Sustainable Food Conference 2026 Leave a reply In February I travelled to London to attend the Sustainable Food Conference 2026. This conference brought together the whole food industry, with executives and stakeholders from all the major food retailers and big brands from the UK and Europe. This was a different conference to the normal veterinary and farming conferences I had attended before. The program for the two days, focused on how the industry are addressing sustainability of their supply chains, from the farmers to their paying customers. The big companies and supermarkets are investing money and resources into tackling sustainability. Companies like Tesco, have separate departments completely focused on achieving their sustainability goals, from reducing carbon footprint to helping people make healthier food choices. The big topics of conversation and actions were: Regenerative farming: if you have read my previous articles, this method of farming aims to work alongside nature and to produce healthy food from farming methods that put back more than they take out. Integration of livestock allows farmers to reduce the reliance on artificial fertilisers to produce crops sustainably with a lower carbon footprints and positive environmental outcomes. Healthy Food: with the UK facing an obesity pandemic many customers are now ranking healthy food choices in their top three priorities. There is more and more information out there now looking at the health risks of ultra processed foods. People are again trying the eat healthier and the demand for fresh produce is again growing. The industry are facing challenges around education, people have forgotten how to prepare fresh food in a lot of areas of the UK and there is a big lack food teaching in UK schools.s Decarbonising the supply chain: big companies and the UK have committed to NET zero targets. They are looking at the whole supply chain, with lots of money been invested in green technology such as solar panels on factories, electric lorries and right down to more energy efficient refrigeration. There is a big campaign to increase freezer temperatures from -18 degrees Celsius to -15 degrees Celsius across the food industry. This alone will save 10 percent of energy costs associated with the chilling of food. Food waste: I knew there was a lot of food waste but according to statistics a third of all food produced globally is thrown away. The UK alone wastes approximately 9.52 million tonnes of food every year. On average each person in the UK wastes 70kg of food each year or about 140 meals. All the big supermarkets and food producers have targets to reduce this massive figure. I think this is one of the most shocking aspects of food production, if we can tackle this big issue and tackle issues of redistribution of food to people that need it, then we can feed a growing world population without the need to increase the land used for agriculture. I was at the conference with both my farmer and veterinary hat on. I was promoting that an Animal Health Focused approach is essential for companies to achieve their sustainability goals. Farmers that engage with the vets and adopt preventative health care strategies have much healthier and more productive animals. Each kilogram of meat or milk produced from healthier animals has a much lower carbon foot print and higher welfare standards. The government have UK targets to reduce carbon emissions. They are being advised that we need to reduce animal numbers in the UK by 25% by 2040. This in my opinion is very misguided and misleading the public and industry as a whole. With growing global demand for meat and milk, other countries will fill this demand if we don’t. These countries may not be able to produce food as sustainably as the UK leading to increases in global emissions and land use. The government targets to reduce animal numbers will inevitably achieve their own goals at the expense of world greenhouse gas emission targets. I am immensely proud of the Uk agriculture, although our farmers and growers already do amazing work, we can keep improving, but this requires the backing of both government and the public. So, get behind our British farmers by buying British and help to reduce our reliance on imported food with higher environmental and carbon footprints.
Benchmarking Heifer Performance – April Newsletter Leave a reply By John Walsh Recently we have been using a new benchmarking tool to assess how the dairy farms we look after are performing. One metric we have benchmarked, is age at first calving for heifers. This average can give an indication of heifer breeding efficiency and overall management of heifers within your herd. This metric is also commonly used by milk buyers to assess herd performance. There are many benefits of achieving age at first calving targets and include: lower rearing costs per heifer, fewer heifers needed to be kept on the farm at one time, improved fertility, improved lifetime production and lower culling rates. As with any average, age at first calving may be a true representative of a herds heifer breeding efficiency, but it can also hide areas of management that may not be optimal. For example, you may have a large spread of ages with some very young heifers and older heifers contributing to the average. Therefore, this figure may look good but heifer performance may not be optimal. The average also doesn’t take into account target weight at first service and calving – the risk of focusing on age at first calving is that it can sometimes compromise the performance of those animals because they’ve calved younger but might be below weight at first calving. This will have an impact on production and potentially survivability. It’s very important when calving at around 24 months that you’re hitting target weights right the way through the process, at service and when calving. Fig 1. Shows how the herds we look after (in blue) are performing compared to national figures (in grey). We have benchmarked our herds compared to national averages (see Fig. 1) If you want to know how your herd is performing, please speak to either your clinical vet or to one of our specialist youngstock vets. These are several reasons that animals are not hitting the target age at first calving. These can be down to farmers animals at a certain age, poor growth rates, poor fertility or fertility management, high disease incidence or nutritional issues. Our specialist young stock vets will start by looking at the age of first calving as a guide to overall performance, but they will also assess how heifers are performing with target weights through to calving, how these animals are milking in their first lactation, how many heifers reach their second calving and heifer breeding performance. If you would like a visit to assess your heifer management please give us a call. To read the full newsletter please go to our Monthly Newsletters page.
Sheep Newsletter – Colostrum is Gold Leave a reply By Lucy Hepworth The focus of our brilliantly well attended recent sheep farmers meeting was colostrum – how to get the quality right, and how intake impacts on lamb disease. A Welsh study in 2020 measured colostrum quality in a sample of ewes on 64 farms, and 75% of the samples met target quality. The biggest driver of quality was ewe nutrition. The correct protein intake in the last 3 weeks of pregnancy is key. Long term protein intake is obviously also really important; it is reflected in ewe body condition, and is impacted by nutrition, chronic disease such as lameness, some ‘iceberg diseases’ as well as parasite burden. The range of results in forage analyses 2023 was discussed, and forage analysis for an indoor system was actively encouraged to correctly balance up supplementary feed. Equally, the protein intake from spring grass was recognised in the later lambing flocks. Metabolic profiles can be used on a sample of ewes (multiples, shearlings) 3 weeks before lambing to assess energy and protein intake. For the cost of a lamb or two, one can properly assess the ewe intake and whether it meets demands, with time to correct if necessary. Farmers can easily measure colostrum quality with an inexpensive Brix refractometer (£20-£30). The target is over 26.5%. The first few ewes to lamb can be measured to see if feeding is on track, as well as measuring quality on spare colostrum to supplement other lambs. A sample of lambs can also be checked for colostrum intake with a visit from a vet tech at the start of lambing. Whilst only half as good as ewe colostrum, many flocks at the meeting used some artificial colostrum with a huge range in quality of product. XL Premium Lamb Colostrum (identical to Immucol Platinum) is our our product of choicep,rosdeluecctteodf cbheociacues,eseitlepcrtoevdidbeesc5augsIegGit perorvfiededs 5wgheIgnGfepderatfetehde wrehpelancfeemdeant trhaeter.eMplanceymperondt urcatse.dMo annoyt meet the required 3gpIrgoGdupcetrsfdeoedn.ot meet the required 3g IgG per feed. Getting mineral balance correct in the ewe around lambing with respect to macrominerals – calcium and magnesium is very important. Factors influencing milk fever in indoor and outdoor systems were discussed as well as evidence showing how supplementation of calcium can help immunity of lambs and growth rates. Microminerals (trace elements) interact closely and influence lamb vigour. Most lamb growth takes place in the last 6 weeks. If lambs are born light or heavy, this has a significant impact on risk of mortality. No flocks in the practice are routinely giving antibiotics to newborn lambs tocontrol disease. In addition to the discussion on colostrum, we also talked about hygiene to reduce watery mouth and joint ill. control disease. In addition to the discussion on colostrum, we also talked about hygiene to reduce watery mouth and joint ill. Hygiene tips: Clean storage of stomach tubes and use Milton as a disinfectant for tubes between lambs. Keep ear tags and rubber rings in sealed boxes and dip in surgical spirit ahead of use. Wear long gloves to lamb ewes so one does not to transfer Strep bacteria (that cause joint ill) from carrier ewes onto other tubes between lambs. Use preparatory10% iodine dip not spray (will contain alcohol drying agent). Dip twice for indoor systems. To read the full newsletter please follow this link: Spring 2024 – Sheep Newsletter
Farming a Greener Future Leave a reply Our vet and director John is in a AHDB film, made in partnership with ITN Business, showcasing the future of sustainable agriculture and the unique role of livestock is live. By 2050, the global population is expected to reach nearly 10 billion, and to meet dietary demands food production must increase by 70%. But with the common narrative being dictated by simplistic negative conclusions of livestock’s role within rising global temperatures, nature decline and decreasing human health, it is clear livestock’s value to society is grossly misunderstood. To raise awareness and understanding of the importance of livestock and its role in feeding the population sustainably, AHDB has partnered with ITN Business to produce a news-style film, Farming a Greener Future. Launched as part of Countryside COP, and anchored by journalist Duncan Golestani, the film will explore these key themes: How British agriculture is adapting and innovating to reduce its environmental impact Livestock’s unique role in building more sustainable farming systems Delivering food security for a growing global population to support health It also features four industry partners to demonstrate some of the many ways British farming is innovating and adapting to not only reduce its environmental impact but continue to feed a growing population more sustainably. Highlighting the importance of data integrity and how livestock are supporting nature recovery on a farm in Suffolk, Cool Farm Tool offers farmers the ability to manage complex science and data Delving into the benefits of a circular farming approach and the utilisation of waste products. Platts Agriculture showcases sustainable livestock bedding which also supports animal health Supporting the message that sustainability is not just about the environment, Boehringer Ingelheim demonstrates the importance of preventive animal care at a farm in Dorset to support ethical livestock production with a lower environmental impact And finally, Doosan Bobcat shows how technology is supporting labour shortages on a farm in Limerick and how innovations are supporting the journey to net-zero emissions The programme will be promoted by ITN Business over the next month to key audiences, including the media and academia, on the New Scientist website and on the ITN Business Hub. Watch the video below for John’s interview: For the full AHDB film go to:
What will be living on your pasture over winter? Leave a reply By Lucy Hepworth BVSc MRCVS There has definitely been a lot of cattle lungworm in the Blackmore Vale in late summer/early autumn this year. What does this mean for your pasture if lungworm has been present on your farm this year? Lungworm in sheep is caused by a different species and there are usually no clinical signs, but in heavy infestations it can cause coughing and weight loss. L3 larvae are excreted by cattle with lungworm onto the pasture. Historically most lungworm larvae tended to die over winter, and the following spring, pastures were contaminated by older carrier animals excreting lungworm larvae. However, as our climate changes, so do parasites and we should be aware of lungworm larvae being able to overwinter. Larval survival will also be influenced by how late in the season they are excreted. So, if lungworm has been an issue this year on farm, then consider using the lungworm vaccine ahead of turnout next spring to give animals immunity. Alongside using the vaccine, consider the risk of the turnout pasture: Low lungworm pasture risk doesn’t mean no risk. Cattle lungworm has cleverly adapted to use a fungus as part of its life cycle. The larvae can hitch a lift on the fungal spores and get carried from contaminated pasture to low risk pasture. For farms who don’t use the vaccine, planning turnout to avoid high risk pasture is even more important. Strip grazing and use of back fencing will help to reduce the chance of a significant build-up of larvae. If high/medium risk pasture needs to be used with first year grazing animals that are not vaccinated, then a strategic worming protocol is likely to be warranted. Gutworms have also benefitted from a warm wet autumn, and we have seen high worm egg counts in our lab recently. Infected animals excrete eggs onto the pasture which either overwinter if deposited late in the season or hatch out into larvae in a mild autumn. Gutworm larvae are known to overwinter relatively well, especially if the weather is cold because they are less active and retain energy reserves until spring. \ So, a similar principle applies to management of pasture for gutworms. Pasture which has been contaminated this autumn should be avoided for turning out naïve animals onto. High risk pasture should be grazed by immune adult animals, or left until June, otherwise a strategic worming control protocol needs to be in place. Annotating a map of the farm with ‘which fields have been grazed when’ together with a record of any parasite burdens with dates, can be a useful way of deciding which fields present the lowest risk for turnout. Parasite mapping fits well with reducing dependence on wormer products and is part of a wider approach to minimising parasite impacts in sheep and cattle. To read our full newsletter please go to: Monthly Farm Newsletter
