Dramatic swings in exchange rates are currently having a noticeable impact on our raw materials markets. The Euro has weakened following the start of the Eurozone quantitative easing programme and the US dollar has strengthened on the back of an improving economy. The pound has dropped over 20 cents against the dollar in the last year but improved by around 15 Euro cents in the same period. One example of the impact is that we are paying at least £25/t more for soya than we would have been if the exchange rate had remained the same.

Despite low oil prices, cheap cereals and increasing use of ethanol within the EU means that demand for biofuels is likely to grow. Brazil is increasing the use of home produced ethanol for their road fuel leaving a hole in EU supplies which Vivergo and Ensus will be gearing up to fill during the course of this year. This is good news for cereal producers who have high stocks of wheat with dwindling values, however with ruminant feed demand soon to drop off this is probably a time to be patient before buying summer grain. After a strong early barley export programme which narrowed the gap between barley and wheat, barley exports seem to have stalled and the gap has widened out again towards double figures. Wheat is being attacked from the other side, too, with the premium for maize now less than £20/t thanks to falling US maize demand.

The Soya market is £100/t lower than the same time last year and big crops are on the way. However, Chinese demand is still growing every year so prices might not drop much further. Low rapeseed supplies will keep prices high until harvest but with Vivergo producing 1000 tonnes of product a day, distillers may become more attractively priced once ruminant feed demand more than halves when the grass grows.

Soya hull prices are easing gradually and there is plenty of sugar beet pulp available for those wanting digestible fibre sources. Palm kernel is attractive but contamination with metal means that we would recommend buying it in blends or compounds and not as a straight. Our magnets and screens can be relied upon to remove any contaminants.

Contact us today for advice on the best value raw material options for your farm this summer.

Horses as a sport, profession or hobby are expensive. There are no two ways about it! So Carrs Billington have entered into a partnership with the Equestrian Index who have launched their Essentials card today to help you save  money.  

As a horse owner you have limited time to find discounts on products. Generally you expect to be able to buy “luxury” items at a discount in a sale or on special offer, but do we look for a discount on the day to day items? No? Well, we have negotiated discounts for you EVERY TIME YOU SHOP and more importantly not only on luxuries and extras, but on the ESSENTIALS too!

The Essential card allows holders a 5% discount in all our Country Stores on Horse Feed, Bedding and equipment, just ask in-store for more details.

The card not only gives you great savings throughout the year on ESSENTIAL equestrian purchases but will also benefit two EQUINE CHARITIES. This year, with your help, we will be supporting RIDING FOR THE DISABLED and REDWINGS HORSE SANCTUARY.

To get your “Essential Card” click on the image above or visit www.equestrianindexessentials.com

(Please note; discount is available in-store only and cannot be used in conjunction with any other in-store promotions or sale items)

Lower raw material costs mean that the prices of most crop protection products have reduced for 2015 and now is the best time to order for this summer.

Carrs Billington have the most comprehensive range of Crop Protection and Packaging products available in the UK today and continue to innovate with new products and ideas.

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Special discount offer on Clingseal when ordered with Visqueen and Silostar covers.

Total Cover Netwrap, proven throughout the UK by farmers and Contractors and exclusively available from Carrs Billington.

New for 2015–Kelvin-Cave forage Preservatives, O2 barrier Silage Cover, side sheets and clamp tiles now available from Carrs Billington.

Contact your local Country Store today for more details.

Intensive indoor lambing is helping one Lancashire sheep farming family make the most of the early lamb market.

Will, Stephen and Alan Vose farm with their father Bill at Blundell House Farm near Ormskirk where the main enterprises are arable crops including maincrop potatoes and a 1000 ewe flock, split into January and March lambing groups.

The Suffolk x Mule ewes are put to Hampshire tups and average 1.65 lambs sold per ewe across the two groups.  “We like the Hampshire as it is very fast maturing and piles the weight on,” comments Will Vose.  “This suits our system of finishing early lambs and means we get a good sized lamb, as we prefer a heavier lamb than a better grading lamb. The majority are sold at R grade.  We have tried other breeds with better confirmation but they have either been slower or lacking the wool needed on the flat, relatively shelter-free fields.”

A split lambing system is used to make best use of the buildings, forage and labour.  Early lambs are sold straight off the ewe at 12-14 weeks old at an average of 19.5kg, targeted for when supermarkets are switching to British lamb.

The later lambs will leave the farm at a similar age in early July.  It is important to move them on as the farm is prone to drying up.

The flock is broadly split by age with younger ewes lambing later because the older ewes generally come to the tup quicker and are more prolific early.

The January lambers are house early to ensure sufficient forage is available for the later lambing flock.  The early lambing flock is scanned in early December and ewes carrying multiple lambs are housed while lambs carrying single stay out at grass until point of lambing or until grass availability becomes short.  All ewes will have had access to Crystalyx Extra High Energy blocks since November and this continues through to lambing whether housed or outside.

“The blocks are the most effective way to complement grazing or haylage,” Will continues.  “We have used other blocks in the past but found that intakes were far higher than expected which meant costs rose and we also saw high wastage levels with these blocks when fed outside.

“The molasses based blocks are more durable and we find we get more consistent intakes which is important as the blocks are a feed and a way to reduce concentrate use, not an extra.  The blocks supplement the forage well and really keep condition on the ewes.”

The housed early ewes are fed haylage and 0.25kg of Carrs Billington Ewe Max nuts.  They are in groups of 45 ewes with one 22.5kg block per group.  Concentrate feed rate will rise to 1kg/day closer to lambing.  The high DUP nuts support higher milk yields.

“We see a decline in block intakes as concentrates increase from around 90g/ewe/day down to closer to 15g which implies the ewes take what they need rather than taking the blocks out of habit.  As single carrying ewes get less concentrate they tend to take more of the blocks.”

Ewes and lambs are turned out at seven to ten days old onto grass and brassicas.  The Voses’ grow fodder beet and Swedes but also feed arable leaf waste from local brassica growers.  Lambs have access to creep until nine to ten weeks before moving onto a finisher diet.  The fastest growing lambs get relatively little finisher.

It is important the early lambed ewes move out quickly as space is limited and is needed for the later lambing flock who have overwintered on brassicas, grazing and Crystalyx blocks, with one block per 100 ewes.  When housed, concentrate feeding is the same as for the early lambing flock.

“The system allows us to make best use of resources and hit the best priced market while controlling feed costs,” Will Vose continues.  “It is a relatively simple system but delivers the results and proves you can produce a strong early lamb profitably.

The new deadline for submitting Basic Payment Scheme claims in England has been extended to Monday 15th June. This also applies to the annual claim for Environmental Stewardship money. However, the land still needs to be at your disposal on 15th May.

There will now be no on-line claims in 2015 for BPS. It is hoped that forms populated with your previous field data will be available in April and e-mailed out to farmers.

The RPA has identified 39000 farmers who historically have few changes on their forms each year and who will not be caught by the new Greening measures. They will be fast tracked and receive an e-mail with a summary of their land and entitlement information, which can be completed and e-mailed back. If you are in this category you will not need to complete a BP5 form.

For those who do have to complete a BP5 form, it will look similar to the old SP5 form. Fields with more than one crop will need to be split into A,B, C etc in column 5.

The new part is Section D, Greening. Only fields that have EFA’s in them need to be included here and just put the actual size of the feature (hedge, buffer strip, fallow etc) not the adjusted weighting figure. You must complete Part F, stating if you qualify as an “Active Farmer” and sign the final declaration and responsibilities bit at the end.

Wales very sensibly did not buy a new computer system as their old one is still working very well! They haven’t announced whether they will extend the deadline but possibly don’t need to.

Scotland are also having computer problems and will probably move to a paper application. They may extend the deadline but are concerned that this will delay payments.

Visit www.gov.uk for more information on how to apply for the basic payment scheme. 

Farmers can apply to the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) for a grant to fund technology that improves the health and productivity of their livestock as part of the Countryside Productivity Scheme.

How much funding is available

Grants will cover up to 40% of the total eligible costs of the proposal.This grant is a small grant, which means applicants can only apply for from £2,500 to £35,000.

What the grant will fund

Static handling and weighing systems

Applicants can apply to fund a static (not mobile) handling and weighing system for cattle and sheep, provided it has all of the following:

• a fixed electronic identification (EID) reader to read the tags of each animal
• electronic weighing facilities linked to the EID
• a non-slip race facility to hold and isolate individual animals
• recognised industry guidance, for example the Scottish Agricultural College’s technical note 565 and technical note 606 or the Eblex handling manuals
• endorsed by the applicant’s vet for its design and size, how it benefits specific husbandry needs and how it uses chosen industry guidance
• designed to minimise the risk of pollution

The proposed system needs to be able to do all the following:

• sort and load livestock
• support condition monitoring
• support the performance of key husbandry tasks like worming, vaccinating, scanning, foot trimming, shearing and dipping

For more information on the funding and eligible costs visit www.gov.uk 

Contact your local Carrs Billington for more information regarding our range of livestock equipment.

(Right to Left) Ellen Elliott; level 3 1st year Agriculture – Matthew Todhunter; level 3 2nd year Land Based Technology – Rae Tomlinson; Managing Director Carrs Billington Agriculture (Sales) Ltd – Tom Gorst; level 3 1st year Agriculture – Olivia Grindley; level 3 1st year Agriculture – Mathew Grainger; level 3 1st year Game and Countryside Management – William Wright; level 3 1st year Game and Countryside Management – Robert Palmer; level 3 1st year Game and Countryside Management.

Rae Tomlinson, Managing Director of Carrs Billington Agriculture (Sales) Ltd, was delighted to present this year’s Carrs Billington rural scholarships awards to some outstanding students at Newton Rigg College.

“It gives me great pleasure to reward these young people for their educational achievements and help them towards successful careers in agriculture, the environment and rural pursuits. It is part of our commitment, not just to the farming industry but the entire rural community, which we service and supply from our 26 Country Stores.”

(Right to Left) Natalie Parker; Course Leader Agriculture, Mark Holliday and Ian Powley Carrs Billington, Mathew Todhunter, Ellen Elliott, Tom Gorst, Rae Tomlinson, Mathew Grainger, Olivia Grindley, William Wright, Robert Palmer, Matt Bagley, Section Leader for Agriculture and Countryside Management, Sam Riley, Course Leader Game and Countryside Management.

Manufacturers throughout Europe are struggling to get adequate supplies of polymer to produce new product. We currently have good availability on all our finished products but limited supplies of raw materials could potentially create shortages and price increases later in the season. Contact your local Carrs Billington Country Store today to secure the best deal on your Crop Packaging requirements.

Book your Silage Sheets , Netwrap, Twines and Balefilm  now at our Special Offer Prices.

To view our range; click image below.

Great advert for milk on the BBC Britain’s Favourite Food Programme this week.

Presenter Professor Alice Roberts took part in a trial, where participants lost 1.5% of their bodyweight during exercise and measured how efficiently water, milk and a leading sports drink rehydrated them afterwards.

There was no difference between water and the sports drink, only 50% of the liquid from these drinks was retained by the body. Milk was a clear winner with 75% of the liquid retained by the body, largely thanks to the proteins in milk.

Cheese also came out well, as another trial showed that the calcium in dairy products significantly reduces the absorption of dietary fat in the gut. The same person absorbed more fat from their food when on a low dairy diet.

Milk; the original sports drink (designed to help escape from hungry lions!) is still the best.

Feed demand is starting to slow, some of the raw material supply issues are resolving themselves and as a result the raw material market is showing signs of responding to lack of pressure.

The good news is Vivergo are up and running again, although not at full capacity. They plan to be back in full production soon, so wheat distillers should be a popular protein source this summer.

Ensus are still shut but should be back in production later this year. When could depend on the ethanol price, which isn’t great at the moment, much depends on whether the EU decides to increase the amount of ethanol from renewable sources in petrol from 5% upto 6, 7 or 8%.

Rapeseed meal drops in price next month but becomes cheaper still once the new crop seed becomes available in August. The soya market is quite flat at the moment but with ex store prices for summer and next winter under £300/t it’s not bad value. Prices could fall further, especially if the exchange rate against the dollar improves, but the US crop is not in the ground yet so these numbers don’t look bad.

Cereal growers with storage are hanging onto unsold material, hoping to take advantage of new crop premiums; exports are slow because the euro exchange rate makes European grain relatively cheap so we are looking at end of season stocks being their highest for some time. There is no great rush to book cereals for next winter yet.

Soya hulls look good value where high digestible fibre is needed but there should be plenty of Sugar Beet to go round too. Wheatfeed should drop in price as feed demand slows.

Contact us if you are looking for summer contracts on blends.

Although global molasses prices have dropped during the winter, this has been offset by the exchange rate with the dollar weakening from $1.7/£ down to $1.5/£. The net effect is that prices are little different this summer.

Research shows that a well balanced diet needs between 6% and 7% sugar to maximise rumen function and performance. Herds that are grazing can get a good level of sugar from fresh grass but adding liquid feeds to buffer feeds will still be needed on some farms to achieve the optimum 6-7%.

Freshguard is available on all E-Zi Flo products this summer if heating becomes a problem.

Contact 01228 518860 or your local branch for the best deals.

Download our brochure or click on image below to view our range of Ezi-Flo

EziFlo Leaflet 2014

Topwrap RS1900 Pink Bale Wrap in aid of Breast Cancer Awareness is now available from Carrs Billington.

For every pink roll purchased from Carrs Billington,  a donation will be made to Break Through for Breast Cancer/Breast Cancer Awareness which will be matched by Volac.

Topwrap RS1900 (Pink 19734) is a 21mu pre stretched product (no need to change gearing on wrapper unit) applying 4 layers it will wrap approx. 38 std bales, twin satellite machines will require 2 rolls.

So think PINK  and contact Carrs Billington Today (limited volume available)

and don’t forget to post your pink bale images on our Facebook page.

The latest weekly Grass Watch report from Trouw Nutrition shows a big jump in the average daily milk from grass to 7.5 litres. Grass growth rates so far have not been as high as 2014 and vary greatly across the country; they are much slower in the North due to night frosts and cooler daytime temperatures. Dry matter is nearly 20% thanks to recent dry weather, higher than usual; energy and protein content are typical for the time of year at 12 ME and 24% protein.

Contact Carrs Billington today to have your pasture analysed and potential milk from grass calculated

Click here for this week’s GrassWatch Report

Around £5million worth of the latest grassland management equipment will be on display and in action at what will be the second Grassland North event to be held at Newton Rigg College, Penrith.

More than 4,000 farmers from across the North of England are expected on Wednesday 13 May at the college’s Sewborwens Farm. The event is free and showcases machinery with a combined output of 6,500 horsepower. Grassland North is organised in conjunction with agricultural machinery suppliers, Carrs Billington.

The day features working demonstrations from leading companies, Kuhn, Krone, Fendt and Massey Ferguson, and opportunities to discuss the latest forage management, including fertilisers, grass seed and preservative. Visitors can also see a display of vintage tractors.

Preparations for the event began last September when 30 acres of grassland was sown at Sewborwens Farm in readiness for the silage making demonstrations – these include trials drilled with high yield high sugar seed.

Matt Bagley, Head of Agriculture at Newton Rigg College said: “We are delighted to be working with Carrs Billington once again to provide a practical, highly relevant event which should be a must for any forward-thinking farmer. Grassland North is a key event for farmers interested in seeing the latest equipment and technology from what is a fast moving high tech industry. The practical demonstrations, plus the opportunity to see our state of the art dairy unit, and attend our uplands conference are a winning combination, and should not be missed.”

Tours of the state of the art dairy are an important addition to the event’s programme with the college’s dairy team and staff from Fullwood on hand to escort visitors and answer questions. The dairy features a 30:30 Fullwood herringbone parlour, modern cubicle housing and full AI and veterinary handling races.

Officially opened in March 2014, the dairy is an integral feature of student learning, and the unit has already seen a marked increase in milk yields as well as improvements in cow welfare, notably a reduction in lameness.

Grassland North coincides with the college’s uplands conference which runs from Tuesday 12 – Thursday 14 May and looks at collaborative use of the uplands.

Entry to Grassland North is free and times are 11am – 7pm. The event was last held in 2012.

EQUIPMENT ON DISPLAY INCLUDES:

 
Krone
The impressive yet compact 10 rotor mounted KW 11.22 tedder will be operating along with the Comprima XTREME baler wrapper combination and the TC880 twin rotor rake range. The BiG M 420 self-propelled mower will be working alongside the latest BiG X 580 and firmly established BiG X 700 forage harvesters.

Kuhn
Making its debut in the North of England is the FC9530 9.5mtr combination rear mower with FC313D front mower. The RW1610e twin post wrapper with patented twin film sticking technology will be present along with the unique hydraulically driven GA13131 4 rotor rake.

Massey Ferguson
Tractors from Massey include the well-established 3600’s, 5600’s, 6600’s, 7600’s. The flagship 400hp MF8737 will be in action at the event.

Fendt
Grassland North will showcase the full range – from the compact 110hp Fendt 211 up to the reverse drive 280hp Fendt 828.

National young show stars was held at Three Counties showground Malvern on the 1st and 2nd April this year.

This event was the first of its kind in the UK. It was aimed at youngsters involved in beef, sheep, pig, auctioneering and butchery.

The beef, sheep and pig sections all worked in teams of three and were set various tasks over the 2days. Tasks included were: washing, prep and presentation, pen presentation and promotional material of relevant sponsors, stock judging, placing’s and reasons, handling and ring etiquette, questionnaire and an interview. All the teams had to find a sponsor within the relevant industry to sponsor them and this is who the team promoted.

There were nine pig teams and the competition was of a high standard with results and scores changing all the time.

This is something that National young show stars are keen to promote and support as it encourages all to work as a team, understand team building and knowing your strengths and weaknesses enabling you to work better in a team as well as having fun and promoting the pig industry. To learn more about the “National Young Show Stars Challenge” visit nationalyoungshowstars.com

The overall winners on the day were “Spotty Trotters”

Carrs Billington sponsored the team “CB Boys” consisting of William Bemand 14, Daniel Middleton 12 and Harry Arden 8. This is what they had to say about their experience;

“Thank you, Carrs Billington for sponsoring our team for the two days at the National Young Show Stars. We had a great time and learned a lot about stock judging and team building. We gave out your leaflets and looked at other stands to help us improve next year. We also had the chance to show pigs as pairs. It was the second time in the ring for our youngest team member. We thoroughly enjoyed the show and learnt at lot about the industry. Thank you William Daniel and Harry”

Spring is here and it’s time to get out in the garden and care for your lawn. It’s the perfect time to invest in a mower and VIKING are helping you make that purchase even more rewarding with their cashback scheme, with up to £50 cashback on VIKING mowers and up to £100 cashback on VIKING tractors.

The cashback scheme is really simple; there are just 3 simple steps to follow:

1) Buy a VIKING mower or tractor from Carrs Billington
2) Enter your details along with your proof of purchase at Vikingmowers.co.uk 
3) Receive your cashback cheque in the post

The qualifying models in the scheme and their cashback amounts are detailed below.

For more information on these models click on the Catalogue below and contact Carrs Billington Today

The VIKING cashback scheme is set to run through to 30th June 2015

The weekly milk from grass figures produced by Trouw Nutrition show that, on average, cows are eating 9kg grass dry matter per day, which is providing enough energy for maintenance plus 7 litres. Many farmers are still housing cattle overnight/buffer feeding as grass growth has steadied with the current cold snap.

Overall grass growth rates are slower than the long term average so far this spring. A relatively dry April means that grass dry matters are good at over 20%; average energy content has lifted to 12.3 ME this week and protein content remains at around 23%.

Fibre content has eased back this week but butterfats are generally reasonable as saturated oil levels in grass are not high yet.

As always there is considerable variation across the country, contact Carrs Billington for an analysis of your grazing.

Click here for this week’s GrassWatch Report

Spring is a very busy time for farmers, especially for sheep farmers with the introduction of hundreds of thousands of lambs to our fields.  For Carrs Billington we hope to anticipate the needs of the farmer to provide great service to our customers.

Whilst we remain customer focused, Volac, manufacturer of the Lactovis milk powder, decided to hold a challenge between the 26 Country Stores for the best lambing display to create a little healthy competition within the branches and provide some interesting and informative displays to our customers.  Categories included Fun award and Small Space award.  All the stores used their creativity to come up with wonderful displays in their branches.

Winners of the categories were Stirling, Barnard Castle and Perth, with runners up in each category of Milnathort, Settle and Malton.

Check out our Media Gallery for more display photos. 

Click for more information about our range of Milk Replacers

Congratulations to K A Brown of Asby Hall who won the Supreme and Reserve Champion prizes at the Kirkby Stephen Mayday Store Cattle Show and Sale.

The Champion was an 11 month old Limousin cross steer and the Reserve Champion a Belgian Blue cross heifer. Both were sold to the judge, Mr Dandie of Broxburn and both have been fed on Carrs Billington Lifetime Rearer cake and straw.

Congratulations also to Messrs Smith Jackson of Hightown, Haltwhistle who achieved the highest price on the day with a nine month old Limousin cross steer.

Their mothers’ protection gave them a great start in life. Make sure you continue to protect them against pasteurellosis and clostridial disease. These two proven killers are on your farm right now and the economic impact of lamb losses can be devastating. Vaccinating from three weeks of age with two 2ml doses of Ovivac-P Plus 4-6 weeks apart gives your valuable lamb crop the protection they need.

To find out how a planned approached to vaccination against pasteurellosis and clostridial disease helps keep your losses to a minimum click here for the latest guide or speak to your local Animal Health Advisor at Carrs Billington, who can help you plan in and track the important vaccination dates.

 
ACT NOW  to ensure your lamb crop is protected!

Available from your local Carrs Billington Country Store