FARMERS INFORMATION SERIES ABERDEEN ANGUS. Management Guide. blade-farming.com

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1 FARMERS INFORMATION SERIES blade-farming.com

2 INTRODUCTION to Blade Farming Finishing Scheme The Blade Farming business was established in 2001 as an integrated supply chain which is dedicated to supplying consistently high quality British Beef to retailers and their customer, the consumer. The business is expanding rapidly throughout the UK and Ireland, as links are developed with new and existing customers. The Blade business is unique in the UK, and we now have in excess of 20,000 cattle in our operation, and the demand for beef produced through the Blade system is increasing as producers and customers realise the benefit of beef that is produced to a defined specification. All the schemes that are run by Blade Farming are designed to produce meat to the customers requirements and premiums are paid for cattle that hit target specifications. Full management, technical and nutritional support is available as part of the Blade system and Blade producers now recognise the value of this support which is keeping them at the forefront of the industry. The Blade Farming business specialises in producing meat to the highest quality for the consumer and the meat being produced through the Blade Aberdeen Angus beef finishing scheme has been proven to be of the highest quality in terms of consumer requirements, ie. it is extremely tender, succulent, full of flavour and juicy. Consequently we are actively looking for more Beef producers to join our Aberdeen Angus finishing scheme. Aberdeen Angus cross calves arrive from our high health status contract calf rearing units onto the finishing farm at three months old where they are grown on to be finished to the required specifications. The simple, extensive system requires the cattle to be grazed for at least six months of their life time and also that they are finished on a high cereal diet with a mineral supplement. Cattle that fit these requirements and specifications, and achieve the target carcass weight will command a significant premium through the abattoir.

3 KEY POINTS of the AA Scheme BENEFITS OF BUYING Weaned Cal ves Key points of the Aberdeen Angus beef finishing scheme: A carefully planned approach to efficient beef production. An attractive pricing contract for the finished cattle that meet the specifications. Clearly defined age, weight and grade specifications. First class, high health status weaned calves supplied to order. A straightforward forage based system. Cattle need to be finished on a cereal based ration. Access to the ABP LiveStock website giving indepth analysis of all your data. Full support package, including independent nutritional advice. Management feedback on carcase weights and grades. Prompt payment for cattle. All Blade calves are reared by professional calf rearers in specialist calf rearing units. Fully transparent ordering system, pricing and payment terms, to ease enterprise budgeting. All calves are reared to a clearly defined health protocol, to ensure they are able to grow to their potential. Group health certificate supplied, detailing vaccinations and treatments. Calves are fully vaccinated during the rearing period, and extra treatments maybe given at the buyers request. Calves are reared to order to meet your delivery requirements, and delivered by ABM approved hauliers. Full nutritional support given to minimise the effects of the change of environment and diet at the time of transportation. Calves are ear tagged to enable BVD screening.

4 DAILY LIVE-WEIGHT GAIN CHART X CATTLE LIveweight (Kgs) 300 Feed growing diet for frame growth, avoiding fat cattle. Target.9 Kg dlwg, increasing to 1 Kg dlwg Feed finishing diet to slaughter. Target 1.2 Kg dlwg Age (months) Age (m) Date Average Weight (Kgs) Weight (Kgs) DLWG (Kg/d) If cattle are not achieving the required liveweight gain, please contact your Feed supplier or Blade Farming.

5 TRANSITION Feeding Feeding Strategy Transition feeding is key in getting the calves moved over smoothly from the rearing unit and onto the feed on the finishing unit. All the calves that leave our rearing unit will have had access to ad-lib straw and ad-lib 16% protein calf pellets. When they leave the unit the calves will be eating 4.5 Kgs pellets per animal per day. For the transition to flow smoothly you need to feed forage and concentrate. SILAGE FINISHER CONCENTRATE REARER PELLET STRAW Target weight - heifers to 580 Kgs and steers to 620 Kgs Target age - 20 months of age (17 months on the finishing farm) All animals will need a minimum of 6 months at grass Supplementary feed is needed at grass to maintain the growth rate Each animal will eat around 1 tonne of concentrates Concentrate quantity is dependant on quality of the silage and grass The concentrate can be a cake, blend or home-mix and can utilise a lot of home grown feeds Two stage approach - growing then finishing The growing stage will grow frame without putting on excess condition The finishing ration will cover the frame GROWING - HOUSED GROWING - GRAZED FINISHING TARGET DLWG 0.9 kgs/day 0.9 kgs/day 1.2 kgs/day DAYS ON RATION TYPICAL RATION Concentrate - 2 kgs Ad-lib silage Access to straw Concentrate kgs Access to top quality grazing Concentrate - 5 kgs Ad-lib silage Access to straw DAY 1 Feed the calf exactly as it has been fed on the rearing unit. Ad-lib straw and ad-lib pellets. DAY 3 Continue with the straw and pellets, slowly introduce silage to the calves. When the calves are starting to eat more silage, you can start to reduce the quantity of calf pellets. DAY 10 Start to introduce your own concentrate to replace some of the calf pellet. DAY 21 Transition should be complete and the calves will be on ad-lib silage with about 1.5 Kgs of concentrate per animal per day. TYPICAL RATION SPEC ME - 11 Mj/kg Protein - 15% Starch - 15% max ME - 11 Mj/kg Protein - 15% Starch - 15% max For a tailored nutrition plan or for any questions or queries regarding feeding or nutrition please contact one of our nutrition team on ME Mj/kg Protein - 13% Starch - 25% FEED COST 0.95/day 0.50/day 1.60/day Each calf will need Kgs of calf pellets to get them through the transition period.

6 CALF ORDERING Procedure Costings Table Discuss your requirements with a member of the Blade team. Complete a Calf order confirmation form, detailing: Name, address & holding details Calf details; breed, sex, number and any specific requirements Delivery month required Set price for calves Two weeks before delivery, contact from Blade to discuss the Transition diet and the likely delivery date. Calves bulk weighed, delivered and all details checked on the finishing farm. Visit from Blade Farming to finalise contracts. Payment due 14 days after delivery and acceptance. Aberdeen Angus steer and heifer production. Current farm performance Blade Farming performance Calf price 420 Comments Av. price, includes vacc & BVD test Forage costs 170 Includes straw Vet & med 30 Worming etc Water & elec. 30 Losses 25 Transport 30 Deductions 45 Sub-total 750 Includes abattoir charges Concentrate feeds /t Total inputs 910 Income Kg 3.60/Kg dwt Gross margin 134 Prices correct as at Spring 2016 Variation in gross margin with fluctuations in feed and carcase prices Angus cattle; in spec 290 Kg carcase, approx 20 months old, 1.0 tonnes of feed Feed price ( /t) Carcase price ( /Kg dwt)

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