agricultural production guidelines
m
Veld in KwaZulu-Natal
Co-ordinated Extension KwaZulu-Natal Veld 2.6 1999
BEEF AND SHEEP PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
J M B Smith
KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture
Beef Production
Sheep Production
INTRODUCTION
This Production Guideline highlights a number of important points to consider when planning to run a beef or sheep production system on the farm. In planning a beef or sheep production enterprise the choice of production system is critical as the system will affect the profitability and the stability of the enterprise. Examples of the required composition of a herd or flock are presented depending on the production system that is adopted. Production Guidelines 9.7 and 9.8 provide more detailed background on beef and sheep management systems for sourveld regions.
Choice of production system
The choice of production system will depend on the following:: The potential profitability of the different systems should be considered by examining future market trends.Profitability
Efficiency: The profitability of beef production is dependent more on the efficiency of production than on the system of production. A low weaning percentage will depress the profitability of weaner production to a greater extent than selling at an older age.
Markets: The distance to the abattoirs should be considered, as transport costs will reduce the profitability of selling slaughter stock. Weaners production for sale on local stock-sales might therefore be more profitable than slaughter animals sold to the abattoir.
Feed availability: Where pastures or grain can be grown the finishing off of slaughter stock at a younger age is made possible, as compared with the finishing of stock on veld.
Veld type: In the drier sweet veld areas, which are prone to droughts, the running of large breeding herds is inadvisable. In these areas, the raising of slaughter stock would be preferable to the production of weaners as the proportion of breeding animals would then be reduced.
The following are the main production systems which could be considered:
- weaners sold at weaning - 7 months,
- finish yearlings off pastures or feedlot for sale from November to February,
- selling yearling stores of 12 to 18 months,
- finish yearlings 18 to 20 months off pastures or feedlot for sale from March to May, and
- finish two-and-a-half-year-olds off the veld or pastures for sale from March to May.
Production norms
The following are norms of production which can be achieved by producers:
- A calving percentage of 80%.
- A heifer mating mass of 300 kg or 65% of mature cow mass.
- A weaning mass at 7 months of 200 kg.
- Livemass gain on veld of 100 kg on sourveld; 125 kg on mixed veld; and 150 kg on sweet veld.
- Livemass gain on pasture of 0.8 kg per animal for 200 days, or 160 kg per animal over the grazing season.
- Livemass gain in a feedlot of 1.5 kg per day.
- A minimum market mass (super and prime grades) for early maturity type animals of 380 kg; for medium maturity type animals of 410 kg; and for late maturity type animals of 520 kg.
- A dressing percentage of 53% for fattening on veld, and of 56% in the feedlot.
- An Animal Unit (AU) consumes approximately 10 kg dry matter (DM) per day, or 3.5 ton DM per annum. An animal will consume approximately 10% of metabolic mass per day.
- A feeding period of 100 days in a feedlot requires 1 ton of feed per animal consisting of: 100 kg protein concentrate; 200 kg roughage; and 700 kg maize grain.
Comparison of some production systems
The following assumptions are common to all systems in the comparisons presented in Table 1.
- herds are based on 100 breeding animals,
- spring calving from August to November,
Table 1. Herd composition for various beef production systems. The shaded column gives the calculation for a 30 month system for a farm with a total carrying capacity of 500 AU.
|
Class of stock |
Mass |
AU equiv. |
Weaner production |
18 months |
30 months |
Herd on farm |
||||
|
Number |
AU |
Number |
AU |
Number |
AU |
Number |
AU |
|||
|
Lactating Cows Dry cows Breeding Heifers Calves Weaners Cull Cows Replacement Heifers 1-2 yrs Surplus Heifers 1-2 yrs Steers 1-2 yrs Surplus Heifers 2-3 yrs Steers 2-3 yrs Bulls |
465
400 120 465 250 250 270 360 400 650 |
1.25 1.0 0.89 0.36 1.25 0.63 0.63 0.67 0.83 0.89 1.29 |
73 7 20 80 7 20
4 |
91.25 7.0 17.8 28.8 8.75 12.6
5.2 |
73 7 20 80 7 20 20 40
4 |
91.25 7.0 17.8 28.8 8.75 12.6 12.6 26.8
5.2 |
73 7 20 80 7 20 20 40 20 40 4 |
91.25 7.0 17.8 28.8 8.75 12.6 12.6 26.8 16.6 35.6 5.2 |
139 13 38 152 13 38 38 76 38 76 8 |
173 13 34 55 17 24 24 51 32 68 10 |
|
TOTAL |
211 |
171.4 |
271 |
210.8 |
331 |
263.0 |
629 |
500 |
||
- calving percentage is 80%,
- heifers are bred at 2 years of age at a minimum mass of 300 kg,
- the culling and replacement rate is 20%,
- about 35% of the culls are pregnant and run another summer to rear their last calf,
- average weaning mass is 200 kg,
- cull cows sold Sept/Oct weighing 500 kg,
- bulling percentage is 4%,
- weaners are pen-fed or finished on pastures to a mass of 380 kg,
- yearlings to finish on pastures at 400 kg mass, and
- two-year-olds on pastures to finish at 470 kg mass.
The herd composition for various production systems is presented in Table 1.
Production systems
A number of sheep production systems can be considered, depending on whether the system involves breeding or buying in, the production of lamb, mutton or wool, the number of the breeding seasons, the times at which ewes are bred and the feed source.The main production systems are:
* An intensive System
- Fat lamb production on pastures, spring mating.
- Fat lamb production on pastures, autumn mating.
- Fat lamb production on pastures with ewes mated in spring and "skips" mated in autumn.
- Fat lamb production on pastures lambing every 8 months (three lambings in two years).
* A semi-intensive system
- Breeding ewes consisting of Merinos run mainly on veld with feed supplements in winter and mated in spring. Ewes and lambs run on pastures during winter and lambs are sold off the veld in February. A proportion of the flock consists of wethers running on the veld for wool production.
- Same as the previous system except that all lambs are sold in February and none are retained as wethers. Dohne Merinos are used.
Choosing a production system
The important factors to consider when choosing a sheep
production system are listed below.
Examine future market trends, compare the profitability of lamb, mutton and wool. Intensive systems are favoured where lamb is in demand, but, depending on wool prices, more wethers could be kept.* Markets
* Efficiency of production
To be profitable, intensive systems require high lambing
percentages, compared with extensive systems, where a large proportion of
wethers are kept. The efficiency of production will depend on the level of
management.
* Feed available
Where pastures and crops can be grown economically an
intensive system could be profitable, but where climatic conditions are such as
to exclude pasture or crops, then extensive systems would be more viable.
* Veld type
Sheep prefer short grass areas, such as the Highland Sourveld,
and can be run successfully on veld together with cattle on a semi-intensive
system where pastures are grown in winter for the lambs.
* Farm carrying capacity
On small farms, to run a viable sheep flock would necessitate
intensification of the production system with high lambing percentages, whereas
on a large farm a semi-extensive system could be viable.
Examples of production systems
Fat lamb production on pastures with ewes mated in spring and "skips" re-mated in autumn. An example of the flock composition for 100 breeding ewes is given in Table 2.* Intensive system
Assumptions:
- Dual purpose sheep flocks e.g. Mutton Merino or Dohne Merino.
- Ewes are mated in November and "skips" are mated in February.
- Ram percentage is 3%.
- Conception rate is 90%, producing 150% lambs and weaning 90%.
- Spring-mated ewes lamb in April and lambs are weaned at 100 days weighing 30 kg, "skips" lamb in August.
- Lambs marketed at 40 kg dressing at 47% and sold in April/May and November/December.
- Culls sold in September.
- Age at first mating 18 months, weighing 45 kg. All sheep are shorn in September.
- Wool production per annum is: rams - 4 kg; ewes 3.5 kg; and lambs 1.25 kg.
* Semi-intensive system
The semi-intensive system has breeding ewes, running on veld,
which are spring-mated and lamb onto pastures. A proportion of the flock
consists of wethers running on veld.
The assumptions used are:
- Wooled Merino sheep flock.
- Ewes are mated in November on veld.
- Rams as a percentage of the breeding flock is 3%.
- Conception rate of 90 percent, with 100 percent lambing and 90 percent weaning rate.
- Flock mortality rate is 5%.
- Lambs born in April, are weaned at 100 days on pasture in July weighing 30 kg.
- Ewes, after weaning, are run on veld with a feed lick.
- Lambs are marketed at 45 kg in February.
- Wethers are run on the veld with a feed lick.
- Age of first mating is 18 months.
- Replacement rate is 20 percent for the ewe flock and 33 percent for the wethers.
- All sheep are shorn in August/September.
- Wool production per annum is: rams - 4 kg; ewes - 3.5 kg; and lambs - 1.25 kg.
Table 2. Intensive sheep system: flock composition (in Animal Units - AU). Note: Animal Unit = Mass0.75 x 0.01 x F where F = 1.25 lactating stock, 1.0 other stock; Mass0.75 can be obtained on a calculator as follows: Mass % % x x = =, or using the rough calculation: (Mass of the animal x 2 + 80) ÷ 1000.
|
Class |
November |
April |
September |
||||||
|
Mass kg |
No. |
AU |
Mass kg |
No. |
AU |
Mass kg |
No. |
AU |
|
|
Breeding ewes Skip ewes Lambs suckling
Lambs Spring mated Autumn mated
Replacements
Rams |
60 - -
40 30
40
100 |
100 - -
120 12
20
3 |
22.0 - -
19.0 1.5
3.2
0.9 |
60 60 5
- 40
45
100 |
90 10 135
- 12
20
3 |
24.8 2.2 4.5
- 1.9
3.5
0.9 |
60 60 10
30 -
45
100 |
70 10 13
120 -
20
3 |
15.4 2.8 0.8
15.4 -
3.8
0.9 |
|
Total |
- |
255 |
46.6 |
- |
270 |
37.8 |
- |
236 |
39.1 |
An example of the flock composition for 100 breeding ewes in a semi-intensive system is given in Table 3.
Table 3. Semi-intensive sheep system: flock composition 100 Ewes mated November on veld with lambs on pastures. Wethers on the veld.
|
Class |
November |
April |
September |
||||||
|
Mass kg |
No. |
AU |
Mass kg |
No. |
AU |
Mass Kg |
No. |
AU |
|
|
Breeding ewes Lambs suckling Lambs finishing Replacements Wethers 2 tooth 4 tooth 6 tooth Cull ewes Rams |
50 - 35 35 35 45 50 - 70 |
100 - 90 20 25 25 25 - 3 |
18.8 - 12.9 2.9 3.6 4.3 4.7 - 0.7 |
50 5 - 40 40 45 50 50 70 |
90 100 - 20 25 25 25 10 3 |
21.2 3.3 - 3.2 3.9 4.3 4.7 1.8 0.7 |
50 - 30 40 40 45 50 50 70 |
80 - 90 20 25 25 25 20 3 |
15.0 - 11.5 3.2 4.0 4.3 4.7 3.7 0.7 |
|
Total |
288 |
47.9 |
298 |
43.1 |
288 |
47.1 |
|||