The trade of cows and heifers over the last number of years has been steady, but with poor weather conditions and poor milk price in the first half of the year prevalent, has it taken a hit?
Dispersal sales were a lot more common around the country, as many farmers felt that if there was ever a year to get out, it was this one, giving the adverse weather and regulation weighing farmers down.
There has been a lot of talk over the last few months on whether there will be heifers on the market in the coming years, as breeding strategies over the last two years have taken a turn.
Changes in banding and derogation have also left a lot of farmers wondering what the right cow for their system is, and how many cows is going to be suitable for their system.
Agriland spoke with Cows.ie managing director, David Clarke at the National Ploughing Championships to hear this thoughts on the matter.
Trade
Clarke told Agriland that this year, there has been more of a demand for autumn calving cows, which he thought was a surprising trend, seeing as many farmers are opting for a fully spring calving herd.
Encouraging farmers to use more sexed semen, Clarke said “we want more friesian heifers on the ground, believe it or not, as we want to supply a market in Algeria this coming January”.
Speaking about the markets in Algeria, Clarke added that there will be 1000 cows to go again, and that there are two or three more dealers looking for more, and that he wants “to fulfil and boost the dairy trade for pedigree animals”.
Speaking about the increase in dispersal sales this year, Clarke said that the “problem is the age of the average farmer with no successors coming through to run the farm”.
He also spoke about putting heifers on farms and having farmers rear them, which helped to build up the number of heifers available to farmers in this country.
Clarke added that “there are plenty of young farmers to take and lease land to go share milking in some sort of partnership to keep the sector going well”.
Over the last number of years, there has no doubt been an increase in sexed semen usage on the number of cows and heifers that farmers want for replacements.
For many farmers, after they reach their optimum number of replacements served, beef semen is used on the rest of the herd, so farmers can add value to the farm by selling the beef calf.
However, this has the potential to leave the market deprived of surplus heifers, which may become a problem for any farmer that buys in their replacements.
The managing director explained that “surplus heifers are still there and we are trying hard to export them but we see a scarcity coming in the next few years because many farmers have gone with Angus bulls”.
“This is unfortunate as when you have a scarcity in dairy heifers, the prices go through the roof which might leave everything very expensive in the next few years,” Clarke added.
With the uncertainty around derogation, many farmers have been left to think about what type of cow they are going to breed for their farm system.
Finding a cow that suits your land type, your farming system, and your optimal stocking rate is the key, Clarke emphasised.
Clarke talked about the the economic breeding index (EBI) and said that it has been terrific. The results are still evident four years later in the heifers they have reared using it.
“The fat and protein percentages are very high and the EBI has just given us a very profitable cow, so, it is still the way to go,” he said.
He added that the crossbred cow trade has slowed down over the last number of years and that for farmers who have big farms, where the cows have to walk a distance, it has worked out.
Clarke wants farmers to register their stock with Irish Holstein Frisian Association (IHFA), as there are markets for cows for places such as Turkey, Algeria and Morocco, that want that pedigree cows.
“We have a wonderful dairy industry in this country and we need to keep that going, as we are free of bluetongue but it’s all over Europe unfortunately, so that is an advantage,” he stressed.