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Stobart Charolais Herd wins Most Improved Award for British Charolais breed
David Stobart (second to left) receives a trophy for his team of Charolais
bulls at the H & H Sale May 2011.
The Stobart Herd owned by David Stobart of Brampton in Cumbria, has been
recognised by EBLEX as the Most Improved Herd of Charolais cattle for
2011.
The award is presented by the EBLEX Beef Better Returns Programme (Beef
David Stobart bought his farm 30 years ago, and ran a
milking herd and commercial sucklers. After being culled out in the 2001
Foot and Mouth outbreak, he decided to concentrate on beef production,
setting up two pedigree herds.
Today the 55-head pedigree Charolais cows share 178ha
(440 acres) of grassland with 90 pedigree Limousin and 400 commercial sheep.
Mr Stobart has always enjoyed working with the
Charolais as a breed, and likes their size, growth rates and good nature.
He started off by buying the Tillbrook Herd from High Wycombe in a
private sale. He began performance recording immediately - at first with
Signet and then with Breedplan. Animals are also scanned for muscle depth.
“I’ve been recording for more than ten years,” explains
Mr Stobart. “I find the figures are a useful tool to take note of.
They are especially good when used in conjunction with experience and
looking at the way the animals look and move.
“I believe a lot of people are now breeding with
figures in mind and relating the performance of progeny back to the sire.
Since using a bull called Woodpark Bishop who has very high Estimated
Breeding Values (EBVs) for muscle depth, we have seen a real difference in
the shape of the calves coming through.”
The cows calve all year round, with the majority March
to May. The calves are weaned at nine months of age and housed. Thirty of
the Charolais cows overwinter outside, but most of the cattle are brought
indoors.
The herd has a high health status; clear of Johnes and
TB, monitoring for BVD and vaccinating against leptospirosis. No cattle are
brought into the farm and replacements are home-bred.
When choosing a bull for breeding, Mr Stobart looks
first for good growth rates, a big square frame and good locomotion.
Then he considers EBVs for other traits such as ease of calving
traits and muscle depth.
When breeding replacements, he considers family lines
and aims to improve shape and growth
rates, while generally pushing up overall figures across the herd.
Female replacements are selected when they are ready to
go to the bull at around 20-22 months of age.
They have to be structurally correct; those with any obvious faults
and no use for breeding are finished at two years old.
Repeat business
Most Stobart animals are sold through Carlisle,
Sterling and Perth bull sales, with many going to commercial beef producers
across the north of England and Scotland.
A high percentage of sales are repeat business from
existing clients. The first son of Bishop sold at 14 months of age to a
farmer who had previously bought two bulls from Mr Stobart.
The herd has had a good deal of success in the show
ring, including winning Male Champion at the Royal Show in 2004 and the
Young Bull class the year after.
Retiring
Commenting on winning the EBLEX award, Mr Stobart says
that as he approaches retirement after 50 years of farming, he sees this as
a timely and fitting end to a successful career.
All his stock, including the pedigree Charolais and
Limousin herds, is to be sold at Carlisle Market on 19 August 2011.
Worthy winner
“The Charolais winner this year is a very well known
and respected herd,” says EBLEX breeding specialist Samuel Boon.
“The Stobarts are experienced and consistent breeders,
striving to provide top quality, high value breeding stock that will produce
commercially desirable progeny. Their use of records and information to
attain top end results has been richly rewarded.
“It is fitting that the herd has won this accolade this
year before dispersal. David is certainly leaving the industry on a high,
and farmers who purchase stock in August will undoubtedly benefit by
introducing Stobart genetics into their herds.”
For more information contact Samuel Boon, EBLEX, mobile: 07887 650355 email:
samuel.boon@eblex.ahdb.org.uk
Issued by Sara Gregson: tel:
01799 530934 mobile: 07768
764062
email: sara@saragregson.co.uk
Notes to editors
·
The Beef
Better Returns Programme (Beef BRP) is funded by EBLEX and aims to help
English beef producers get better returns from their enterprises by
improving their skills in five key areas:
·
EBLEX is the
organisation for beef and lamb levy payers in England, and is a division of
the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).
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