Dairy Calves 2024

mahoney_j · 29-03-2023 2:05pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120415323#Comment_120415323

What’s the reward 🤔🤔But who’s smarter and financially better off and that’s before you talk workload etc ….there’s no issue selling calves from 10/-4 days take it as given and expected no corners cut with colostrum and milk feed on farm of birth …..just get past getting whatever money be it big or small calves make

QA1 · 29-03-2023 4:29pm

rang a lad there near me this morning heard he had calves for sale wanted €150 at home for aa calves from 10 days to 2 weeks old was not buying any this year but was told they are cheap he can keep them what mart would you average €170 in for young aa calves this week

whelan2 · 29-03-2023 5:26pm

Sold a few out of the yard this week, a lad wanted some to put on cows. 160 for Hereford heifers 3 weeks old and 125 for Angus heifers 2 weeks old. Both of us happy

smallbeef · 30-03-2023 11:00pm

Is this really a good idea?

anthony500_1 · 30-03-2023 11:33pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120421601#Comment_120421601

looking at it from a non farming view it makes an even stronger case for the green party to hammer home the agri industry pollution bla bla bla even more.....

Personally I think for calf welfare if they can trial it and make sure calf welfare is ok, no major issues with calf health etc then it has to be a good thing. Whats better for a calf being in a artic trailer for 4days by road, or in a plane 4 hours.

I know which way I'd rather travel

older by the day · 31-03-2023 12:16am

Imagine if we could get Ryan air to run them over. It would be cheapest of all. Only the calf won't be getting any on board milk on that flight. Seriously it's the way to go. A few hours and they are back inside the shed.

Bass Reeves · 31-03-2023 1:58am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120421803#Comment_120421803

It's probably not economically practical. On a side note even though I am an agnostic on sexed semen I was talking to a large dairy farmer who I know well and he says that Friesians bulls will half within in 3-4 years

F@@k it for a game of soldiers.

The flying is only a face saver

3 the square · 31-03-2023 6:18am

young aa or he not making much more than fr bull calves sexed semen wont do much for prices

mahoney_j · 31-03-2023 7:00am

Sexed semen ain’t the answer ….just robbing Peter to pay Paul ….most lads I talk to in compact spring scenario are only getting average at best results .flying calves if it can be viable is going to be a game changer …we simply need calf exports to stay and veal units want our calves ….unpalatable and all as it is some form of calf slaughter facility needs to stay too for tb etc

Sheep breeder · 31-03-2023 7:57am

Flying will be a non runner due to the cost of chartering the plane and the cost of running a plane, if it was cheap do you not think the shippers in cork and kerry Would be at it already. This is to do with the closing of the lairage in France last week and the minister doing nothing about it. Weak minister. The echo warriors would have a field day with this.

whelan2 · 31-03-2023 9:06am

Any word on France? Has it reopened fir Irish calves

Siamsa Sessions · 31-03-2023 9:09am

I’m wondering if the date on the front of the Journal has anything to do with this story?

Say my name · 31-03-2023 9:18am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422205#Comment_120422205

I doubt it. Looks to be well researched on capacity figures etc. Near a thousand calves on one flight is not to be sniffed at.

A couple of hours flight time and done.

The racehorse and polo fraternity are doing it for forever to more distant destinations and not an eye blinked or word typed about it.

I'd be 110% behind the move.

Bass Reeves · 31-03-2023 9:50am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422055#Comment_120422055

Is the minister supposed to micro manage everything in Agriculture. The lairage was closed by the French authorities.

I have not seen the reason why. Was it mismanagement of the lairage, is it a french political decision. Was it over calf age condition arriving there

Calf exports by sea are a hot potato. France is only an intermediate country. I have just done a bit of googling and it seems that there is videos of rough handling of calves circulating on social media.

Was the minister supposed to go over and unload the calves himself. Mind you if he did which lairage was he supposed to do it at. The second calf lairage is operating ok still for the moment.

We had an incident last year as well. These lairage need top class management. Something that costs money. Even drivers themselves need reminding that everything they are seen to be doing with these calves needs to be above board

Sheep breeder · 31-03-2023 10:48am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422341#Comment_120422341

All the minister had to do was make contact with the french minister or get his staff to make contact and sort out to get the place open, the minister sits at the same table in Brussels as the french for agriculture. If it was Joe Walsh it would have being done straight away, the drivers on the lorries know the game back to front and most are at it along time. Calves neglected or dead don’t get paid for on arrival. Having brought stock in from Europe and England on numerous occasions, we never had stock arrive in bad health.

alps · 31-03-2023 10:53am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422627#Comment_120422627

The drivers may have been to fault on this occasion.

alps · 31-03-2023 10:59am

This airlift of calves is well researched and planned with some time.

Teagasc had a trial in place over 2 years ago on this and covid or similar interupted.

Calf health condition including blood tests will be measured before and after travel to assure the health benefits of this transport.

This could open up huge markets not only for dairy calves but for beef calves also.

Flight to Netherlands is only an hour, think of the range of countries you can get to in 3 or 4 hours..

Heard flights going today and tomorrow from an Airport not near Dublin.

straight · 31-03-2023 11:03am

Ignore

Albert Johnson · 31-03-2023 11:40am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422238#Comment_120422238

The racing and polo industry are dealing with smaller groups of high value animals so it's not exactly comparing like with like. A single racehorse could exceed the value of 1000 Friesian sucks and the racing job is a multi billion euro industry. I struggle to see how flying large numbers of a low value commodity that requires top class management will prove viable but I was often wrong before.

Bass Reeves · 31-03-2023 11:52am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422627#Comment_120422627

It happened last week and was closed probably on Friday ( I imagine that they through putted calves already on the boat.

How do you know the minister and/or his staff were not onto there French counterparts. For the last couple of weeks the French government have been dealing with street protests. I say a lairage closed in Cherbourg is top priority.

Calf exports is a hot potato, TBF to the French authorities they have put as little impediments in place as possible but politically anything to do with young animals ( and you are dealing with thousands) is a hot potato anyway.

Again it's not the French minister's job to micro manage an industry. Same as a restaurant if you do not follow the rules you get closed down

alps · 31-03-2023 11:56am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422897#Comment_120422897

You could be right, however road transport is not cheap either. Truck hire for a 3 day trip, 2 lairage stops o the way..surely 50€ per calf dropped along the way..

800 calves per flight at €50 is €40,000. Would it cover the cost...no idea tbh but big numbers could cover a lot.

cute geoge · 31-03-2023 11:58am

The trouble that happened was the ferry was delayed due to bad weather and took 22 hours instead of 17 .Then you had a green mep waiting for the ferry to dock so it would make the news .I can not see how Irish or French government can master the weather

smallbeef · 31-03-2023 11:58am

It would sort the welfare issues and anything that gets livestock out of the country I would see as a good thing for beef prices.

I doubt it will be a runner on a cost basis though. Chartering a large plane will cost at least 150k to get those 800 calves to Europe. That's before handling on both sides. Will cost at least €200 euro per calf to get them to their destination. It would have to be heavily subsidized somehow.

Obviously its not a 'green' solution but f*@k 'em, if the aviation industry don't have to meet emissions targets we may as well load 'em up the steps. It might highlight how flawed all this carbon accounting BS is if nothing else.

Say my name · 31-03-2023 12:01pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422897#Comment_120422897

How is one racehorse worth more than a 1000 calves that are going to feed 10,000 families? I mean when the racehorse is finished it can't even be used as a seat or you'll loose your trainers license for a time. 😁

This is what the world has come to though. Cows are seen as carbon positive and drilling oil and gas wells. Horses are seen as haute couture and carbon negative and flowers and trees and ladies days follow in their wake. International air travel is recorded as carbon neutral on countries spreadsheets. The farmers with the cows and sheep have been wailing at meetings about airtravel to be told tough sh1t it's the way the negotiations were carried out, get your act together dumbos.

The activists will continue to target the french lairages. Our own will continue to look for reduced travelling times. The world will continue to only support local farm produce. The world turns. The Sun rises.

Albert Johnson · 31-03-2023 1:01pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422985#Comment_120422985

I agree that's there's no easy solution and running a business exporting anything by road and ferry isn't for the faint hearted. As for the cost of chartering a plane I wouldn't have a clue either tbh but €40,000 seems a small sum when you consider what's involved. I could be as far out as a lighthouse on that assumption but I'd be afraid the true cost of what would be involved could be just staggering.

Bass Reeves · 31-03-2023 1:05pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120422897#Comment_120422897

As well as that you are looking at trying to export 150-200k calves in a 5-6 week period. You need to access planes, flight crews. While there might be one plane that will carry 7-800 can you access several planes.

You are probably looking at 2 hours loading and 2 hours unloading and cleaning cargo area. Give the journey an hour and a half each way. That a 7-8 hour turnaround and allowing no time for a return cargo which loaded and unloaded would add another two hours minimum.

One plane might do 10k calves a week that two runs a day for the seven days. The larger cargo planes would require four for the duration of the calving season to shift 180 k calves over five weeks. It would take 15ish of the smaller ones and a system in place like the Berlin airlift.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120423001#Comment_120423001

If it costs 200/ calf that grand let the dairy farmer arrive in the mart with 1k euro with every 6-7 Friesians bull calves. I probably go back to rearing them myself at that

Albert Johnson · 31-03-2023 1:07pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120423019#Comment_120423019

I don't disagree with anything you've said there and sadly it comes back to the age old life lesson that what should happen and what does happen aren't one and the same.

I'm fairly certain you know more about the racing job than I do so you don't need me to explain why it is the way it is.

Bass Reeves · 31-03-2023 1:11pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120423019#Comment_120423019

It a poor thoroughbred horse that is not worth 30k that is racing. At Goffs yearling sales yearlings make up to a million. This spring a lot of Friesian calves were only making 20-70 per head.

You would put 20 horses comfortably where you would put 1k calves and the horse will walk on and off the plane

Say my name · 31-03-2023 1:14pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120423298#Comment_120423298

Know feck all of the racing industry. Well maybe a little.

On the air travel. There's even hairy piebalds being flown out to the United States from here.

On the logistics of calves in planes. They'll be loaded in crates and off in crates.

patsy_mccabe · 31-03-2023 1:30pm

1000 calves on the one plane. Imagine the bawling. The poor crew would want decent ear muffs. Some whiff of scour too.

Dairy Calves 2024

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