Andrew Jefferson with his son, Scott and current Charolais herd sire, Mowbraypark Northend.

Easy care Charolais cross calves are the way forward under the new SFP regime on a low input, high output, part time livestock farm, says Andrew Jefferson.

“Charolais is leaving us calves reared on grass based systems that are naturally fleshed, with unbeatable weight for age and good conformation, they have a quiet temperament and both our cows and heifers naturally calve themselves.

“What's more we've noticed that within the first few weeks of 2005, trade for quality Charolais crosses is looking stronger than ever,” he explains. “The gap between Charolais crosses and other Continental crosses has started to widen even further as finishers realise that Charolais cross cattle are way a head on growth rate.”

Andrew together with his wife, Andrea, manages a 90 acre grassland unit based at Aspatria Hall, Aspatria, near Wigton.

“This is part time farming in the truest sense, it is a serious commercial venture which is profit driven,” he says. “I make a portion of our income on shifts as a full time process worker, and the remainder is derived from Aspatria Hall where my time is at a premium. It's a family owned unit and three years ago I was given the opportunity to realise an ambition and farm a portion of it in my own right.

“We decided whatever we produced would have to achieve the highest returns in the marketplace, every thing we agreed to invest in has to demonstrate a real return on capital and at the same time have low input requirements.

“We decided to stock the unit with 43 sucklers, all of which are put to the Charolais and a complementary flock of 100 Texel ewes with lambs taken through to finishing,” Andrew explains. “We are finding that our Charolais cross calves are proving to be so versatile and they tend to look after themselves.

“Charolais crosses can be sold in the ring as either strong stores or finished and our target is for them to be within the day's top 10 pc of average prices. We used to sell strong steers in the store ring at 17 months to finishers from the Eastern counties and North of the Border, while we finished heifers at between 18 and 20 months and 620kg to 660kg.

“Since January and the end of BSP system, we are watching the market very, very closely. Trade for strong stores has continued to be hot. However if that market tailed off, then we have the facilities to finish and we believe we could take our Charolais cross steers to finished target weight at between 15 and 16 months.”

Andrew realised the benefits of Charolais from an early age. His grandfather, Jack Scott was among the first to introduce the breed to the area more than 30 years ago. “Charolais has always done the business; Charolais has consistently sired calves with that weight for age, efficient feed conversion ratio, and conformation. I have had experience of other Continental terminal sires, however their calves never achieved the same growth rates, and at the end of the day it's weight that really matters, we are paid on kgs. Furthermore, this weight for age factor will be increasingly to the fore in future as finishers adopt more intensive systems to realize their animals' potential and subsequently higher margins,” he explains.

“I've also learned that to invest in a quality bull, one within the breed's top 25pc on Estimated Breeding Values will leave calves that are likely to average within the day's top 25pc of prices which ever ring they are sold through,” he says.

Andrew is currently using Mowbraypark Northend, a Charolais bull he jointly owns with Robbie and Marion Jackson, of Silloth. Northend is within the breed's top 10pc with a Beef Value of CH26, he was awarded the Perth junior championship, and he is the current Border Charolais Club's bull of the year. “A bull is half my herd, and this one is throwing cracking calves that not only reflect his growth rate, but also length and good wide tops and they're clean through the belly.”

To the future, and Andrew says he is considering expanding the suckler herd at the expense of the sheep enterprise. “The suckler enterprise suits our relatively low input easy care system and we are confident that our quality Charolais cross calves will continue to provide the highest return it is possible to achieve per acre on this particular part time farm.”