Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Twitter LinkedIn
    • FREE Email Newsletters
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Contact Us
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    • News
      • Arable & Agronomy
      • Dealership News
      • Environmental Land Management Scheme/Policy
      • Event News
      • Health & Safety
      • Machinery
      • People
      • World News
    • Farm Machinery
      • Amenity & Maintenance
      • Cultivations
      • Drilling
      • Grassland Equipment
      • Harvesting
      • Muck & Slurry
      • Sprayers
      • Telehandlers
      • Tractors
      • Tractor of the Year
      • Tyres & Tracks
      • Whatever happened to?
    • Precision Farming
    • Markets & Policy
    • Profiles
      • National Arable and Grassland Awards
      • Company Profiles
      • Reader Profiles
    • Livestock
      • Beef
      • Dairy
      • Sheep
    • Magazines
      1. June 2025 issue
      2. Cereals event guide 2025
      3. May 2025 issue
      4. April 2025 issue
      5. March 2025 issue
      6. 2025 Tyre Developments supplement
      7. February 2025 issue
      8. National Arable and Grassland Awards supplement
      9. January 2025 issue
      10. December 2024 issue
      11. November 2024 issue
      12. October 2024 issue
      13. September 2024 issue
      14. August 2024 Issue
      15. 2024 Drills and Seeds supplement
      16. July 2024 Issue
      17. Cereals Supplement
      18. June 2024 Issue
      19. May 2024 Issue
      20. April 2024 Issue
      21. Tyres and Tracks Supplement
      22. March 2024 Issue
      23. National Arable & Grassland Award – Meet the Finalists
      24. February 2024 Issue
      25. January 2024 Issue
      26. December 2023
      27. Agritechnica Preview Supplement
      28. November 2023
      29. October 2023
      Featured

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      By Matthew TiltJune 20, 2025
      Recent

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      June 20, 2025

      June 2025 issue available now

      June 2, 2025

      May 2025 issue available now

      May 1, 2025
    • Events
    • Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Beef

    Keep a close eye on calf nutrition as grass quality varies this year

    Matthew TiltBy Matthew TiltAugust 29, 20233 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

    East Coast Viners is advising growers in the North East that the dry start to the summer, followed by a wet July, means that they will need to keep a close eye on calf nutrition.

    Ruminant nutritionist, Steven Eddie, said: “With an exceptionally dry start to the summer, grass growth for many farmers in the north-east was limited. With pastures having suffered a period of stress, swards tended to bolt producing seed heads, leading to a reduction in the nutritional value of the grass available to the grazing stock.

    “Farms that suffered during the dry spell may have seen either reduced silage yields or a slow regrowth leading to the difficult decision to sacrifice cutting fields to grazing stock. With the weather turning wetter into July, grass growth improved with many of the earlier cut silage fields quickly turning green and producing a promising second cut or aftermath for grazing, but this may have been too little, too late for some.”

    He advised that feeding youngstock a blend or nut could be the answer to bolstering growth and will pay dividends at weaning and beyond. “Pre-weaning, it serves well to introduce a creep feed to youngstock, building frame with protein and encouraging growth with energy.  Creep feeding before weaning allows youngstock to adapt to a new food source, reducing stress and improving condition and growing ability come weaning time.” 

    Steven Eddie

    From three months, calves can be fed a nut containing 17% protein, supporting growth when grass is lacking in nutrients. East Coast Viners can also supply locally sourced cereals as a sustainable source of starch.

    Second Stage Calf Nuts have an energy level of 12.7 ME and include high-spec vitamins and minerals. Plant extracts and essential oils can support feed conversion ratios (FCR), daily liveweight gain (DLWG) and minimise methane emissions, the company states, with dark grains, sugar beet and soya included in the formulation to aid framing.

    “Improving conformation of youngstock with a high protein nut or blend when their FCR is efficient, means that growth potential can be achieved when ME values are later increased, improving fleshing ability and fat cover on finishing cattle,” said Mr Eddie. “Cereal prices have come back on last year and getting cattle on to concentrates early ensures consistent FCRs and strong DLWG without diminishing profit margins.”

    For farms using home-grown cereals, this can be mixed with a concentrate blend and a concentrate nut for a cost-effective protein option. Slowly reducing the protein inclusion and increasing the cereal content as the cattle grow will enable store buyers and finishers to achieve target growth rates.

    Mr Eddie added: “We encourage livestock farmers to analyse silage during September, a service offered by ECV, enabling a tailored feed plan to be created to suit the needs of their cattle and cereal availability. Every farm will be different, so the key is to keep talking to your nutritionist and to plan the most efficient balance to get the best results for your systems.”

    He further recommended that growers do a stock take as recent years have not created a carryover of feed. This can help to measure whether more forage is required and if it may be wise to keep cows tighter and have calves growing on concentrate to avoid purchasing fodder in early 2024.

    For more information go to www.eastcoastviners.co.uk

    Tweet
    Share
    Share
    Pin
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Previous ArticleIrish Ploughing Championships to see debuting Bobcat equipment
    Next Article Kramp announces new distribution partnership
    Matthew Tilt
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn

    Machinery editor for Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer. Matt has worked as an agricultural machinery journalist for five years, following time spent in his family’s Worcestershire contracting business. When he’s not driving or writing about the latest farm equipment, he can be found in his local cinema, or with his headphones in, reading a good book.

    Read Similar Stories

    Hi-Spec to introduce new diet feeder at Royal Highland

    June 16, 2025

    Lely introduces the Vector MFR Next

    April 3, 2025

    Palm-free fat supplement helps dairy farms to cut CO2

    March 31, 2025
    Most Read Stories

    Calls for government to include food redistribution into SFI

    July 2, 2025

    Kramp launches own-brand PTOs

    July 1, 2025

    Turney Group to take on Merlo brand with new dedicated depot

    July 1, 2025
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer

    The UK's leading agricultural machinery journal

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

    Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms & Conditions

    • Farmers Weekly
    • AA Farmer
    • Poultry News
    • Pig World

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.