Beef finishing systems are generally specialist operations and farmers are usually advised to contact their processing outlets before embarking on a beef finishing system.
Recently Farm walk in Co. LaoisTeagasc’s David Argue highlighted indicative performance targets for the 20-month suckler beef diet to ensure the animal meets the live weight target of 720kg or carcass weight target of 420kg.
In a spring calving system where calving occurs in February or March, the calf should reach 1.2-1.3 kg/head/day over the first summer.
“This will only be possible if we have the right genetics in the calf, if we have the right level of milk in the cow, if the calf is healthy, and if the cow and calf are grazing on the right kind of grass,” Arg said.
He said 1,300-1,400 kg dry matter (DM)/ha is the ideal grass cover for grazing baby herds.
Once weaning time comes in the fall, the target weaning weight is 315kg. Calves generally spend a further 4-6 weeks on grass and 2-3kg of meal before housing for their first winter.
The first winter “tends to be where farmers fall behind in terms of achieving targets over the course of the winter or daily live weight gain targets for these animals,” the Teagasc consultant stressed.
The target for the first winter should be 0.6kg/day, he said, adding that high quality silage and feed concentrates where silage quality is lower are the key practices to achieve this.
He advised farmers to weigh cattle at housing, Christmas and the following spring to ensure performance is on target.
What to do if performance is not on target?
When farmers determine that livestock performance is not at the target level, action must be taken.
Some options farmers should consider are changing the silage being fed, increasing the level of meal being fed, or taking manure samples to ensure the animals are free of parasites, Argo said.
In dry ground conditions where the weather is favourable, these bulls can return to the grass as youngsters weighing around 390kg in late February or early March.
The cattle then spend four months (120-130 days) on grass with the aim of putting on 150kg live weight on these animals before being housed at 540kg for finishing.
Bull beef finishing period
These cattle are housed at approximately 16 months of age before moving on to the 120-140 day finishing period.
“The target is 540kg in housing and out of the gate (to the factory) at 720kg, so putting in 1.5kg a day over 120 days.”
The goal is to eliminate 58% of the carcass weighing 418 kg.
