Level II Agricultural Business Operations

 Basic principles & decisions  Basic principles of maximising feed intake  Feeding systems: Conventional versus TMR  Cattle feed decisions ◦ Individual animal groups ◦ Target performance ◦ Feed cost & budgets

Getting winter feeding decisions right:  Improves animal performance  Reduces days to slaughter  Cuts production cost  £££££

 Lots of things impact on winter feeding decisions:  Cattle weight & stage of production  Calving system  Cow condition  Silage availability & quality  Price of concentrate  Cattle market value Basic Decisions

The five freedoms are: ++ Freedom from hunger and thirst ++ Freedom from discomfort ++ Freedom from pain, injury and disease ++ Freedom to express normal behaviour ++ Freedom from fear and distress

Maximising dry matter intake is key to achieving high animal performance  Present fresh palatable feed.  Have water available at all times  Provide adequate feed space  Provide adequate lying space  Provide a dry lying area

A well designed and managed feed area can be as important as what is fed Very smooth clean surface Eating surface 10cm above hoof height Clean out refused food regularly Site water trough to avoid feed being splashed  Rub marks on neck rails – shows wrong position

Pro’s: Flexibility Inclusion of commodities Reduced feed space requirement Acidosis control Mixing precision Potential for improved feed efficiency – properly balanced rations Utilisation of low quality forages

Con’s: Price Operational costs (fuel, labour, wear) Building and yard layout Complicates feeding if a lot of feed groups

Pro’s Low level mechanisation Low operating cost Simple management of different feed groups Con’s Physical input Potentially lower feed precision Potentially higher feed waste

Important: What stage of the production cycle are your cattle are at? Store & finishing cattle

Silage quality Winter gain (kg/d) Grazing gain (kg/d) Gain/year (kg) Feed cost/kg (p) Poor Average Good It is important to find a balance between animal performance and cost of production.

Silage qualityAverage daily gain (kg/d) Poor0.00 Average0.35 Good0.55 Good (high dry matter)0.70 Need to be careful with a no-meal strategy

Silage QualitySilage Fed (Kg)Concentrate (Kg)Daily Feed Cost (£/day) Good Average Poor Assume: Silage £25/t, Concentrate £200/t

300kg Ch store bullock ◦ Output ◦ 180 day 0.6kg/day = 108kg ◦ 108kg + 300kg = 408kg at turnout ◦ Cost ◦ 21kg silage + 0.8kg meal = £0.70/day x 180days ◦ Vet, Med & Misc = £20 ◦ Interest (6%) = £25 = £171 ◦ If worth £750 (£2.50/kg) in Sept 2014 ◦ Need £921 (£2.26) in March 2015 to break even ◦ Need £1011 (£2.48) in March 2015 to get £15/month

Store ration (kg/t) Maize gluten450 Rolled barley 200 Soya hulls200 Maize Distillers 100 Molaferm 25 Minerals 25 ME 11, CP 16 as fed £180/t

 Front load concentrates  Better to overshoot target early, rather than later in winter  No meal for at least 1 month pre-turnout  Aim for turnout as soon as ground conditions permit

Growing to finishing – the big change! Timing is the key to changing successfully from the growing to the finishing ration. Target Days on Finishing ration Daily Liveweight Gain (kg) Feed Period Gain (kg) Continental80 – – 150 Traditional60 –

Silage QualitySilage Fed (Kg)Concentrate (Kg)Daily Feed Cost (£/day) Good Average Poor Assume: Silage £25/t, Concentrate £200/t

Finishing ration (kg/t) Maize meal 300 Barley 250 Maize Distillers 150 Rapeseed meal125 Citrus pulp 100 Molasses 50 Minerals 25 ME 11, CP 13% as fed £200/t

 Diet 1:  20kg Average Silage  5.5 kg Concentrate  Diet 2:  5kg Silage  3kg Concentrate  3kg Wholecrop wheat  3kg Bread  5kg Potatoes  2kg Straw  1Kg Molasses Both Diets deliver the same level of feed energy and output

500kg 1.90/kg = £ day feed period 20kg silage + 5.5kg Conc. = £1.60/day x 100 days = £160 Veterinary & Miscellaneous = £35 £195 Total Cost = £950 + £195 = £1145

55% KO =341kg 350p = £1193 Total costs = £1145 Margin = £48 Margin/month =£15 Sensitivity Analysis: +/- 10p/kg beef price = £34 per head

 You have 30 Aberdeen Angus cross heifers on the farm as housing time approaches. They have an average weight of 450kg.  What are you going to do with them?

Silage QualitySilage Fed (Kg)Concentrate (Kg)Daily Feed Cost (£/day) Good Average Poor Assume: Silage £25/t, Concentrate £200/t Important: Ensure sufficient feed space when restricting silage

Cow ConditionSilage Fed (Kg)Concentrate (Kg)Daily Feed Cost (£/day) High (4) Good (3) Low (2) Assume: Average Quality Silage £25/t, Concentrate £200/t Important: Ensure sufficient feed space when restricting silage

Silage QualitySilage Fed (Kg)Concentrate (Kg)Daily Feed Cost (£/day) Good Average Poor Assume: Silage £25/t, Concentrate £200/t