An increasing number of studies are suggesting we should be feeding our jersey cattle and smaller stature calves differently to holsteins and larger breeds. As crossbreeding within the dairy industry is becoming more popular, the number of smaller stature calves is increasing.
Unfortunately, we cannot shy away from increasing feed costs but we can pay less attention to daily feed costs or cost per ton and more attention on costs per kg daily live weight gain.
Nutrients are valuable, whether this is through milk replacer, starter feed, minerals or forage, they all come at a cost!
Summer is here, and with that the longer days, better weather and more opportunities to ride. But it’s not all good news for some of our equines. Just as we may be prone to summer associated health issues, such as hayfever, so some horses and ponies are susceptible to allergies and intolerances through the nicer weather, with one of the most common being Sweet Itch.
Wynnstay seeds is built on a proud history of understanding our farming customers and supplying the best products and service to them. Agriculture is a vital UK industry, growing its influence, and the technology that we adopt shape the future of food production.
The 2021/22 AHDB Recommended List sees several high-yielding varieties introduced in the wheat and barley groups. For maximum potential yield to be achieved, crops need to be provided with the correct balance of essential nutrients throughout the growing season.
As summer approaches and temperatures increase, the threat of red mite increases. Costing European poultry producers €360 million each year, red mite is not an issue to be swept ‘beneath the slats’. In this blog I share my insight into how to stop red mite impacting flock performance through prevention, monitoring and treatment strategies.
With two seed locations Wynnstay are uniquely set up to provide a far-reaching service. By having one seed office in Yorkshire and another in Shropshire we are able to service a large proportion of the UK arable seed market.
We are also continuously investing and have recently expanded our teams at Shrewsbury and Yorkshire as we look towards the future.
Reduced calving age from one year to the next may suggest improved calf and heifer rearing; however it is months later when we can make these assumptions. If a heifer is first served at 18 months old, it can be assumed that there are improvements to be made to allow future heifers to reach service weight earlier. But it is difficult at this point to then determine at which stage of rearing that this heifer didn’t meet her targets and fell behind.
When it comes to producing good quality, nutritious silage small things can make a big difference. This is especially true of mistakes. A shortcut or a small oversight can ultimately result in silage that is unusable due to insufficient dry matter content or worse, silage that is dangerous to herd health because of mould growth and the likely presence of mycotoxins or Listeria.
Many farmers have come to accept some issues, particularly with mould, as inevitable and as a necessary evil. The reality is however, it's all too often caused by someone committing one of a number of silage "sins".
Managing the fly burden before an outbreak occurs will help you prevent potential production impacts. This will often mean managing the problem before fly numbers increase to a level where they can easily get out of control.
