Rearing calves to meet Italian market demand

Extreme conformation, tight-gutted and full of flesh – these are the qualities Cumbria suckled calf producer David Gill has set his sights on to cash in on the demand from Italian buyers sourcing prime cattle from the UK.

And on his family’s two hill farms on the edge of the Lake District there are fields packed with full-muscled calves and stirks – mostly three-quarter-bred Belgian Blues – all produced to meet the specific needs of the Italian meat market.

But at the Gills’ Newlands Farm, Ireby, Carlisle and Lowthwaite Farm, Uldale, changes are already under way to make the most of the new, export-driven opportunity.

All this season’s bull calves have been left entire to meet yet another preference of the Italian trade; and while it has been usual for the Gill family to sell their cattle as strong stores – sometimes with as little as eight weeks finishing time ahead of them – the potential total earning power of some of these cattle will be exploited this season when all bull calves will be retained for finishing.

“We used to finish bull beef, but the job went flat. Now there’s every incentive to get back into the prime ring with these bulls. We’re already seeing buyers sourcing cattle for Italy giving 150-180p/kg for bulls ranging from 580kg to 700kg.”

Mr Gill is hoping to get 180p/kg for stores weighing an average of 400kg in January to earn about £700, but he’s hesitant about predicting a price for prime export bulls weighing 550-600kg by next May.

“I’m confident about the future for suckled calf production. It’s the industry’s ace card and one of the best bets in the livestock sector, provided we can produce what these export markets want,” says Mr Gill.

The family runs about 250 suckler cows about 80% are Belgian Blue x Holstein – the rest Limousin and some Blonde crosses. All replacements are bought-in as calves from two dairy farms. A team of extreme-muscled Belgian Blue sires – mostly homebred from a small purebred herd – are a vital part of the system that’s gearing up to supply the export demand.

Mr Gill has nothing but praise for the Belgian Blue-cross cow. “She’s quiet, has plenty of milk and lasts forever. We’ve plenty of cows in their teens and even a cow at 20 years old who is still breeding.

“We make sure we’re on top of the job at calving; we have our fair share of assisted calvings, but it’s something we expect so at least we’re always ready for them.”

The herd is run in two calving groups – starting 1 March and 1 May – Mr Gill admits his calving pattern isn’t tight – but unlike many he sees it as an advantage.

“We don’t want all our calves born over 10 weeks. We need a broadage range of cattle on the farm to give us a marketing spread over a longer period.”

Keeping condition off Belgian Blue-cross cows by restricting winter silage intakes is critical to avoid too many calving difficulties.

Despite the dry summer and a shortage of grass this year cows have milked well and creep feeders weren’t put out until the usual time in mid-August when calves were offered no more than 1kg of coarse-mix a day.

Calves have been run in mixed groups of bulls and heifers this summer, but will be split at weaning during the first part of October when diet will be gradually switched to an ad-lib 50:50 barley:coarse mix ration along with whole-crop silage.

The barley inclusion is eventually stepped-up to about 75%.

Calves weigh up to 300kg at weaning; heifers are usually sold at about 380kg and steers up to 450kg from late October to March.

“I’ve been watching the trade closely this summer, but there’s a shortage of the real type of cattle the Italian market is looking for.

There just aren’t enough around yet, so it’ll be interesting to see what buyers will pay when they can get hold of the clean-gutted, heavily-muscled Belgian Blue crosses they really want.

“An Irish company has already been snapping up Belgian Blue crossbred store cattle and sending them over to Italy for finishing, so that gives you an idea of how much they want them,” he adds.

*Ben Gill is currently offering someone a chance to take a step on the farming ladder. To find out more and add your opinions on his offer, see our forums