Beefing up a dairy enterprise
Tipperary farmer Padraig Moroney is reaping impressive results after going down the calf-to-beef route with his Holstein bull calves, reports Martin Ryan
Afew years ago Padraig Moroney decided there had to be a better way of rearing his Holstein bull calves and getting real cash for them instead of derisory prices each spring. Now, rather than taking €50/hd for calves at a couple of weeks old, he is getting €1,100-€1,300/hd for them as finished steer beef under 24 months from the calf-to-beef enterprise he runs alongside his dairy herd.
“I was taking €50-€60 for good Holstein bull calves each spring for years. I knew they were worth more than that, but that was the market,” he says. “Why put yourself at the mercy of a buyer coming into the yard each spring or leave yourself open to the mercy of the unpredictable availability of an export boat?”
After some thought and planning he decided to focus on finished beef from the male progeny from his large dairy herd near Drangan in South Tipperary to generate a good cash-flow for the lean early spring months.
“I have the land base available to rear the beef animals, it doesn’t impact on the milking platform and through the help of my full-time labour unit and family we are able to manage a good operation overall,” he says.
Finished steers
“I’m now selling them as finished steers in January and the income generated is a boost, coming as it does during January and February, when there is no milk cheque. It sets us up for the year.”
On average more than 50 of the Holstein bull calves born into the herd are carried through to finish as beef, typically at target carcase weights of 320-330kg under 24 months.
In general they are O-grade, with some Ps, but the weight is the key factor. Despite the price usually being discounted by 20c/kg from base, the tops have returned up to €1,350/hd and Padraig is getting €1,050 for the lighter animals.
Creep-feeding is maintained for a few weeks after the calves go on to grass for their first summer.
Over the winter they get 1.5 kg barley and 0.5kg soya, making up a 19pc protein ration. Over the second winter, they are fed concentrate, increasing to 10kg/day for up to 90 days prior to slaughter in January.
“The lot for finishing next January are looking very well. Some of them are now 500kg,” Padraig says.
After providing for herd replacements, the balance of the herd are cross-bred using Angus and
Hereford. Both steers and heifers are sold as stores at yearling stage averaging €780/hd for the steers and €728/hd for the heifers this year.
Padraig believes that his success proves that the widely held belief that dairy Holstein males are near worthless for beef can be turned on
Different approach:
Padraig Moroney on the family’s dairy and beef farm in Drangan, Co Tipperary its head.
While he concedes that the outlook for beef is not good and trying to predict beef prices is a futile exercise, he says his experience shows that finishing male Holstein calves for beef could be an option for other dairy farmers to consider.
I have the land base available to rear the beef animals and it doesn’t impact on the milking platform — we are able to manage a good operation overall