The use of feed blocks as supplementation for theupland hill flock: (1) Improving organic ewe productivity and performance

This report was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference of the Colloquium of Organic Researchers (COR). Maintaining ewe performance in winter poses particular problems for organic farming in the uplands where the availability of both grazing and home produced forage may be restricted. This trial evaluated approved non-organic feed blocks as dietary supplement for ewes grazing pastures between 300 and 550 m

Eight years of organic farming at Pwllpeiran – livestock production and the financial performance of organic upland

This report was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference. Established for 8 years, this project evaluates the practicalities of organic beef and sheep production on an upland farm in an ESA. Grassland productivity, stocking rates and animal performance are closely related to seasonal variations in the clover content of the small area of improved land. Improving sales have been offset by increasing input costs. Subsidy payments assist financial performance, but ESA prescriptions effectively prevent increased production

The use of feed blocks as supplementation for the upland hill flock: (2) Cost effective lamb production

This report was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference of the Colloquium of Organic Researchers (COR).Under EU organic livestock regulations introduced in 2000, new restrictions were placed on the use of bought-in feedstuffs in hill systems. These reduced the non-organic annual percentage previously allowed in LFAs from 20% to 10% of annual dry matter intake. A further stepping down of these allowances may be introduced ahead of a complete ban in 2005. Bought-in feed supplements must therefore, be used strategically and offer “best value for money” in terms of ewe performance and lamb growth. The economic cost of supplementing the diet of twin-rearing ewes post lambing with either an approved non-organic feed block + half ration of commercial concentrate mix (B+CCM) or full ration commercial concentrate mix (CCM) was investigated. Lambs reared by ewes receiving the B+CCM diet had a greater liveweight gain than those reared by ewes receiving the CCM diet per kg of ewe supplementary feed. The costs in terms of kg lamb liveweight were lower for the B+CCM ewes than the CCM ewe