Introduction
Winter finishing of steers is a common practice for many years in Ireland and indeed around the world. There are many advantages and disadvantages to this type of finishing system which will be discussed in this report. The most common method of finishing steers over the winter period is housing cattle for 80-120 days where they are fed grass silage and concentrates to an ad-lid stage until fit for slaughter. This is determined by visually condition scoring and fat scoring steers as well as the weight for age ratio. In this report, topics to be discussed are: the breeds and variations between said breeds for the winter finishing of steers, the three main types of wintering accommodation for the finishing of steers, the cost of winter finishing steers, and the advantages and disadvantages of this system. Winter feeding of finishing cattle is the most expensive and presents the biggest challenge of all the systems of cattle production.
To date in 2014 some 439,067 cattle have been slaughtered in Ireland. This is an increase of 12% or 49,740 overall with an 11% increase in steers slaughtered on the same period last year. These cattle would be part of a winter finishing system which would have commenced sometime in early to late autumn 2013.
Breeds
The three main types of steers used for finishing are; Continental cross, Friesian cross, and traditional cross such as Angus and Hereford.
While continental sired steers give the best daily live-weight gain and carcass weight they also require the highest price per kg carcass weight to turn a profit. They are also the most expensive to buy in with not finished on its farm of origin. Continental cross steers are the most popular for winter finishing as they are fast ma...
... middle of paper ...
...ly finishing system.
Winter finishers can also take advantage of higher selling prices in the spring due to high demand for beef with low supply of animals fit for slaughter at this time as a posed to the high level of supply in late summer and early autumn when steers are finished directly from grass.
Disadvantages:
High production costs mean very little profit margin per head when steers are slaughtered work is labour intensive as steers must fed everyday verses summer finishing where the farmer is only required to herd the animals.
The necessity for machinery such as tractors and possibly diet feeders as well as grain stores or silos add to fixed costs on the farm initial cost of housing can be expensive and difficult to fund
Profit is very dependent on market prices with large fluctuations leading to the possibility of a loss at the end of the winter period.
In cattle feedlots, the conditions are very bad. Most of the time, the feeder calves are standing in mud that is two feet deep. In these moist conditions, bacteria thrive. The cattle can suffer from foot problems, like foot rot. foot rot is a disease of the hoof which the skin between the toes of the hooves rots away and decomposes. If left untreated, the foot will swell and will rot off. This is extremely painful for the animal(Hasheider 34). In these feed yards, the feed is dumped into concrete feed bunks three times a day, and that is all the cattle get to eat. They are not offered grass or any type of forage, the forage, also known as hay...
The. The "Meat Industry" Encyclopedia Americana. Grolier Online, n.d. -. Web.
Kellems, Richard O., and D. C. Church. Livestock Feeds and Feeding. 6th ed. Boston: Prentice Hall, 2010. Print.
A typical workday then, consisted of crews installing fences while cowboys’ roped wild cattle to be sold, in preparation for the introduction of tame (domesticated) cattle herds between 1950 and 1955. Operations shifted focus toward managing merely tame cattle herds within controlled paddocks as the market for wild cattle died off; hence wild cattle still exist.
Normally, cows in Northern Europe in places such as Denmark live normal lives simply grazing on grass, and existing. However, there have been recent changes that have disrupted this normal activity. Generally the bluetongue virus (spread by Culicoides imicola, a biting midge) has been confined to Southern Europe and other places around the Mediterranean. But with the increase in temperature throughout the area, the midge has been allowed to migrate northward. This new pest is a nuisance and causes lots of difficulties to farmers in the area. When a cow contracts this disease, they usually also receive oral ulcers, salivation, stiffness, fever and eventually the inevitable- death (Merck Veterinary Manual NP). Because of the increase in temperature, midges have spread around the globe infecting livestock and creating terrible trouble for many farmers.
There is no humane way to raise beef cattle to meet the world's growing demand. Let's take a look at one of the biggest beef based corporations in the world, Tyson. Tyson slaughters and packages 170,938 cattle every day! That number is not including any other of the corporations who are
Over 1,000,000 cattle roamed the open range. At this time, people in the north had money to buy beef and cattle which was in great demand. A cow that cost 4 to5 dollars a head in Texas was going for 40 to 50 dollars a head in the east. Ranchers hired cowboys for the cattle drives north, realizing the great opportunity for a large profit if they could reach the railroads in Abilene, Kansas.
The seemingly simple term “rancher” is commonly misinterpreted. The term rancher may bring to mind a guy riding a bucking bull or horse in a western movie or maybe a tough looking guy without much brains raising cattle on the prairie. Other people think of a farmer. Actual ranchers specifically raise cattle, while farmers raise crops, hogs, and poultry. Modern ranchers are hardworking men and women who live off the land raising cattle for consumers. Despite popular beliefs, it takes a lot of knowledge to raise cattle. American ranchers use business and technology skills to raise cattle. Even with these skills, they are still at the mercy of Mother Nature and gamble with her every year.
The idea of the family farm has been destroyed by large food corporations. As discussed in class, industrial farming typically leads to the mass produ...
“The farm implement industry has profoundly shaped both American agriculture and the national economy. Of all farm implements, the tractor has had the greatest impact on rural life” (Robert C. Williams, qtd. in Olmstead).
Such products include vaccines, medications, and antibiotics to support healthy and consistent herds of beef producing cattle. It segments the market into three distinct categories. Hobbyists herd less than 100 cows; Traditionalists commonly carry between 100 to 499, and businesses are working with 500 or more. (Mohr, 1999) Time spent in the field with the ranchers was allocated based on the volume of product purchased by each individual.
Most cow lovers need not worry about any of this. Their cows have become welcome household pets. They have put down their steak knives and decided to dine with them, not on them. Such docile animals have now become a part of the family, and owning but a few cows has eased the problem of naming a vast herd of cattle.
They are in the central of human culture and represent one of the most important domesticated animals (Loftus et al. 1994). The evolution and domestication of cattle have been always contentious research particularly in determining the relationship between the two main types of cattle the humped zebu and hump less taurine. Due to the economic importance of cattle, morphological and genetic differences observed between the two subspecies are still an active area of research and speculations (David et al. 1997). India is rich in dairy animal diversity. It has diverse and distinguishing cattle genetic resources which led to their domestication some 10000 years
With seasonal production there are many problems. Overtime premiums reduced profits, seasonal expansion and contraction of the work force resulted in recruiting difficulties and high training and quality control cost, etc.
For my operation, I will be producing meat and hides/pelts for leathers. My reasoning for not choosing mohair is because of the decline in this market with the increase of polyester and non-wool/mohair products. I don’t think the wool or mohair industry will be increasing anytime soon, therefore I do not want to add costs that will not make me a profit. Another reason that I chose meat goats is for the increased demand from niche markets. This increased demand has let to an increase in price per pound of goat that the producers can market their products, and thus, produce a greater profit. In order to maximize your profit, the producer must have goats ready to be sold to the market and ready for slaughter almost year round in order to hit the market during peak times, such as Muslim holidays like Ramadan or Christian holidays such as Easter. Being able to have goats ready during these times depends heavily on when they get bred. Most commercial