Calf Prices 2015 *** DISCUSSION THREAD

Limestone Cowboy

just do it wrote: »

What age is she LC? You've an eye for replacements

14 days on the card anyway, wouldn't think she's much older. Seems a nice type of a calf alright, don't think there's too much Holstein in her.

liosnagceann75

The calf sold in Castleisland made 157 euro

orm0nd

serious number of fr bulls hitting the marts this week,

also some very poor quality hex and aax stock , seems when some dairy men have enough cows bulled for replacements they throw any kind of beef breed to mop up , as long as he is able to a mount a cow he'll do

with suckler cow numbers declining , factories will have a field day in a couple of years,

Farmer Pudsey

orm0nd wrote: »

serious number of fr bulls hitting the marts this week,

also some very poor quality hex and aax stock , seems when some dairy men have enough cows bulled for replacements they throw any kind of beef breed to mop up , as long as he is able to a mount a cow he'll do

with suckler cow numbers declining , factories will have a field day in a couple of years,

Why will they have a field day.When lads stop producing those loss making sucklers there will be 10K less cattle a week for factory to mess with. When there stuck they will take goats. A prominent procurement manager with one of the processors said that British supermarkets are quite happy with O+ grading cattle. It those sucklers killing over 400kgs that usually cause all the problems.

frazzledhome

mahoney_j wrote: »

Who was that now frazzeld!!!!!

Can assure you it wasn't me. Averaging €70 since start. Lowest price €20 highest €150

frazzledhome

mf240 wrote: »

In all seriousness. How can the mart not have a bill for you. Lads paying 2.50 are being let of commision so theyll take the calves. marts cant operate for free either. Plus buyers get fed up waiting around for the normal calves to come in.

I've no Idea wheather bill was sent or not

dh1985

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

Why will they have a field day.When lads stop producing those loss making sucklers there will be 10K less cattle a week for factory to mess with. When there stuck they will take goats. A prominent procurement manager with one of the processors said that British supermarkets are quite happy with O+ grading cattle. It those sucklers killing over 400kgs that usually cause all the problems.

If there's less sucklers will this not drive up the costs of calves even further or will the dairy expansion balance this out

limo_100

Limestone Cowboy wrote: »

Bought this lady today for 300

did you buy her for a cow or you gona rear her on the bucket??

stretch film

frazzledhome wrote: »

Can assure you it wasn't me. Averaging €70 since start. Lowest price €20 highest €150

Adlib feeding these guys too?
Are you acidifying the milk.?

stretch film

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

No you are not being rode on Ho lads buying those BB will not leave a bob if finished in Ireland. At present a Friesian that kill 320kgs at under 30 months grading O-3 is making about 1250 max. A 30-36 months Friesian killing 380 kgs grading O=3/4 is making about 1480. No room to pay any more than 50-100 euro for such calves. If you think there is money in finish them yourself.

In 18 months time if stores are expensive and there is a lot of them around Pudsey will be keeping his fist in his pocket until the following spring.

Your consistent with the overpriced fr bull calf argument I'll give you that.

What state do you reckon calves will come off farm this time next year when all theyll make is 50 euro.

Podzol has a client who sees value in paying a better price for a well cared for calf ..

Dawggone

Sold a batch of hol bulls from 15 to 27 days old.
Av €19.33.

Off to Cheltenham now to fleece the bookies Not!

frazzledhome

stretch film wrote: »

Adlib feeding these guys too?
Are you acidifying the milk.?

Adlib from day 1 no acid. No nutritional scour

joejobrien

frazzledhome wrote: »

Agree on age. See "2" week old calves and they're fit to be skulled. Seller can puff out his chest and talk of the €160 for a fr forgetting the cost. I see guys bringing calves this week will bring some older ones next week and nothing wrong with that. I just bring everything with card and BVD, get rid before they cost anymore

Thats the job;) , out the gate before they cost anymore or increase risk of virus breaking out

Limestone Cowboy

limo_100 wrote: »

did you buy her for a cow or you gona rear her on the bucket??

Ya she's going under a cow.

onyerbikepat

orm0nd wrote: »

serious number of fr bulls hitting the marts this week,

also some very poor quality hex and aax stock , seems when some dairy men have enough cows bulled for replacements they throw any kind of beef breed to mop up , as long as he is able to a mount a cow he'll do

with suckler cow numbers declining , factories will have a field day in a couple of years,

I'd agree with this. Poorer quality weanlings won't be exported. Simple as that. That leaves a glut of cattle in the country and larry & Co. to call the tune.

RightTurnClyde

Met a buddy at the mart on Monday. He was telling me how i should be feeding on the calves to 5-6 weeks. Mine made €70-€105 fresian ( average €78) and €130-€185 AA's, none were older than 11 days. His were 5-6 weeks old on a liscarrol feeder, he reckoned they drank average 7+ litres a day. That's €80 worth of milk. They (Frs) averaged €165. 5 weeks work for nothing.( + housing, bedding, labour and vets) But they looked good!

Farmer Pudsey

stretch film wrote: »

Your consistent with the overpriced fr bull calf argument I'll give you that.

What state do you reckon calves will come off farm this time next year when all theyll make is 50 euro.

Podzol has a client who sees value in paying a better price for a well cared for calf ..

I have not bought calves in 7-8 years. However it cots in the region 300 to carry to 12 months of age along with his initial and that is from 3-4 weeks of age. From there to slaughter and it matters little wheather you kill at 24 months intensive finish or put back to grass and kill at 28-34 months it will cost about another 500 euro to carry to finish. So excluding calf costs it will cost 800 to carry from 3 weeks to finish.

This is not allowing for rental land costs if you rent land. If calves come off dairy farms in poor condition from 10 days to 6 weks of age farmers should not buy such calves but rather leave the dairy farmers with the cost of disposing of them. Drystock is a tight margin business. I am not sure of what Podzol buyers costs are near what I have costed it at

stretch film

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

I have not bought calves in 7-8 years. However it cots in the region 300 to carry to 12 months of age along with his initial and that is from 3-4 weeks of age. From there to slaughter and it matters little wheather you kill at 24 months intensive finish or put back to grass and kill at 28-34 months it will cost about another 500 euro to carry to finish. So excluding calf costs it will cost 800 to carry from 3 weeks to finish.

This is not allowing for rental land costs if you rent land. If calves come off dairy farms in poor condition from 10 days to 6 weks of age farmers should not buy such calves but rather leave the dairy farmers with the cost of disposing of them. Drystock is a tight margin business. I am not sure of what Podzol buyers costs are near what I have costed it at

My core point is the man calving the cow has no incentive at € 50 .
Bvd and tagging/reg can be sorted in days and the beef man can have our byproduct and take all the cost labour and risk with it . Every drop extra going in the milk tank will soften the "loss".

Farmer Pudsey

stretch film wrote: »

My core point is the man calving the cow has no incentive at € 50 .
Bvd and tagging/reg can be sorted in days and the beef man can have our byproduct and take all the cost labour and risk with it . Every drop extra going in the milk tank will soften the "loss".

Beefmen as you put it do not have to buy them. Bull calves whether Fr or Jex's are the disposal issue of the dairy farmer. The case may arise where bidding in a mart starts at -50 euro for such calves. Bidding need not start at a positive value. Too many beef farmers do not access the risk or cost involved.

If a dairy farmers has tro dispose of such calves to a knackery it will cost him.This has to be factored in as well. Some dairy farmers will have no issue with this other will baulk at it. However as beef farmers we need to make a profit as well. If calves are taken out of the system it helps to prevent a glut two years down the line.

The day may come where dairy farmers have to pay to get rid of poorer quality calves(extreme Ho or Jex's) or have to accept rearing them at cost or a slight loss to 10-20 days. Everything is relative

joejobrien

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

No you are not being rode on Ho lads buying those BB will not leave a bob if finished in Ireland. At present a Friesian that kill 320kgs at under 30 months grading O-3 is making about 1250 max. A 30-36 months Friesian killing 380 kgs grading O=3/4 is making about 1480. No room to pay any more than 50-100 euro for such calves. If you think there is money in finish them yourself.

In 18 months time if stores are expensive and there is a lot of them around Pudsey will be keeping his fist in his pocket until the following spring.

I take your point , but I see FR M yearling yesterday making 550 plus for 12 month old stock.......the same stock that was bought 40/60 euro or less in 2014, and we are not getting not much more today except for the coloured calves.
Now dont tell me they havent made money in 12 months on those calves. I think we are well entitiled to a few quid more considering farmers are paying big money for the beef breeds calves. If they are paying over the odds well.........................it dog eat dog:D

freedominacup

I'm not sure if there are many calves being held on dairy farms atm. A lad who does a few days for us on and off was in Ross on Saturday. He wanted a particular type of calf. Only a few of them there. Calf he bought numbered 900 and something. He reckoned there were still a couple of hundred to go. This was at half four and selling started at 10.30. Whatever calves are being held are more than cancelled out by beef enterprises being scaled back or discontinued on many dairy farms imo. Don't be surprised if the glut never appears. With cow numbers increasing and the extra pressure on systems holding extra calves for a very marginal gain looses it's shine very quickly. Cows and heifer calves can't be neglected in order to mind bull calves.

Sheep breeder

freedominacup wrote: »

I'm not sure if there are many calves being held on dairy farms atm. A lad who does a few days for us on and off was in Ross on Saturday. He wanted a particular type of calf. Only a few of them there. Calf he bought numbered 900 and something. He reckoned there were still a couple of hundred to go. This was at half four and selling started at 10.30. Whatever calves are being held are more than cancelled out by beef enterprises being scaled back or discontinued on many dairy farms imo. Don't be surprised if the glut never appears. With cow numbers increasing and the extra pressure on systems holding extra calves for a very marginal gain looses it's shine very quickly. Cows and heifer calves can't be neglected in order to mind bull calves.

we were in ross on saturday for the first time this year and about five hundred calves, the numbers start with the booked calves first at lower numbers and then they jump to higher numbers, i must check my watch as i thought the sale was well over before 4.30,
but its amazing how people report different trade in the same mart on any given day,

degetme

Any ye guys using an acidifer other than milkshake?

lab man

Where is ross

frazzledhome

lab man wrote: »

Where is ross

New Ross, so good they named it twice

lab man

Dad went to listowel today to buy some calves as we go there every year he said quality has gone down a lot since last yr and the yr before for good black whiteheads came home with none first time in ten years

larrymiller

lab man wrote: »

Where is ross

Be carefull were wild down here

lab man

Sur your TD is livin in ennis for the last week

Farmer Pudsey

joejobrien wrote: »

I take your point , but I see FR M yearling yesterday making 550 plus for 12 month old stock.......the same stock that was bought 40/60 euro or less in 2014, and we are not getting not much more today except for the coloured calves.
Now dont tell me they havent made money in 12 months on those calves. I think we are well entitiled to a few quid more considering farmers are paying big money for the beef breeds calves. If they are paying over the odds well.........................it dog eat dog:D

If you buy and sell at same stage in a year you calculate your costs off difference. Calves this year are making 120ish I think not having being at a mart. Add 300 and they are making about 130/calf less selling costs. Not huge money by any means.

A lad selling a beef breed calf for 750 is paying 300-350 to replace add his 300 costs he is left with 100-150 margin. Any dairy bred calves are over valued too many beef farmers have failed to understand that these are a byproduct of the dairy system. We do not need to reimburse the dairy man for his costs we need to make sure that we have an adequate margin for our business.

freedominacup

lab man wrote: »

Where is ross

On the original Anfield lane.