Straw Prices

Is it though I think you’ve squared it well there !! In my view 20 is a fair price for regular no hassle customers off the field and 22 is not unreasonable asking price for one offs.
I don’t think that the market here, Carlow, will average that, but getting way closer than a few years ago. Why I think it is hard to square is straw leaving my field at €17/bale loaded yourself will be €30+ in Roscommon. All my straw is bought by locals so not too concerned, but it has to hard for farmers in the west to justify straw at over €30.
 
I don’t think that the market here, Carlow, will average that, but getting way closer than a few years ago. Why I think it is hard to square is straw leaving my field at €17/bale loaded yourself will be €30+ in Roscommon. All my straw is bought by locals so not too concerned, but it has to hard for farmers in the west to justify straw at over €30.
Sorry your right ours is almost all sold direct here in north east, but we would usually have to load it.
 
I'd be very wary about any government schemes. Shit is starting to hit the fan and the money won't be there much longer to maintain them. Inflation is only getting started.
In all honesty I'd like to see more mixed farming in Ireland, we've no reason to produce so much milk and beef while importing more and more grains, I think if any scheme should be pushed it should be for producing the grain you need for your cattle. It closes the loop of nutrients once and for all.
 
I also think there is a welfare issue in this country. Housing isn't adequate. Loose straw(or other alternative) bedding is what should be used, we did it home this winter for the milkers and it mended them something serious.
I think it's poor judgement to chop straw when there is this issue going on. Yet tillage farmers need a living too. So I just think we should be going back to mixed farming instead of just cattle or tillage. It cures alot of problems.
 
I’d be of the opinion that’s it’s a certain element of self sustainability we need, ie tillage should include all things tillage, beet brought back etc, bits of everything encouraged. This EU model is only good for some and not really farming at all?.
I do think plenty money will be thrown at environmental schemes.
 
I also think there is a welfare issue in this country. Housing isn't adequate. Loose straw(or other alternative) bedding is what should be used, we did it home this winter for the milkers and it mended them something serious.
I think it's poor judgement to chop straw when there is this issue going on. Yet tillage farmers need a living too. So I just think we should be going back to mixed farming instead of just cattle or tillage. It cures alot of problems.
Have you the cows housed 365?
 
I’d be of the opinion that’s it’s a certain element of self sustainability we need, ie tillage should include all things tillage, beet brought back etc, bits of everything encouraged. This EU model is only good for some and not really farming at all?.
I do think plenty money will be thrown at environmental schemes.
The EU gave Ireland a 1 billion covid recovery package yesterday and 42% of that is to go to environmental schemes, I would say some of it will go to more schemes like the straw chopping
 
I also think there is a welfare issue in this country. Housing isn't adequate. Loose straw(or other alternative) bedding is what should be used, we did it home this winter for the milkers and it mended them something serious.
I think it's poor judgement to chop straw when there is this issue going on. Yet tillage farmers need a living too. So I just think we should be going back to mixed farming instead of just cattle or tillage. It cures alot of problems.
Would be a old day in hell before I go back to feeding cattle without some sort of forward pricing. The meat factories would love that
 
I hear what you are saying , but hay and straw are totally different products and whatever about throwing rushes and peat under big cattle calving cows and bedding calves is a different matter .
My vet who hails from the west never ceases to be amazed at how many farmers in this a big tillage area with any gods amount of available straw skimp on the calving bedding and calf sheds . Then the are struck with calf pneumonia and mastitis in freshly calved cows . A box o 20 mastitis tubes is 70 euro and the penalties for high cell count milk soon give the milk cheque a trim .
He reckons as a rough rule that every Dairy cow needs 2 bales of good dry straw one bale to eat when she is dry the other to bed her for the calving week .
Onother bale at least to rear the heifer calf .
He says many good cows end up in the knackers from been rushed onto concrete to soon after calving to " save straw " . Penny wise and pound foolish is alive and well im afraid .
Here the cubicle house has mattresses and auto scrapers and is clean airy and spacious . There is a straw bedded shed for cows close to calving and another straw shed for cows after foot trimming and calving When the cows rotate back to the cubicles the will try to get back to the straw shed . That tells me which the prefer !!!
The vet reckons that even at 20 euro a bale its tremendous value when you think about it .
All cereal growers are after is a decent shake its a tough racket to make a living at and of course if anybody feels that the are been robbed blind for straw at 20 a bale then the are of course welcome to give grain growing a go its still kinda a free country i think ...... And of course a walk on the other fellas side of the road can prove very enlightening !!!

There was a serious animal welfare case in the west lately… they were bedded with rushes

In any case, its not a fact that any farmer has healthier animals because he uses straw instead of rushes. In any case of calf welfare that you mention, the problem is that the farmer isn't using enough bedding (regardless of the type) to keep calves clean and dry.

We calve 60+ cows here. Average winter in the shed is 6 month +. Calves spend more time in bedded creep areas than the average calf across the country. We have a pretty respectable calf health record that I won't detail here but can detail for you in a pm if you don't believe me. We bed with rushes and more rushes and always ensure that the calf never has to lie in any type of dampness. Its a brilliant source of bedding that breaks down and composts easily if you follow some basic principles when using it. Bale for bale, it won't go as far as straw, but its a free aside from the cost of baling.
 
In any case, its not a fact that any farmer has healthier animals because he uses straw instead of rushes. In any case of calf welfare that you mention, the problem is that the farmer isn't using enough bedding (regardless of the type) to keep calves clean and dry.

We calve 60+ cows here. Average winter in the shed is 6 month +. Calves spend more time in bedded creep areas than the average calf across the country. We have a pretty respectable calf health record that I won't detail here but can detail for you in a pm if you don't believe me. We bed with rushes and more rushes and always ensure that the calf never has to lie in any type of dampness. Its a brilliant source of bedding that breaks down and composts easily if you follow some basic principles when using it. Bale for bale, it won't go as far as straw, but its a free aside from the cost of baling.
How much Barley straw would be required per cow for a 6 month winter.
 
In any case, its not a fact that any farmer has healthier animals because he uses straw instead of rushes. In any case of calf welfare that you mention, the problem is that the farmer isn't using enough bedding (regardless of the type) to keep calves clean and dry.

We calve 60+ cows here. Average winter in the shed is 6 month +. Calves spend more time in bedded creep areas than the average calf across the country. We have a pretty respectable calf health record that I won't detail here but can detail for you in a pm if you don't believe me. We bed with rushes and more rushes and always ensure that the calf never has to lie in any type of dampness. Its a brilliant source of bedding that breaks down and composts easily if you follow some basic principles when using it. Bale for bale, it won't go as far as straw, but its a free aside from the cost of baling.

Know of one big ex straw user that is using rushes nowadays. Few k bales. I used feed allot of straw, for what reason I don't know, young and stupid.
 
That sounds low for a 6 month winter
Really? I thought it was high - certainly most people in this area don't use as much but I guess it depends on how your sheds are set up. We have 12 calving pens. At 2 weeks old calves and their mothers will go onto slats with rubber mats and calves are shut back into a calving pen/creep area by night and let to the cow by day to suck. (So with every 6 or 7 calves born, we have 1 less calving pen) Pens where the cows calve are the only ones that are hard on bedding. We also use hydrated lime daily which disinfects and soaks up a lot of moisture.
 
Really? I thought it was high - certainly most people in this area don't use as much but I guess it depends on how your sheds are set up. We have 12 calving pens. At 2 weeks old calves and their mothers will go onto slats with rubber mats and calves are shut back into a calving pen/creep area by night and let to the cow by day to suck. (So with every 6 or 7 calves born, we have 1 less calving pen) Pens where the cows calve are the only ones that are hard on bedding. We also use hydrated lime daily which disinfects and soaks up a lot of moisture.
Ok, we gave up using the additives / bedding conditioners, for all the straw they save, they are not that cost effective in my opinion. I would estimate that we would be using a half bale per cow from a bedding perspective, but I have a 3 to 4 month winter for them in general.
 
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