Contracts crucial for calf rearers

01-08-2009 | Andrew Stewart

As the winter months roll by all too slowly for some, calf rearers across the country will be dusting off their teats ready for another season.

Those considering taking up the challenge of rearing this year should consider the advice of someone who has a lot of experience.

Dr Paul Muir has been in charge of the recently disbanded Poukawa calf-rearing project for several years and spoke to a group of farmers near Feilding recently.

He advised those at the seminar that he would not consider rearing calves this year without first having a contract in place, and they should do the same.

"The supply and demand of calves fluctuates throughout the season and if you are not on a contract, you could be forced to sell calves at a loss," he said.

Central Districts Sheep and Beef Council chairman Rob Kirk reiterated that point and suggested rearers needed to stop being romantics.

"All rearers have that sense of romance; you have to be able to deal with all the diseases and still want to come back and do it the next year.

"But successful calf rearing has to be driven by the bottom line and profitability is the key."

Kirk had aimed to have two meat company representatives present on the night to sit with people and sign up some contracts.

"But the reality is they are not quite there yet, although they are very close to offering some contracts," he said.

Kirk said the economics of the whole supply chain were out of balance, and pointed to the price of steers as another example.

"The average steer processed in New Zealand provides a negative return to the processor of about -$27.

"This means that although lots of people make money finishing steers, somewhere in that chain people are consistently taking hits."

He also predicted prices for buying calves this year will be significantly cheaper than the $45 used by Dr Muir in his example.

Kirk's involvement in dairy beef began about eight years ago when he realised that little of his 700-cow dairy farm was family friendly.

"The milking platform was not a safe environment and there were very few options to include children in the family business."

So the decision was made to integrate a dairy beef operation into the farm business. This allowed their children access to a safer and more interactive workplace.

He could also see the profitability in dairy beef and referred to a successful trial conducted on hill country not normally used for dairy animals.

Meat & Wool carried out a three-year trial in Raetihi focusing on beef-cow production on a steep farm.

The Beef Focus Farm project mentioned by Kirk was part of a nationwide programme funded by Meat & Wool, and run by AgResearch.

Eight beef farms throughout NZ were involved, with four focusing on improving the productivity and profitability of beef cows and the other four investigating and improving beef-finishing systems on hill country.

"What's staggering about this particular trial is that 50% of the herd had genetics primarily bred for producing milk on a flat-land dairy operation in the Manawatu."

He said half the herd outperformed the straight beef-bred animals in terms of growth rates.

Some of the success he attributed to the manager's exceptional stockmanship and attention to detail, but the genetics played a significant role as well.

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