeding takes place and almost everyone has their own preferences.

That applies across cattle and sheep and it could fall at that hurdle before any health plan is considered.

The labour and land availability are the two main things that put that in my head. Uncertainty still remains over the nitrates derogation and all those combined are going to drive change so options like that will be needed. Those issues are likely to see more collaboration happen in farming than at the peak of dairy expansion.

What could work against it is there are people who got burnt in some of those arrangements before too so there’s no guarantee they will work out. It’s hard to rebuild trust if something like that has happened to you before.

Anyway that’s what I was left pondering after our trip to Tipp. None of the above may be relevant but there’s no harm thinking ahead a little, given there’s a handful of challenges ahead for farming to deal with.