Dexter cattle. The future of Irish Beef?

Say my name

I don't want to take over the beef movement thread.

But the pictures of the meat cuts and the marbling on their Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Agricultural-Cooperative/Irish-Dexter-Cattle-Group-1603313959941832/

That's what is missing from the majority of Irish beef.
It's become tasteless tough crap.

I've no doubt from the lean continental breeds and the grading and payment system from the factories.

Anyway I've thrown it out there now.

But the pics of those cuts and that fat are something else....

_Brian

Say my name wrote: »

I don't want to take over the beef movement thread.

But the pictures of the meat cuts and the marbling on their Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Agricultural-Cooperative/Irish-Dexter-Cattle-Group-1603313959941832/

That's what is missing from the majority of Irish beef.
It's become tasteless tough crap.

I've no doubt from the lean continental breeds and the grading and payment system from the factories.

Anyway I've thrown it out there now.

But the pics of those cuts and that fat are something else....

It Might be good for the farmer and consumer, but these are the two least important people in this food chain.

If it doesn’t suit processors and retailers it won’t happen.

Dakota Dan

Say my name wrote: »

I don't want to take over the beef movement thread.

But the pictures of the meat cuts and the marbling on their Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Agricultural-Cooperative/Irish-Dexter-Cattle-Group-1603313959941832/

That's what is missing from the majority of Irish beef.
It's become tasteless tough crap.

I've no doubt from the lean continental breeds and the grading and payment system from the factories.

Anyway I've thrown it out there now.

But the pics of those cuts and that fat are something else....

I've seen a few homesteaders forums in the US and they have jersey cows and if they have a bull calf they will kill it at a year old and say the the beef has excellent marbling and tastes great. I don't know how they fatten them though as I bought a few myself and they were like greyhounds to fatten as 2 year olds.

jimmycrackcorm

Say my name wrote:

That's what is missing from the majority of Irish beef. It's become tasteless tough crap.

The biggest queztion is if it will come in a nice box like the steaks in Aldi

Say my name

Dakota Dan wrote: »

I've seen a few homesteaders forums in the US and they have jersey cows and if they have a bull calf they will kill it at a year old and say the the beef has excellent marbling and tastes great. I don't know how they fatten them though as I bought a few myself and they were like greyhounds to fatten as 2 year olds.

Probably leave them on the cows.

Markcheese

Dakota Dan wrote: »

I've seen a few homesteaders forums in the US and they have jersey cows and if they have a bull calf they will kill it at a year old and say the the beef has excellent marbling and tastes great. I don't know how they fatten them though as I bought a few myself and they were like greyhounds to fatten as 2 year olds.

Many moons ago, (about 2001), the BBC good food program, awarded top prize to Guernsey - charolais Cross beef, (blind tasting), the judges were surprised, after pushing traditional beef breeds for years,

Who2

Bad tempered rats of cattle that never come into any weight. Most would do extremely well to kill out st 200 kgs

Bigus

Who2 wrote: »

Bad tempered rats of cattle that never come into any weight. Most would do extremely well to kill out st 200 kgs

After talking to a clever well to do, auld lad who has quite a lot of them ,I think the key is to leave them up the mountain like sheep with no intervention, while also, then getting a huge premium per kg of meat, is where they reallystart to make sense.

Plus the nice lady with the castle who"s advocating for them is easy on the eye to say the least.

http://killenure.com/cms_files/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/home_banner_edited.jpg

coolshannagh28

Irish farmers are too caught up on weight and top price , that does not equal profit only for the processor who spins out this propaganda.
Irish meat from continental type cattle is a commodity product and sold cheaply , the red tractor brand in the UK is generally Scottish angus and sold at a premium , farmers need to think outside of the parameters set by the processors and the advisors and create margin on the back of our unique grass fed ,traceable product.

wrangler

coolshannagh28 wrote: »

Irish farmers are too caught up on weight and top price , that does not equal profit only for the processor who spins out this propaganda.
Irish meat from continental type cattle is a commodity product and sold cheaply , the red tractor brand in the UK is generally Scottish angus and sold at a premium , farmers need to think outside of the parameters set by the processors and the advisors and create margin on the back of our unique grass fed ,traceable product.

It's all been tried before
I wonder how did the Glenbarrow brand do, I remember talking to John Finlay at the start, and he remarked it was hard work....is it still going

https://www.independent.ie/business/farming/farmers-and-factories-split-the-profits-on-beef-26035642.html

Albert Johnson

Dexter's may prove the next big break for Irish beef if we can cultivate a sufficient market for the finished product. Such a market would require a change of mindset for producers, processor's and consumers alike, Dexter's are currently seen by many as just a hobby or a niche article and looked down upon by the producers of "proper cattle".

I believe it's important to remember that other native breeds exist apart from the much lauded Dexter. Other Irish breeds such as the Kerry, Droimeann and Irish Moiled could serve as foundation stock for a premium beef product while also maintaining our heritage. In the case of the Moiled cattle they are a medium sized breed that would produce a carcass more akin to those we are used to currently. It would be easier to convert those running foreign breeds to native alternatives if some more sizeable stock were available compared to the Dexter.

Here in the north west it's becoming increasingly difficult to justify the expense of keeping a continental suckler cow. The weather conspires against us yearly and housing periods of up to 8 months at a time aren't unusual. This combined with spiralling fodder and other costs along with poor returns for weanlings in recent years has led many to exit the sector. However due to much of the land in the region being of marginal quality it is hard to find another system that is suited to the conditions. Due to these factors forestry is becoming more and more widespread as there is no other options available to those who still want to utilise the land.

I believe that a well structured and profitable market for traditional breed beef could fufil the requirements of the above subset of farmers. They are willing to continue a form of cattle farming and have the knowledge to make it prosper. An organic and sustainable product could be produced off these marginal lands while providing a fair return to the primary producers and there families. This would benefit rural communities and help to reverse the ongoing trend of rural decline in many areas.

The success of brands such as AA and HE beef has shown that an appetite exists for premium beef products. Identifying our market is half the battle, we are also lucky to have the knowledge of how to produce beef efficiently. The necessary market research and promotion bodies have already been developed if we are willing to utilise them. I'm of the opinion that much of the heavy lifting is already done but there are still key elements yet to be decided. It is fair to say that some major change is required to safeguard the future of Irish beef of any color or breed.

lalababa

Dairy is the only really profitable type ATM. 'Everything else' is around break even or worse. The money trend for 'everything else' is downward. Dairy has and will expand..producing more calfs. There will be more dairy calfs and less sucklers. Friesian bullocks and AA/WH calfs will have to be bought and reared to beef. With the AA/WHs put on the marginal/mountain land. Friesian meat has won many awards in blind tastings! Nothing wrong with it! And there isn't much wrong with rearing it either. Unfortunately the downward trend in slaughter prices will continue (what would bring it up??)

patsy_mccabe

The problem with Dairy calves is they are all born in a few months. With age limits applying to kill dates, how will farmers deal with this.

Poor Larry hasn't hit the Billionaire limit yet, only worth €850 million. The money just isnt in beef.

https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/rich-list-2019/profiles/larry-goodman-37749081.html

Ard_MC

Had a dexeter burger in dublin airport a few weeks ago. Was one the nicest burgers i ever had.

Say my name

The main thing going for the Dexter is it's uniqueness.

It's a native breed that seemingly does well on a poor fare. It's being farmed in very low numbers worldwide and if a worldwide consumer wanted to source beef from the Dexter breed. The champion source for this on a restaurant menu would be from it's home country..Ireland.
The story comes first on the menu like Champagne from France and then the taste comes second and if it's to be believed is comparable to Kobe?
Being in small portions helps with diners preference nowadays too.

It's a product that has a lot going for it in this country imo.

_Brian

I’d rather some Irish Moiled, excellent for rough grazing but slightly bigger stock.

Gawddawggonnit

Perfection personified for the dairy lads...
Dexter x xbreds the new dairy beef cross. Short gestation? .

Not so long ago there was an interesting exposé on Irish Angus beef in France and it was proven that AA beef imported from Ireland wasn’t close to being ‘pure’...Scottish AA was much more pure and now very little Irish ‘AA’ on the shelves. In fact French AA is becoming very popular indeed.

Sorry I’m going off topic, but if your going to sell a premium product keep it pure and lean heavily towards provenance and heritage etc.

Albert Johnson

I agree that the back story is very important with a speciality product such as Dexter beef, the modern consumer dines with there eyes as much as there mouth. We need to market the Dexter beef experience as much as the product itself, the French have managed it with champagne and the Belgians with chocolate so we can do it with beef. We are lucky in that beef is a diverse product with many forms in which to market it, this would allow us to target various markets and budgets. Be it steak, burgers or mince meat we need to avail of the story behind the product and equate quality beef with Irish beef in the eyes of the consumer.

We also need to purvey the benefits of grass based farming in relation to the environment and our roles as farmers as care takers of the same environment. It is becoming increasingly apparent that we cannot compete with other international producers for scale and rock bottom prices so we must otherwise difference ourselves on the world market. Traditional breed beef of any of the native breeds produced in an organic and sustainable manner and marketed as such would set us apart from the competition.

A secondary benefit of a move to more traditional breeding in the suckler herd would be a less labour intensive farming system. The smaller birth weight of calves should reduce calving difficulties and an increased foraging ability of smaller animals would be only two of the benefits that could be expected. As increased levels of beef farmers enter into off farm employment to supplement there income any possible reductions in labour necessary on farm would be positively received.

kk.man

lalababa wrote: »

Dairy is the only really profitable type ATM. 'Everything else' is around break even or worse. The money trend for 'everything else' is downward. Dairy has and will expand..producing more calfs. There will be more dairy calfs and less sucklers. Friesian bullocks and AA/WH calfs will have to be bought and reared to beef. With the AA/WHs put on the marginal/mountain land. Friesian meat has won many awards in blind tastings! Nothing wrong with it! And there isn't much wrong with rearing it either. Unfortunately the downward trend in slaughter prices will continue (what would bring it up??)

I agree completely with your take on Friesian and the meat from it. The problem is the meat processors have discounted the finished product no matter what the grade. And the other thing is the lack of British Friesian stock which are much better feed conversation that the Holestsin.

Hard Knocks

kk.man wrote: »

I agree completely with your take on Friesian and the meat from it. The problem is the meat processors have discounted the finished product no matter what the grade. And the other thing is the lack of British Friesian stock which are much better feed conversation that the Holestsin.

Also our land type here in the NE wouldn’t be of the quality to finish dairy calves off grass
The traditional breeds & suckler cow raring calf to export is what works here

older by the day

I suppose the Dexter might suit certain people, a less intensive grazing system, and you would have to finish them, other wise the cattle buyers at the Mart would want them for free. But with margins so tight its hard to see is any beef system profitable. I suppose the angus and Hereford would be softer and have better weight gain

Albert Johnson

I think we need to seriously up our game as an industry in regards to research and development of markets. There has been a huge focus in recent years of maximising efficiency within the farm gate but that is only part of the solution imo. Much of the so called marketing ventures such as board bia and other funded quango's have delivered little of note in regards to new opportunities for the beef sector.

Producing beef as efficiently as possible is of massive importance but if we fail to market it correctly we are still missing out. I believe we need to first identify what premium niches exist and tailor our product to fit this brief. Once we have established a common goal the logistics of producing the raw product can begin.

The announcement of a trade deal for Irish beef in the USA and Asia was much lauded in recent times but has yet to materialized to the extent once promised. A headline in the comic about all these new markets are of little benefit unless we can realise the potential for increased premium exports, sadly this key step is usually lacking in such campaigns. I fail to understand that with all the levies and other money collected from farmers that a more dedicated marketing strategy cannot be created, in a sector that exports the vast majority of it's product you would think this would be a priority.

It would be foolish to commit to any single product or system of production without first identifying a market for the above. We are blessed with an ability to produce a top quality product and it would be a shame to fall at the final hurdle. If we could identify our niche it would be simple to work backwards to the primary producers.