Livestock Matters - Summer 2018

WORKING TOGETHER FOR A HEALTHIER FUTURE... 7 LIVESTOCK MATTERS GRAZ ING AND WORMING Veterinary surgeon John Hemingway XLVets practice Shropshire Farm Vets John Hemingway, Shropshire Farm Vets Focus on efficiency includes attention to breeds, grazing and worm control Shropshi re f armer Andrew Crow has a cl ear focus on prof i t and ef f i ci ency at Cherri ngton Farm near Newport . He has swapped potato crops for cows, caref u l l y sel ected sheep and cat t l e breeds to su i t the end market , and adopted grazi ng and wormi ng st rategi es to mi n imi se cost s and maximi se product i on . Vet John Hemingway of Shropshire Farm Vets is working closely with Andrew and his team: he provides practical veterinary input and also attends monthly management meetings to discuss farm issues and future plans. Andrew explains: “Five years ago, the land had become tired, organic matter was dropping and our wheat and oilseed rape yields had reached a plateau. “We already had sheep and a farm shop. So I decided to drop the potatoes and went into producing beef for the retail trade in a bid to ‘try to make some money’.” Breed choices In selecting a beef breed, Andrew knew what he wanted. He explains: “I chose the Stabiliser because it is an outdoor breed which will finish off grass, is easy to handle, and easy-calving. They certainly do grow well, and at a low cost.” Beef is marketed as Cherrington Farm grass-fed beef in the farm shop’s butchery in Shawbury. To ensure a supply of meat all year round, cows are bred to calve down in February/March, or September. Andrew explains: “This means the same bulls can be used twice in a year. I’m getting 90- 100 calves per bull per year. So I’m prepared to spend what’s needed to get bulls with EBVs in the top 2% of the country.” The breed of sheep was also selected with the end in mind. Andrew explains: “We’ve had two different flocks of sheep for the past 6 years, but 18 months ago we decided to focus on just one breed: Zwartbles. We want plenty of lambs and with these we are achieving lambing percentages of around 190%. Lambing starts in the second week of April – it’s all outside to keep costs low. “A large carcase is also important. Ewes are put to a Meatlinc sire, and their offspring will Farmer Andrew Crow Andrew purposely chose the Stabiliser breed of cattle for its performance on grass and ease of management.