Farming

Dairy farm switches to grazing fodder beet as high-quality winter feed

Published

11 months ago

February 5, 2024

GRAZING fodder beet as a winter crop for beef and dairy cattle is reducing wintering costs at a Pembrokeshire farm.

The James family currently grow 10 hectares (ha) for wintering dairy beef stores produced by their dairy herd at Stackpole Home Farm, but are scaling that up to 45ha to provide feed for lactating and dry cows.

Cows are currently wintered on deferred grazing or kale with baled silage but switching to fodder beet will provide a cheaper, higher quality source of feed.

During a recent Farming Connect open day, George James, who farms with his parents, Chris and Debbie, said growing kale was getting trickier because of periods of prolonged drought following drilling in late May or early June.

“The earlier drilling dates for fodder beet give it an advantage, and we can comfortably get 20 tonne dry matter (tDM)/ha from it so it is by far the highest yielding winter grazing crop,’’ he said.

At around seven pence per kilogramme of DM, it works out at around half the cost of silage therefore the new system will reduce winter feed costs, plug feed gaps in late and early lactation, and capitalise on the farm’s free-draining sandy soils.

But transitioning the herd onto the crop and correctly allocating it will be crucial to animal health and performance.

During the open day, fodder beet expert Dr Jim Gibbs, a veterinarian and research scientist in ruminant nutrition at Lincoln University, New Zealand, and Marc Jones, an independent grass and forage consultant, shared important advice on how to get that right – and how to avoid some of the common pitfalls.

Fodder beet has a high sugar and water content so sufficient time must be given for feed intakes to adjust.

Dr Gibbs warned that dairy cows are the livestock class most susceptible to transition acidosis due to gorging, a situation which occurs if too much fodder beet is allocated too early in the transition process.

To prevent this, he advised feeding low amounts of fodder beet initially, building up intakes slowly, and providing supplementary feed to keep the cow’s rumen fully fed.

Feeding grass or silage as the supplement initially is advisable as if less palatable feed like straw is offered, cattle won’t eat the quantities they need to maintain condition and performance.

A marker for whether cattle have properly transitioned is if they are leaving beet behind – Dr Gibbs suggested this should be around 5-10% a day.

“There is no risk of acidosis after full transition providing intakes are adequate,’’ he pointed out.

A lactating cow needs 15-18kg DM in total therefore 5-6kg DM of fodder beet plus grass or silage should be the target for lactation feeding as the crop should not make up more than a third of their feed.

“Start by offering them 1kg DM/day and, once all the animals are eating the bulb, move up 1kg DM/day every two days,’’ said Dr Gibbs.

He recommended transitioning until target intakes are met.

For dry stock weighing 500kg and for in-calf heifers, the daily feed requirement is 14kg DM – as fodder beet can make up 80% of their diet, they can be allocated 11-12kg DM of fodder beet and 2kg DM roughage once they have transitioned.

Build them up to this in stages, 1-2kg DM at day one, increasing 1kg DM every other day, with 7-8kg of supplement until day seven, gradually dropping supplement to 2kg at 14 days when they have fully transitioned.

If feeding 2kg of supplement, careful consideration needs to be given as to how the supplement will be fed to enable all animals to access it; if feeding bales in ring feeders, increasing to 3-4kg is needed due to the restricted feed space.

For youngstock aged from six months, Dr Gibbs recommended starting with a daily intake of 0.5 kg DM a head of fodder beet, increasing this by 0.5kg every other day, fed with 3-5kg of grass or silage. At day 14 that mix should be 5-6kg of fodder beet and 1-2kg of grass or silage.

Marc Jones, who shared details of how he operates his system of growing and feeding fodder beet on his farm at Trefnant Hall, Berriew, said matching fodder beet varieties to class of stock is important.

He said Lactimo and Geronimo are excellent grazing varieties because they have a high proportion of leaf and more of the bulb sits out of the ground, which allows for a high level of utilisation.

A lower DM variety such as Brigadier is more palatable and will achieve better utilisation in smaller calves weighing around 200kg, he added.

Delana Davies, Cross Sector Manager at Farming Connect, who facilitated the event, said growing fodder beet provides real opportunities for reducing winter feeding costs in all classes of stock.

“Added to this there are savings to be made on housing and straw requirements plus reduced slurry and manure production and spreading issues, making growing the crop a worthwhile consideration for many dairy, beef and sheep farmers,’’ she said.

Farming

Special farming role for senior Pembrokeshire councillor

Published

5 days ago

December 17, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

AN OFFICIAL special farming role for Pembrokeshire’s deputy leader is to be established following a call made to full council, the first time the council has had such a role for a senior member.

In a question to council leader Cllr Jon Harvey, heard at the December meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s full council meeting, Conservative group leader Cllr Di Clements asked: “With the recent changes in the budget from the UK Labour Government on Inheritance Tax and Agricultural Property Relief, many Pembrokeshire farmers are feeling concerned for the future of their family farms, many in Pembrokeshire which have been in the same family for generations.

“I have always found it disappointing that in all the years I have been a councillor, and the major contribution farming has to this county’s economic, cultural and environmental well-being, there has never been a Cabinet Member’s title with rural affairs or farming, or agriculture within it.

“To show that this council recognises the importance of agriculture, and the hundreds of millions of pounds generated by farming, will the Leader consider including it in one of the titles of his Cabinet Members’ portfolio?”

Responding, Cllr Harvey said: “I full share your perspective; it’s true this council has never had a Cabinet member with this role; however I can reconsider, I regard all aspects of rural life as vitally important.”

He told members farming and rural affairs came under the portfolio of the deputy leader [Cllr Paul Miller], adding: “we’re all aware of the changing aspects of rural life at the moment, we do have a rural affairs champion in Cllr Steve Alderman, but I’ve had a conversation with the deputy leader and agreed to review this title to reflect the importance of the role and will happily make an announcement in the next few days.”

Cllr Clements responded: “These words say a lot, it shows this council recognises the importance of the most constant and probably most important business in the county.”

Farming

Call for Pembrokeshire to oppose farming inheritance tax withdrawn

Published

1 week ago

December 14, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

A CALL on Pembrokeshire County Council to oppose government changes to inheritance tax affecting family farms has been withdrawn, but its proposer hopes his motion will return to a future meeting.

At the Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced farmers would have to pay inheritance tax on agricultural property and land worth more than £1 million at a rate of 20 per cent, with a £3m threshold for couples passing on their farms.

This compares to a 40 per cent rate on other estates.

A Notice of Motion by Councillor Aled Thomas, ‘relating to Protecting British Family Farms and Preserving Rural Communities’ was to be heard at the December 12 meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s full council meeting.

Cllr Thomas, who stood as a Conservative candidate for Ceredigion-Preseli in the 2024 general election, asked that: “Pembrokeshire County Council notes its concern to the proposed changes to inheritance tax announced by the Labour Government in the recent Autumn budget, which would scrap Agricultural Property Relief (APR).

“APR has been instrumental in allowing British family farms to remain intact across generations, supporting food security, sustaining rural communities, and aiding environmental stewardship. This tax is estimated to impact over 70,000 family farms, leaving the average farming family with a tax bill of at least £240,000, which will force many to sell portions of their land or close entirely, paving the way for corporate ownership over family ownership.”

It called on the council to resolve to “oppose the Labour Government’s changes to inheritance tax affecting family farms,” to “advocate for the exemption of family farms to preserve the UK’s food security, rural communities, environmental initiatives,” and to “commit to maintaining its county council farms portfolio, particularly to encourage younger and new generations of farmers into the industry”.

It finished: “This council urges all councillors to stand with Britain’s family farms, to support our rural communities, and to protect the environment by formally rejecting this proposed ‘family farm tax’.”

At the December 12 meeting Presiding Member Cllr Simon Hancock informed members the notice had been withdrawn from the meeting.

Speaking after the announcement, Cllr Thomas, himself a farmer, said: “There was a dispute whether I should have been allowed to submit it as I am a farmer, so I took advice from the monitoring officer that I should withdraw it until I can get a dispensation from the standards committee to speak on the matter.”

He said he hoped to get the motion resubmitted to be heard at the next council meeting.

Farming

Welsh Lamb shines at the Winter Fair Taste Awards

Published

1 week ago

December 12, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THE ROYAL WELSH WINTER FAIR TASTE AWARDS, showcasing the finest native lamb breeds of Wales in a celebration of sustainability, flavour and culinary excellence, were hosted by the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society (RWAS).

The awards, held in collaboration with Cambrian Training Company, the Culinary Association of Wales and the National Culinary Team Wales, spotlighted the exceptional quality of Welsh Lamb and its unique characteristics.

The competition aimed to promote native Welsh Lamb breeds and emphasise their distinct flavours, encouraging chefs, businesses and consumers to consider Welsh Lamb a premium product.

The RWAS says the competition provides a vital platform to showcase the exceptional flavours of native Welsh Lamb breeds while promoting sustainable farming practices.

These lambs are grass-fed, raised in Wales and come with full traceability from farm to fork. The initiative aims to highlight the story behind the meat and the dedicated efforts of farmers in preserving these breeds.

Societies representing seven native Welsh Lamb breeds participated in the competition, held at the Cambrian Training Company building on the Royal Welsh Showground at Llanelwedd.

Each breed’s lamb was expertly cooked by chefs and presented to a distinguished panel of judges, including Dilwyn Evans, a vet featured on TV series ‘Clarkson’s Farm’, Steven Owen, Castell Howell development chef, Neil Fenn, Professor Rhian Goodfellow, OBE and Arwyn Watkins, OBE, executive chair of Cambrian Training Group.

The breeds showcased included Badger Face Welsh Mountain (Torddu and Torwen), Balwen Welsh Mountain, Black Welsh Mountain, Clun Forest, South Wales Mountain, Llanwenog and Pedigree Welsh Mountain.

Each lamb had been bred, born and reared in Wales, ensuring sustainable and traceable farming practices.

The awards highlighted the diversity among native Welsh Lamb breeds, from the Torddu and Torwen’s hardy nature to the Llanwenog’s docile temperament and premium meat quality.

Farmers and breed societies demonstrated the unique traits of their lambs, such as flavour, sustainability and adaptability to diverse farming environments.

Arthur Davies (South Wales Mountain) and I. T. Davies & Son (Clun Forest) were declared joint winners of the Royal Welsh Winter Fair Taste Awards. Both breeds impressed the judges with their remarkable flavour, tenderness and quality, showcasing the very best of Welsh Lamb.

The event emphasised the importance of promoting the culinary excellence of Welsh Lamb alongside its visual appeal in show rings.

Guest judge, Dilwyn Evans said: “It has been an absolute honour to judge the Royal Welsh Winter Fair Taste Awards and experience first-hand the superior taste of native Welsh Lamb.

“This exceptional meat not only embodies the rich heritage and dedication of Welsh farming but also highlights the importance of preserving these unique breeds and the sustainable practices behind them.”

The RWAS thanked the judges and Cambrian Training Group for their continued support, helping ensure the lambs were cooked to perfection for the competition.

With the awards, Wales has cemented its position as a leader in premium lamb production, bringing the exceptional flavours of its native breeds to the forefront of the culinary world.