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Four options for finishing spring-born beef calves on grass

Debbie James 11 June 2021
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© Debbie James© Debbie James

Finishing home-bred beef calves can make a valuable contribution to the bottom line of a spring-calving dairy farm where the opportunity exists to implement a grass-based dairy beef system.

Finishing spring-born beef calves on grass can produce saleable carcasses at a lower cost of production compared with intensively finished cattle, according to the Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority Teagasc.

Nicky Byrne, of Teagasc’s Animal and Grassland Research and Innovation Centre, says 80-90% of lifetime feed requirements can come from a forage source. 

See also: WIYLS visits a £500,000 beef finishing shed

This has been proven in Teagasc’s dairy beef research herd, he adds.

“That forage source can support high-output systems achieving anywhere up to 1,000kg/ha output from a grass-based diet,’’ he told a recent seminar on increasing the value of beef from the dairy herd.

But, in order to work, these systems must achieve minimum liveweight gain targets throughout the animal’s life. Moderate gains of 0.7kg a day over the first winter should be targeted and 0.9kg a day should be expected in the second grazing season, up to finishing.

High-quality grass is essential to achieve this, with minimal concentrate used.

How the system is designed is farm-specific and must suit the natural resources of the business, Dr Byrne advises. He talks through four options designed by Teagasc for spring-born calves.

1. 19-month early-maturing heifer

The system

Heifers are at pasture for the first grazing season and stored on ad-lib grass silage, with some concentrate supplementation during the first winter.

They are slaughtered off pasture at the end of the second grazing season, from September to November.

Input requirements a head over each animal’s lifetime

  • Concentrates: 0.4t dry matter (DM) or 0.45t fresh weight
  • Grazed grass: 2.3t DM
  • Grass silage: 0.6t DM or 3t fresh weight
  • Stocking rate: 3.2/ha at 170kg organic N/ha

Accelerated finishing

In systems that are fully optimised in terms of animal genetics and grassland, a proportion of early-maturing steers or heifers will be suitable for slaughter at the end of the second grazing season, says Teagasc’s Nicky Byrne.

This is true of earlier-born animals or where concentrate is supplemented during the latter part of the grazing season or a combination of both.

“Although these animals will be lighter at slaughter, the cost of the indoor finishing period will be avoided,” Dr Byrne adds.

2. 23-month early-maturing steer

The system

Typically born in the second half of the calving season and slaughtered from February to April.

Steers on this system should average 230kg at housing in their first autumn and then be introduced to 1-2kg of concentrates a head each day and good-quality silage over the first winter.

Yearlings should be turned out in early spring to achieve 200kg over a 220-day grazing season.

A minimum of 100kg of liveweight has to be gained in the final finishing period. To achieve this, high-quality silage and 5kg of concentrate a head must be fed daily.

Input requirements a head over each animal’s lifetime

  • Concentrates: 0.7t DM or 0.80t fresh weight
  • Grazed grass: 2.2t DM
  • Grass silage: 1.2t DM or 6t fresh weight
  • Stocking rate: 2.4/ha at 170kg organic N/ha

Advice for calculating direct production costs and returns for carcass output

  • Approximate costs for early-maturing cross-breds total £497 a head
  • Feed-related costs account for up to 85% of direct costs
  • Friesian breed types typically require an additional four to six weeks to reach adequate fat cover for slaughter and therefore have a higher feed demand; costs incurred will be 5-10% higher
  • Later-born animals will usually have a later slaughter date and a longer indoor feeding period, resulting in higher total costs
  • A high proportion of early-maturing cross-bred steers produce carcasses with a conformation score of O= or greater and a fat score of 3+ or greater
  • Friesian genotypes will typically produce carcasses with slightly poorer conformation (O-) and will therefore attract a lower price

3. 24-month Friesian steer

The system

Steers go through a modest store period over the first winter, gaining about 0.7kg/day before being turned out to grass for their second grazing year to achieve a 200-day grazing season and a total weight gain of about 180kg over that second season at grass.

From housing to slaughter, they should be on high-quality silage and an average of 5-6kg of concentrate a head a day.

Aim to slaughter them at 620kg liveweight.

Where silage quality is not adequate, producers can opt to feed concentrates ad-lib for the final 80-100 days, but this will increase the amount of purchased feed used and costs.

Input requirements a head over each animal’s lifetime

  • Concentrates: 0.87t DM or 1t fresh weight
  • Grazed grass: 2.2t DM
  • Grass silage: 1.2t DM or 6t fresh weight
  • Stocking rate: 2.2/ha at 170kg organic N/ha

Top tips for producing beef from a dairy herd

  • Select a system that matches farm circumstances
  • Be realistic about your system’s output and cost assumptions
  • Set targets that optimise animal performance and use high levels of grazed herbage – this is key to lowering production costs
  • Focus on output/ha
  • No single beef production system is the optimum for finishing beef cattle – each has its own merits and risks
  • Good management is critical to make a profit from any system
  • Regularly draft animals based on their body condition, especially if using early-maturing genetics or heifers, to avoid animals producing excessively fat carcasses

4. 26-month early-maturing steer

The system

Typically born in the second half of the calving season.

They should be introduced to 1kg of concentrates a head each day and good-quality silage over the first winter. No concentrate should be fed at grass in the second grazing season.

In the second winter, steers should be fed little or no concentrates to gain 0.40-0.45kg a day on high-quality silage.

At turnout for the third grazing season, steers should weigh approximately 490kg and gain 120kg over the next three to four months.

Steers must be finished off grass in their third grazing season. Provide 4kg a head a day of concentrate for the last 40 days before they are slaughtered from May to July. 

This system of steer beef is based on feeding very little concentrates, high-quality silage and excellent grassland management.

Input requirements a head over each animal’s lifetime

  • Concentrates: 0.4t DM or 0.45t fresh weight
  • Grazed grass: 3.7t DM
  • Grass silage: 1.4t DM or 7t fresh weight
  • Stocking rate: 1.95/ha at 170kg organic N/ha

Weight targets for each system

 

19-month-old early-maturing heifer

23-month-old early-maturing steer

24-month-old Friesian steer

26-month-old early-maturing steer

 

Typical liveweight; average daily liveweight gain

Housing (first winter)

200kg; 0.7kg

230kg; 0.7kg

230kg; 0.7kg

210kg; 0.7kg

Spring turnout in second grazing season

260kg; 0.9kg

310kg; 0.9kg

310kg; 0.9kg

280kg; 0.9kg

Housing (second winter)

N/A

510kg; 1kg

490kg; 1kg

450kg; 0.5kg

Spring turnout in third grazing season

N/A

N/A

N/A

490kg; 0.45kg

Slaughter

460kg

610kg

620kg

610kg

Carcass weight

230 – 250kg

310-330kg

310-330kg

300-320kg

Lifetime gain

0.72kg a day

0.82kg a day

0.8kg a day

0.72kg a day

 

DLWG targets throughout the different phases

Production phase

Daily liveweight gain (kg)

Calf rearing

0.7

First grazing season

0.8

First winter

0.6

Second grazing season

0.9

Finishing period

1.0
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