Beef systems

why is there a changing market for beef?

• environmental challenges,

• competition from other protein sources,

• health fears,

what does the suckler system include?

• bulls, cows, natural mating,

• cows rear their calves up to a certain weight where their then weaned,

what is the main purpose of the suckler system?

cows raise their calves

what is often needed in the suckler system?

a lot of feed input

what is challenging in a suckler system and what is done to help with this?

difficult to get cows up to slaughter weight so cows are often sold from the suckler system as stores where they’re fattened to slaughter weight

what is the replacement % of cows in a dairy herd annually?

20-25%

what happened to surplus male and female beef dairy cows?

they go into the beef industry

what’s the objective of the suckler system?

to optimise the weight of weaned calf produced per cow per year

what’s the process of suckler beef cattle from calving to slaughter?

1. autumn or spring calving,

2. calves sold as stores,

3. sold as finished animals at 18,24,30 + months,

what types of calves are often cheaper to buy in?

dairy x beef calves

what are signs of oestrus in cows?

• riding,

• increased agitation,

• vocalisation,

• movement,

how many days s a cow pregnant for?

282 days

when is the onset of oestrus reduced?

when a cow is rearing a calf

what is one challenge with suckled calf production?

matching the animal resources to the physical and financial resources of the farm

what’s the process of autumn calving?

August - October: calving outdoors,

November - February: mating indoors,

November - March: winter housing, cows lactating,

April - June: cows and calves to pasture,

July: weaning,

October: sales at target weight of 350kg

what’s the process of spring calving?

February - April: calving indoors,

April - September: cows and calves to pasture,

May - July: mating outdoors,

October: weaning and sales at a weight of 280-300kg,

what are the advantages of autumn calving?

• high output per cow,

• alternative weaning and sale dates,

• cows in ideal calving condition,

• calving on grass so lower disease rate,

what are the disadvantages of autumn calving?

• higher winter food costs for lactating cows,

• higher creep costs for calves,

• lower calf growth rates,

• high housing costs,

• lower stocking rates,

• winter breeding indoors

why are there lower stocking rates in autumn calving?

a high proportion of land used for forage conservation

what are the advantages of spring calving?

• natural calving season,

• low food costs,

• half calf growth rate,

• low housing requirement,

• high stocking rate,

what are the disadvantages of spring calving?

• calf scours,

• low calf weights at sale,

• late born calves too light for autumn sales,

how is the beef and diary industry linked?

half the dairy herd is mated with a beef bull and half with a diary bull.

half of the calves produced will be female and half will be male.

half of the female calves will be a dairy x beef breed and half will be pure bred dairy (same for males)

what happens to the pure-bred dairy males in the linked beef and dairy industry?

they are a ‘by-product’ of the dairy industry and are culled or finished for beef (low carcass yield)

what are female pure bred dairy calves used for?

used as replacements for the dairy herd

what are some of the female dairy x beef calves used for?

suckler herd breeding cow

and some for specialised rearing unit, sold as stores

what are the advantages of the UK structure?

• efficient use of dairy bred calves for meat production and replacement cows for the suckler herd,

• use of beef bulls for better carcass quality from the dairy herd,

• range of crossbred animals (hybrid vigour and fit different environments)

what are the disadvantages of the UK structure?

• poorer quality of dairy bred cattle,

• fortune of specialist beef producers related to trend and innovation in the dairy herd (replacement rates and technical innovation),

what are breeds classified by?

according to mature (adult) size

what are early maturing breeds?

small breed grow relatively slowly and fatten at light weights

what system is suited to early maturing breeds?

grass finishing systems

what are late maturing breeds?

large breeds that grow fast and fatten at high weights

what system are late maturing breed suited to?

systems with higher concentrate inputs

what are 3 examples of early maturing breeds?

Hereford, Welsh black and angus

what are examples of late maturing breeds?

charolais, limousin, simmental, belgium bleuxFriesian

what is meant by maturity?

they have reached their genetic potential for muscle growth and energy has now been diverted into laying down down fat

why don’t you want cows to lay down too much fat?

there are price penalties for overfat animals

what are carcass requirements?

weight - 250 to 350kg,

fat class 2,3, 4L

conformation E,U,R