If the farmer is finishing bulls ad-lib on a concentrate diet (4kg/head/day adaption period and 11.5kg/head/day finishing period) – over a 180-day period – a 420kg continental bull would be expected to have an average daily gain (ADG) of 1.5kg/day and achieve a carcass weight of 385kg (675kg live weight).Īssuming a lower ‘autumn 2018’ purchase cost of €2.14/kg or €899/head, the beef finisher would require 426c/kg or €1,640/head from the processor at slaughter. If the bull was purchased for €2.46/kg or €787/head, a price of 415c/kg or €1,437/head would be needed for the farmer to break-even.įinally, moving to a higher purchase price of €2.56/kg or €819/head, the farmer would need to receive a price of 425c/kg or €1,470/head at slaughter. Looking at different purchasing costs, if the bull was purchased at a lower ‘autumn 2018’ price of €2.36/kg (€755/head), this animal would need to achieve 406c/kg or €1,405/head to provide the farmer with sufficient funds to cover his/her costs. System three: A 235-day (eight-month) finishing period, where bulls weighing 420kg are bought and finished on concentrates ad-lib.Īssuming that a 320kg young bull – fed silage and meal – would be finished over a 230-day period – gaining 1.25kg/day – a 346kg carcass (608kg live weight) would be expected to be produced.System two: A 180-day (six-month) finishing period, where bulls are purchased at 420kg and fed an ad-lib meal diet of concentrates.System one: A 230-day (eight-month) finishing period, where bulls are purchased weighing 320kg and fed a silage and meal-based diet.Outlined below are three different finishing systems for continental bulls: Teagasc recently released its break-even prices for the forthcoming feeding period. Prices paid for R=3= and U=3= young bulls – during the week ending June 17 – averaged 425c/kg and 445c/kg respectively. Looking at prices paid during the week ending April 15, 2018, R=3= and U=3= young bulls averaged 407c/kg and 421c/kg respectively at slaughter. However – traditionally – prices are higher during the spring and early-summer period.
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