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Towards 2012 and beyond
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Let’s face it, very few, if any commercial sheep farmers are making real money, sufficient to reinvest in their farms to ensure a sustainable business. Furthermore, few of their sons or daughters are choosing to commit to ensure succession, a trend that should be questioned, says John Sinnett.
“The industry is on the verge of meltdown - we need to get closer to the marketplace even if this means getting rid of the industry’s traditionalism and old fashioned bolt-ons. The true costs of sheep farming have been masked for more than 20 years under the former payments regime and I believe we need to develop new strategies to ensure the industry continues,” he says. “I believe that we have little time in which to act, though we could be offered a small window which we’ve never had before as we gear up for the full impact of the single payment and its implications by 2012.
“I believe that our future will feature a contracted industry, probably one in which there will be fewer flocks. Those that do exist will probably be large units capable of rearing and finishing lambs managed by producers who will be shareholders within a limited company and will therefore benefit from any passed back dividends. Such farmer groups ought to be encouraged to operate in clearly defined geographical areas to supply specific processors who will in turn work with specific multiples that demand a consistent supply of quality lamb for 52 weeks of the year, in return for a single price, probably best set at the beginning of each season.
“There will be opportunities for lamb to be regionally branded, and such a new system will involve reduced food miles with accompanying ethics - animal welfare issues, environment and cost benefits, as well as improved product quality,” he says.
So what of the current system? Mr Sinnett believes our current stratified industry will at large have to be abandoned. “Farmers in the hills and uplands will struggle more, and only those who can produce a quality product will survive as the industry makes way for the more specialist producers who farm 2,000 to 3,000 ewe closed flocks, most probably those operating in non – LFAs.
“The current auction system will also be a casualty. It is an added cost to producers, so it will need to evolve, probably best as a system of collecting and grading centres to provide a service five days a week rather than the limited options currently being offered. As an alternative, farm gate sales could become a reality – they would encourage negotiation and provide that personal touch.”
An equally pressing question is what of the future for the pedigree sector to which Mr Sinnett belongs and to which commercial producers must turn for new genetics in the hope of improving flock performance. “Breed societies are currently perceived to be too elitist, as not having the commercial man’s interests at heart,” he says and goes on to insist that this is not always the case. Mr Sinnett asserts that he particularly has the commercial man in mind and that he offers the tools for them to produce lambs that will finish to target weight cost effectively within the shortest possible time, and will grade within the most desirable specifications.
“Selection within
He continues: “In future, I really do believe that if we are to deliver a consistent quality product to meet market requirements and in doing so shift the UK’s current figure of producing just over 50% of lambs grading within the specification to nearer the 90% mark, then we need to adopt a more open mind to what we do. We need to carefully select for the best genetics for given traits from within the national pool, making full use of currently available technology, including gene markers, to develop what will inevitably be a hybrid sheep, one which will upset current breeders, but one which uses the best bits from several of today’s popular terminal sires. At
Mr Sinnett adds: “The sheep sector needs to reassess its attitudes, turn them round and focus on the goal of producing a more consistent, higher quality end product that will be in demand. It will need plenty of ideas, innovation and enthusiasm. The technology is available to us from many directions, not least from BASCO as it emerges to add new dimensions in dissemination of information between pedigree and commercial worlds. We should perhaps be starting to talk to supermarket buyers now. We desperately need the vision to pull together and act decisively as soon as possible to achieve a practical, sustainable industry.”
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