Suckler producers can cut costs
By Robert Davies, Walees correspondent
WELSH suckler herd operators could cut costs by 17 million a year if all 10,000 in the sector were as efficient as the top third.
That is the conclusion drawn by Meat and Livestock Commission business specialists after analysis of the detailed accounts of 34 weaned calf producers.
It revealed that the production costs/kg liveweight of the top third were half of those of the bottom third, or 94p compared with 180p. Thats the equivalent of 159/cow.
Issuing the results at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair, Duncan Sinclair, MLCs senior beef specialist, said: “This clearly shows that there is massive room for improvement.”
Gwyn Howells, MLCs Wales manager who commissioned the survey by Signet Consulting, said that in simple terms the most efficient producers kept costs, especially labour charges, in check, and still managed to have heavier calves to sell.
“I hope that all producers will sit down and compare their figures with those in the top third of this survey.”