Cattle movements for Quality Assured (QA)

k mac

Just read the below taken from the bord bia website;

Bord Bia place NO RESTRICTIONS on the number of movements a bovine has had, for it to be deemed Quality Assured. Any movement restrictions applied are solely at the discretion of the Meat Plant and these restrictions may even differ between competing Meat Plants. It is the farmers responsibility to check this prior to taking your cattle to factory.

Does this mean the number of movements no longer matter and you will still get QA, or is it saying its up to the factory?

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058265943/cattle-movements-for-quality-assured-qa

Bord bia have nothing to do with the number of movements, they just assess the standard of your farm and award the QA based on that

k mac

I see that now, and the factory will only pay if the animal has a maximun of 4 farm residencies...i suppose the problem comes where you are buying say yearlings that a man has bucket reared and he might have the blue card and his is the only name on the back of the card, yet he got them from a dealer who has brought the calves up from the south, so technically he is the 3rd residency, and if you buy them you are the fourth yet you might think you are the 3rd looking at the card...

kk.man

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119699251#Comment_119699251

That forces you to finish them yourself (if you are set up) or off load them in the mart where customers will be picky about paying the price of similar stock with less movements.

Anto_Meath

Looking at what goes through the local mart a lot of store cattle even around 450 - 500 kgs are on their third home. It does knock the appeal off them. For FR, AAx or HEx it wouldn't bother me as I would be killing these types but for a nice CH, or LM if it has 3 previous owners it would put me off slightly I would normally show these in the mart again at 650Kg - 700Kg stores and if I am the 4th owner it could knock €50 - €100 off the value of them. I can guarantee you when Larry is selling on the beef there is no distinction made between the carcass that had 1 home or the one that had 6 homes.

kk.man

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119703829#Comment_119703829

There was no difference with with 4+ movements and less all summer. Procurement manager said to me as long as they were on a QA farm before me he'd pay the same price. When I bought my short term grass cattle in the spring I was buying 4+ movements in confidence knowing it would not be an issue. They re write the rules all the time.

Anto_Meath

That's just it @kk.man, this year when the Procurement Manager wanted cattle all rules went out the window, movements, overage and even QA if there was enough cover on them. But you never know when they will decide to bring back the rules. One factory I would send a few to would take cattle from you, 21 days after you bought them once the previous owner was QA another was taking them the next day and the one I send most of my cattle to want you to have them at least 60 days. Yet they were all officially telling you they had to be in your heard for 70 days.

Cavanjack

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119703829#Comment_119703829

I saw a bunch of this years weanlings in carnaross last night on their 4th movement.

The only thing about them is that they should have great immunity to disease after all the sales yards and farms they’ve been in.

Albert Johnson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119705766#Comment_119705766

I saw an agey suckler cow sold with a calf at foot lately that had 17 owners and the calf was on his 2nd movement. I'd say you'd have no bother getting her to run up the ramp of a lorry. A local haulier and all round character if he was having bother loading stock at the mart would always comment that a dealing man's beast was great addition in a group of cattle as they'd run straight up the ramp.

Anto_Meath

Years ago my lad dad bought a black bullock of a dealer.. the dealer told my father he bought him dear had him a few marts & couldn't sell him, but he was going out of test when my dad bought him. Anytime he seen the cattle trailer backing into the loading pen he would be dancing at the gate. We use to joke he would help you let down the ramp if he could...