6/7/09

Growing organic crops to feed livestock

A seminar to be held at Ty Mawr Organic Farms, Pont Llyfni, Caernarfon, LL54 5ED on Tuesday 14 July will be an opportunity for farmers to learn more about growing crops to feed sheep and cattle. It is being organized by Organic Centre Wales as part of the Farming Connect Organic Development Programme and is suitable for all organic and converting farmers, as well as those considering conversion.

Growing crops on your home farm is a good way to provide energy and protein for your animals, but do you know how much they are actually supplying? And how much do your livestock need, anyway?

On hand to answer these and other questions will be two industry experts. Heather McCalman of the Grassland Development Centre, IBERS, will talk about which crops to grow and how, while Ainsley Baker of Kite Consulting will discuss the needs of the animals, for instance how much a beef animal needs to maintain a weight gain of 1kg/day through the winter, and alternative ways of finishing lambs.

Event organizer Mari Jones of Organic Centre Wales said: “As margins within the industry have tightened, we must be sure that we are producing crops which are exactly what the animal can convert into saleable product. We need to avoid waste and use our resources for the best possible outcome.”

The event, which is free, starts at 1.30 pm and will finish at 4pm. It is hosted by kind permission of Deio Hughes.

Ends

Further information

Mari Jones, Knowledge Transfer Officer, Organic Centre Wales, IBERS, Aberystwyth SY23 3AL. 01970 622248 or 07791 442498. mzj@aber.ac.uk. 

Notes for editors

1. Organic Centre Wales is funded by the Welsh Assembly Government to provide information on organic food and farming to producers, food businesses, consumers and others. It is based at Aberystwyth University and run by a partnership consisting of the ADAS, the Organic Research Centre Elm Farm, and the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences at Aberystwyth University.

2. The Organic Conversion Information Service (01970 622100) is funded by WAG to provide information to producers considering conversion – an information pack and up to three free on-farm visits are available.

3. Farming Connect, working closely with its partner organisations, provides one to one support, knowledge, expertise, training and advisory services tailored to the needs of farmers in Wales. Many of these services are fully funded or subsidised and the service is both flexible and accessible. You can register with the Farming Connect Service Centre on 08456 000 813 or contact Farming Connect directly at your nearest WAG Divisional Office. OCW is funded by Farming Connect to deliver the Organic Development Programme.

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