Scots livestock producers urged to act now over feed
While combines parked with their backs to the rain in half-cut fields of grain and endless bouts of straw yet to be baled bear testimony to the effects of the wet summer and autumn in the arable sector, the repercussions of the poor season might not be as immediately obvious for livestock producers.
But the SRUC, Scotland’s rural college, yesterday warned that, while the knock-on effects of the wet weather for cattle and sheep farmers might be less visible, they have been more insidious – and just as far reaching.
And yesterday the country’s leading advisory service warned producers across the country – but especially those in the west – not to bury their heads in the sand and to address now the problems which are likely to hit their businesses this winter.
Srucconsultantandrew Taylor said that in some areas stock had already been housed – adding that the other two similarly poor summers – 1985 and 2012 – were both followed by a late spring the following year.
“So we are encouraging all farmers in this situation to do feed budgeting now as leaving this until January only compounds the issue making the problem worse,” he said.
He added that silage crops – especially second cuts – had been of poor quality in the west and straw was already expensive: “The obvious consequence is a severe shortage of forage to overwinter stock but, equally important, is the impact this has had on the performance of animals this summer.
“With fields still ‘shut up’ for conservation, often there have been no aftermaths for stock to graze this autumn. As a result, grass intakes for perhaps the last two months have been severely restricted, all of which will have had a direct impact on performance, be it growth rates, fertility or cow/ewe condition.”
He said that any farmers finding themselves in this sort of hard-pressed situation were being advised by SAC Consulting to consider selling lambs and calves as stores to reduce pressures on feedstocks over the next few months.
Taylor also said that producers should be particularly hard when drawing ewes to go to the tup this autumn. “With feed limited/expensive this winter, only keep the fittest ewes,” he advised.
Away wintering could, he said, be cheaper than buying feed into remote areas – and it was worth remembering that concentrates were cheaper per unit of energy/protein to transport than roughage.
“Producers could also consider strip grazing possible silage ground rather than trying to make very poor quality silage in wet conditions and standing grass can be supplemented with purchased concentrate if it is required.”