CAFRE open day to highlight productivity for sheep enterprises
The farm, which is home to 1100 ewes, is managed to maximise efficiency and productivity alongside a strong focus on habitat management and enhancing biodiversity.
The hill flock consists of Scottish Blackface and Blackface x Swaledale ewes, they graze on the upper areas of the farm, predominantly areas classed as heather moorland and blanked bog.
Crossbred ewes and lambs on the Hill Farm at Glenwherry. (Source: CAFRE)
A core of the flock, 250 Blackface ewes are bred pure and genetic performance is evaluated through the signet breeding programme, 100 Blackface ewes are crossed with Swaledale to increase hybrid vigour and performance in the crossbred flock.
250 Blackface x Swaledale ewes are mated with Texel to produce a more prolific female with improved milk, growth and carcass to utilise the more productive areas of the farm, with these Texel cross ewes managed on the lower hills and parks.
The majority are mated with a terminal sire currently a Meatlinc to produce a lamb capable of high growth rates in a forage-based system with improved carcass confirmation suitable for store or finish.
A further group are mated with Lleyn to produce replacements for the lowland flock at the CAFRE beef and sheep centre.
A major focus is the breeding of high-quality females with all replacements being homebred and selected on ewe performance, mothering ability and milk, alongside lamb performance characteristics such as growth.
Ewes which reared crossbred lambs body condition scored, udders check and OPA scanned. (Source: CAFRE)
The only stock bought in are rams which are selected on genetic merit, focusing on maternal traits such as prolificacy, birth weight and milk followed by growth and carcass.
Where available, there is also a focus on health traits such as faecal egg counts (FEC).
All rams entering the flocks enter under strict biosecurity protocols and are quarantined. They will be treated for parasites, OPA scanned and brought into the vaccination programme.
CAFRE has highlighted that the hill sheep sector is a "major component" of the Northern Irish sheep industry, striving for productive flocks and generating a valuable income stream is crucial to ensure these enterprises remain.
It said the hill sheep systems play a vital role in maintaining the uplands in a desirable state which enhances biodiversity, supports a vast range of wildlife, and delivers on factors such as water quality and carbon sequestration.
These farming enterprises are also an integral aspect of a thriving rural community.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Agriland
4 days ago
- Agriland
CAFRE open day to highlight productivity for sheep enterprises
The College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise's (CAFRE) Hill Farm Centre at Glenwherry is hosting an open day on Wednesday, September 3. The farm, which is home to 1100 ewes, is managed to maximise efficiency and productivity alongside a strong focus on habitat management and enhancing biodiversity. The hill flock consists of Scottish Blackface and Blackface x Swaledale ewes, they graze on the upper areas of the farm, predominantly areas classed as heather moorland and blanked bog. Crossbred ewes and lambs on the Hill Farm at Glenwherry. (Source: CAFRE) A core of the flock, 250 Blackface ewes are bred pure and genetic performance is evaluated through the signet breeding programme, 100 Blackface ewes are crossed with Swaledale to increase hybrid vigour and performance in the crossbred flock. 250 Blackface x Swaledale ewes are mated with Texel to produce a more prolific female with improved milk, growth and carcass to utilise the more productive areas of the farm, with these Texel cross ewes managed on the lower hills and parks. The majority are mated with a terminal sire currently a Meatlinc to produce a lamb capable of high growth rates in a forage-based system with improved carcass confirmation suitable for store or finish. A further group are mated with Lleyn to produce replacements for the lowland flock at the CAFRE beef and sheep centre. A major focus is the breeding of high-quality females with all replacements being homebred and selected on ewe performance, mothering ability and milk, alongside lamb performance characteristics such as growth. Ewes which reared crossbred lambs body condition scored, udders check and OPA scanned. (Source: CAFRE) The only stock bought in are rams which are selected on genetic merit, focusing on maternal traits such as prolificacy, birth weight and milk followed by growth and carcass. Where available, there is also a focus on health traits such as faecal egg counts (FEC). All rams entering the flocks enter under strict biosecurity protocols and are quarantined. They will be treated for parasites, OPA scanned and brought into the vaccination programme. CAFRE has highlighted that the hill sheep sector is a "major component" of the Northern Irish sheep industry, striving for productive flocks and generating a valuable income stream is crucial to ensure these enterprises remain. It said the hill sheep systems play a vital role in maintaining the uplands in a desirable state which enhances biodiversity, supports a vast range of wildlife, and delivers on factors such as water quality and carbon sequestration. These farming enterprises are also an integral aspect of a thriving rural community.
Agriland
10-06-2025
- Agriland
CAFRE models cutting ammonia emissions on beef and sheep farms
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has announced that the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) has modelled both its Lowland Beef and Sheep Centre and their Hill Farm as part of efforts to reduce ammonia emissions. The Lowland Beef and Sheep Centre at the Greenmount campus in Co. Antrim is spread across 130ha of grassland, carrying approximately 100 suckler cows and 270 breeding ewes. The Hill Farm Centre, also in Co. Antrim, is comprised of 960ha, carrying 100 suckler cows and a further 1,300 breeding ewes approximately. The farms have being modelled using data from their 2022 year in line with the National Ammonia Reduction Strategy Evaluation System (NARSES) Ammonia mitigation measures in place In terms of cattle, DAERA stated that both farms are applying all slurry using low emission slurry spreading equipment (LESSE), which is said to reduce ammonia by approximately 30%. On top of this, they are using only stabilised urea when spreading artificial fertiliser, which decreases emissions up to 15%. There are four above-ground slurry stores across the two farms, one of which has an impermeable cover. The other three above-ground stores have lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA) applied, which can reduce ammonia emissions by 60% compared to stores with no cover. As regards to housing, CAFRE are outwintering approximately 20 sucklers to reduce silage and slurry storage demand. Sheep In terms of the on-farm sheep, the main difference between the two locations is that 80% of the Hill Farm flock is housed for three months, while the lowland herd are at pasture all year round. Lowland Farm Hill Farm Grazing/outdoor 72% 53% Housing 0% 18% Manure storage 0% 9% Manure spreading 0% 15% Nitrogen fertilisers 28% 4% Source: DAERA LECA CAFRE applied LECA to their uncovered above-ground slurry storage unit in January, 2025, in a bid to reduce ammonia emissions. The product comes in large 2.2m3 bags with an approximate price guide of £330/bag. The amount of product needed is calculated by multiplying size of the store in square metres by 0.1, which will result in a 10cm layer volume. This value is then divided by the volume of the bags to give the number required for the store.
Agriland
02-05-2025
- Agriland
NI National Hedgerow Week to take place next week
The Tree Council along with the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) in Northern Ireland are celebrating hedgerows as part National Hedgerow Week which begins next Monday, May 5 and this year's theme is the 'Future of Hedgerows'. The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has described hedges being an incredible asset to farms, providing shelter to livestock, capturing carbon and providing food and shelter for a significant proportion of wildlife. Senior biodiversity technologist at CAFRE Nicola Warden said:: 'National Hedgerow Week is about highlighting the important role hedgerows have in our farmed landscape. 'Working within the biodiversity team at CAFRE, we help the farm team to manage existing hedgerows and plant new ones across the farms. 'Throughout the year, it is important to be considering options for future hedge planting and management. 'An existing hedge could be rejuvenated, or a new hedge could be planted to connect two existing habitats, to provide shelter for livestock or to provide wildlife with a network of living field boundaries where they can find adequate spaces to nest, rest or forage within.' Student learning about planting new hedges at CAFRE A recent bird survey carried out across the CAFRE lowland farms found that there are a lot of hedgerow bird species such as blackbirds, wrens and dunnocks using CAFRE hedges to nest or forage in. CAFRE has been managing existing hedgerows to maximise their biodiversity potential through moving away from an annual cut to a three-year rotational cut on suitable internal hedges. 'This has increased the area available to birds to set up safe nesting sites where the nests can be out of reach of predators,' Warden continued. 'Moving to a three-year rotational cut will also allow the hedge species to produce more flowers during the summer and a lot of berries to feed the bird population throughout the winter period. A new mixed species hedgerow planted by students protected from weeds using biodegradable film 'In line with the theme for [National] Hedgerow Week, CAFRE is committed to providing students with the skills and knowledge required to allow them to plant new hedges in the future and manage existing hedges to maximise their biodiversity potential. 'Each year approximately 300m of new hedgerow is established with Level 3 Advanced Technical Extended Diploma students.'
