Using technology to boost flock’s lambing ratio

HAVING visited New Zealand as an HCC scholar in 2008,Keith Williams became a demonstration farmer in November that year.

He farms with his wife, Ali, close to the Wales-England border at Hundred House, Powys, and keeps 800 breeding ewes and 20 Welsh Black suckler cows on the 170ha (420 acres) Hendy Farm.

Mr Williams’ motivation for becoming a demonstration farmer was to find ways to increase his lambing percentage from 135 to 140 per cent to get 1.5 lambs reared per ewe.

He also wants to finish all those lambs on grass and forage crops alone, while maximising cattle performance on a low input system.

Work is currently ongoing in monitoring lamb losses in order to try and spot if there are any areas which can be improved to raise the lambs reared per ewe ratio.

The land rises from 850 feet to about 1,150 feet and other work is looking at establishing and feeding red clover leys.

“We agreed to become a development farm in order to try and improve what we are doing by way of accessing new technology,” says Mr Williams.

“Hopefully we will see the benefits beginning to come through next year.”

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