Simmental breeders express concern over new rules

The policy is in relation to weight limits for young cattle at national shows.

The policy states:

“A maximum average daily gain (ADG) of 1.8kg/day for bulls and 1.6kg/day for heifers will be introduced on birth weights of 55kg and 60kg respectively.”

These new weight limits apply to all stock born after August 2017 and will come into play in an advisory capacity at the society’s national finals at Tullamore Show and will be enforced at the national calf finals in Strokestown.

Similar types of policies have been introduced by other Irish societies with the ambition to eliminate breeders registering calves out of age. However, at a recent club meeting, a member of council said this policy has nothing to do with birth registrations, rather overfeeding of young stock.

The society has a very rigid birth verification system in place, with the majority of show and sale stock producers undergoing a spot check to weigh young calves.

The breed has undergone a marked transition from a breed which was bred for females to a breed which can now compete on the top tier with under-16 bull beef producers. With this market in mind, along with focusing on maternal traits, breeders need to also look at high-growth rate bulls. This, in particular, is where most of the breeders' concern is expressed.

Having contacted council, they told the Irish Farmers Journal that this didn’t come out of the blue and has been in the pipeline a while, but refrained from commenting further.

The Irish Simmental breed has seen a very positive upward trend in recent years due to very strong demand from overseas customers, in particular Turkey. This market has secured a high number of top-quality bulls in recent years, one of the key driving factors being the quality and performance the Irish Simmental carries.

The Simmental breed in renowned for its milking ability and mothering traits, but in recent years, due to dedicated breeders, has created new markets as a top terminal breed. With this change, the society now uses the line “it's weight for age that delivers profit for beef farmers” on its website.

If the society believes this, surely a restriction on high-growth animals would only drive the breed backwards? In the week of Punchestown races, the analogy of breeding a horse for speed but then deciding the horse has become fast enough comes to mind.

Such is the concern among breeders in the Irish Simmental Cattle Society that some have taken it upon themselves to write an open letter to the council asking to hold off on the policy enforcement until breeder feedback is reviewed.

Below is a copy of the open letter the council of the Irish Simmental Cattle Society:

“An open letter to the Council of the Irish Simmental Cattle Society from members and breeders of the Irish Simmental Cattle Society.

It is with great disappointment that we feel that we must compose this letter regarding the weight restrictions agreed by council for forthcoming 2018 shows. We would like to state that we are fully opposed to the inclusion of these weight restrictions for the betterment of the breed. In our opinion we do see there is a concern regarding over feeding of calves but however we do not feel that this approach is not right for a number of reasons.

We see Ireland as being one of the strongest genetic pools with bulls and semen being source for all over the world.

There are as many bulls achieving 1.8kg/day that are not over conditioned due to their genetic make up as there are under the weight and over conditioned. This weight restriction achieves nothing here.

A question specifically asked at a recent club meeting and answered by a council member as follows:

Q) What is the reason for the weight restriction?

A) Because cattle are being overfed.

Q) How many cattle number or (%) were above the weight that council deemed to be of concern (over conditioned)?

A) A handful

Q) How many cattle (%) were below the weight and deemed to be of concern (therefore over conditioned and not exceeding the weight target)?

A) A handful (A handful was confirmed as 5 or 6 – therefore the proposed measured does not address the problem with these animals)

It was also stated at a club meeting that the decision amongst the council member was a unanimous one. We find this hard to believe.

The question was also raised if there was legal advice sought and the answer was no.

We as breeders strive to the produce the best quality and genetically bred cattle we can (presumably council also have the same ambitions?)

Our main marketing tool for the past 15 years has been pushing the slogan of “Weight for Age”. We also take part in Interbreed calf competitions where our higher genetic calves challenge for top position, if these calves now need to be restricted from achieving their potential gain (without being overfed) we will look like the poor relations to the other breeds.

There is no easy solution to this concern (if that is the concern) We would propose that educational club meetings are held in relation to feeding and overfeeding and also forward a letter to all judges on the list advising them only of your concerns.

Gordon, in closing we as committed Simmental breeders who love promoting our cattle and therefore as a breed ask you directly to hold off on this drastic measure until there is more consultation with breeders and feedback reviewed.

This can all take place during educational meetings which would incorporate expert presentations on feeding and animal management. We trust that you understand our concerns and passion.”