Dairy Chitchat 4, an udder new thread.

Mortgage rate increases are only part of the picture, the household shop here used to be circa 220 a week for a 5 person household, it’s averaging 320 a week now the past 6 months, electricity on top it is probably up 2k plus a year in most households from 2020 levels

Do you know Jaymla I never knew the price of our household shop was. Mind you I bought a lot of it. I was on the road and I generally brought the milk and other odds and ends we were or not short off. I would invariably call to a supermarket 1-2 times a week to pick stuff up. Generally I bought the spuds as well. When the lads were younger I used to have half a heifer and a couple of lambs in the freezer.

At one time I knew the cheapest place in Limerick for Pampers nappies

Similar here, but with 3 smallies, one in nappies and a stay at home wife. Add in the Esb and other household costs, it getting scary. Lucky that the heating is taken care of with timber. I put a heifer in the freezer last year and was worth it and got half a pig of a neighbour as a bit of barter. These help a bit.

Something has to give soon. Either a recession or more inflation.

In fairness it’s some ordeal on the calves to go such lengths without a feed

@alps, do yourself a favour and don't go there.

They were 18 hours travelling in France. They should have been fed and rested for an hour hand way. Those are the present regulations. Some of these calves were probably not weaned onto OAD before travelling. This will not be a problem in a couple of years time as calves will need to be weaned 6-8 weeks old minimum before export that is even if export is allowed

No calf died on Samie consignment which is good news. TBF after the sailing at unloading in the Cherbourg lairage out of six trucks and Fran says 2-3,K calves there is two dead calves. He must have been disappointed. TBF that shows an excellent level of husbandry.

Biggest issue was the non feed halfway. However TBF how can you expect a truck driver to feef 300+ calves on probably a triple decker where the ceiling heights are only 4' I would say.

Agree completely. Stop halfway big issue.

I can't imagine the patience required to get 300 calves down a ramp, but staff with patience is what should have been employed..

It's as much aimed at shaming dairy farmers into exiting dairying all together our drastically reducing numbers, and to be fair I reckon they'll achieve their aims, they're even trying to spin it that dairy farmers somehow should be ashamed of their profit levels last year and the beef man needs to share in this profit, won't be a peep when next years figures come out though and the figure is well over halved and of course the disclaimer that wages/loan repayments need to be taken into account won't get a mention

Lads stop making excuses, it's abuse of animals and there's no defense for it. Its something that needs to be highlighted or it will just keep happening. Would you tolerate employees mistreating calves on your farm or leaving them go hungry, of course not. Just because they are left our care doesn't mean we can wash our hands of it.

It could be a combination of price a d collection. It's unlikely that dairy farmers will be encouraged to keep cattle to finish as it would not make economic sense.

However there is moves to stop the same of calves before 6 weeks. It's probably 2-3 years away and to stop exports as well.

In the UK one dairy makes farmers responsible for calves until about 6 months of age. It prevents there same for slaughter or to farmers that will not looks after them.

I think you are allowed one mistake after that it penalities

Bobbying is banned from 2024 onwards, no calf can be slaughtered before 8 weeks of age under new department rules, then the 50 mile limit is in also banning the transport of any calf under 4 weeks old over this limit, another Stipulation re bord bia that calf mortality can't be over 4% i think and if it is you'll be in bother....

It's all well and good re implementing the above if our milk was getting a premium to do the above, but it's world commodity prices we are working off, the moral high ground is grand, but if co-ops go another few steps than what's in store from next year onwards it will be easily crash the milkpool and bankrupt a few of them along the way plus their suppliers