Beef at CAFRE

Cattle at Greenmount

Abbey Farm - description

• 89 hectare (220 acres) lowland suckler and beef finishing farm
• LEAF accredited
• medium and heavy loam soils
• 50 cow suckler herd
• 200 cattle finished per year
• breeding heifers reared for the Greenmount Hill Farm
• stocking rate 1.8 CE/Ha
• organic nitrogen loading 144kg/ha
• focus on nutrient management planning

A Red Meat Industry Task Force (RMITF) / CAFRE project:
- to demonstrate best practice in red meat production from grass

Maximising Production from Forage:

• grass budgeting
• clover swards
• mixed grazing systems
• nutrient management planning

Improving Labour Efficiency Through Easy Care Systems:

• genetic selection
• improving fertility
• electronic identification (EID)

Uplands Project

Student responsibilities

Students are responsible for managing a large enterprise of 100 suckler cows and 1000 breeding ewes. To do this effectively they must work closely with each other, the Farm Manager on the Hill Farm and the Farm Staff. Generally students in their first year of study concentrate more on the practical aspects of the option, while students in their second year are expected to undertake more of a management and supervisory role. Students who choose to study the UPLANDS option are expected to:

• undertake routine practical work including week-end duty throughout the academic year and 24 hour cover at peak lambing/calving periods where possible
• in practice first year students carry out practical duties one afternoon per week, approximately one weekend in five and provide 24 hour cover for seven days at lambing time
• maintain physical and financial records analyse and summarise physical and financial performance for management purposes
• justify all management proposals to the advisory board using appropriate factual evidence.