This year’s National Youngstock Conference offered a new venue, fresh and innovative presentations and plenty of practical take-home pointers.
A busy programme packed with the latest information was presented to a sold-out National Youngstock Conference, held in July at Sandy Park – home of Exeter Chiefs. A diverse range of calf-rearing topics, rather than rugby players, were tackled in conference rooms at the Exeter Chiefs’ stadium. More than 400 delegates spent the day listening to 17 different speakers, covering topics ranging from health, nutrition, and housing. The event sold out quickly this year – and there was a substantial waiting list for cancellations – proving that the conference is fast becoming one of the industry’s top must-attend events.
Delegates were treated to a packed programme of presentations, featuring calf-rearing specialists, including vets and nutritionists, who shared the latest ideas, innovations and practical pointers on how to optimise calf health, welfare and growth.
The event was opened by keynote speaker and renowned Cheshire-based dairy producer Karen Halton, whose refreshing and no-nonsense approach to calf rearing, herd health and welfare, and staff management has won her, and husband Tom, several industry accolades during the past decade. She set the tone for the day, urging delegates to strive to be better calf rearers, focus on the detail and to not simply accept that ‘calves die’.
As in previous years, the conference had something for everyone and catered for all levels of experience, expertise and calf-rearing system – both beef and dairy. Calf rearers looking for a ‘best practice’ refresher on the cornerstones of good management, such as colostrum, milk feeding or weaning, and those wanting an update on the latest research and technology, or how to manage more challenging issues, such as mycoplasma, were not disappointed.
Discussion topics
Topics up for discussion during the day included genomics and genetics, colostrum and milk feeding, weaning, nutrition, using data to monitor and meet growth-target milestones, health and welfare, and housing and ventilation. And there was also a trade-stand area, featuring more than 40 displays, where delegates were able to network and also talk to nutritionists, vets and other calf-rearing specialists and find out more about the latest products, services, technology and ideas on offer to improve calf and youngstock rearing management and outcomes.
The winner of the Calf Rearer of the Year award, sponsored by CowManagement and Wynnstay, was also presented at the event (see below). This competition was new to 2024’s conference and was such a resounding success, with many top-quality entries submitted, that it will be repeated in 2025.
The event’s ‘actionable insights’ competition was also repeated this year. Conference delegates were encouraged to make notes about the key things they’d learned during the day and that they plan to put into action when back on farm.
More than 100 delegates entered the competition this year – double the entries submitted in 2023 – all taking their chance to win one of 15 prizes on offer, including calf jackets, gilets, goodie bags, T-shirts and hats. This year’s platinum conference sponsors were Volac (Feed For Growth), Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health, SCCL, and VetPartners.
Volac’s presentation focused on protein in milk replacer and asked delegates: ‘Do you know what you need?’. This session, presented by Ian Watson and Jessica Cooke, took a close look at the latest research on milk-replacer protein types, and delved into the essential requirements of calf nutrition, within a sustainable rearing system.
They underlined why it’s critical to align early-life nutrition with the calf-rearing system and efficiency objectives for sustainable calf development, and also highlighted when more specialist nutrition was necessary and, crucially, when investments may be better made elsewhere.
Neonatal calf scour was the topic tackled by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health’s vet Becca Cavill. She took a closer look at the practical measures that can be taken to successfully prevent and treat this all-too-common life-threatening disease, answering questions including, ‘what role does vaccination have to play’? And ‘how can robust control strategies to reduce the incidence and severity of scour be put in place’?
Take-home tips
SCCL’s presentation focused on maximising the quality and efficacy of maternal colostrum. Ryan Davies examined the factors that influence the variability in quality of maternal colostrum and the challenges that contribute to failure of passive transfer in calves. Mr Davies outlined new standards for the transfer of passive immunity and explored measures that can be taken to achieve these, stressing that colostrum is not just antibodies. Colostrum has other nutrition and non-nutrition factors that can impact the health, growth and future productivity of calves.
“How clean is your calf shed?’ was the question posed by VetPartners’ Tim Potter. Irregular or inadequate cleaning is one of the most common problems in calf-rearing systems. He highlighted common mistakes made when it comes to hygiene and how they can be avoided, and discussed how producers can assess and regularly monitor hygiene practices.
There were plenty of practical take-home tips from this, and the other 16 sessions held during the day, on how delegates can implement simple solutions to ensure that all the key aspects of calf management are ‘spot on’.
Because the day was extremely busy, with a lot of information to absorb in just seven hours, all the sessions were recorded and shared with delegates, for free, after the event. This serves as an excellent ‘recap’ and also allows calf rearers to share what they’ve learnt, directly, with their work colleagues. The date and venue for the National Youngstock Conference 2025 is yet to be finalised, but will be announced soon.
Andrea lifts calf-rearing crown
Cornwall-based producer Andrea Semmens was presented with the inaugural Calf Rearer of the Year award at this year’s National Youngstock Conference, held at Sandy Park in Exeter, in July. The award, sponsored by conference organisers CowManagement and Wynnstay, was launched to recognise calf rearers’ dedication to the application of calf-rearing best practice.
Andrea is responsible for calf rearing at Raftra Farm, in St Levan, and, since joining her husband to farm full-time after a successful career as an analytical chemist, she has overhauled the family unit’s calf-rearing protocols with huge success in the space of just two years.
As head calf rearer, she manages the heifers that are retained as replacements for the business’s 225-cow Holstein Friesian herd. She also rears beef calves produced from cows that are served with British Blue semen or put to the unit’s Hereford bull.
Andrea’s entry stood out for myriad reasons, and the judges were unanimous in their decision to award her with this year’s top prize of £250. The judges were particularly impressed by her ‘roots up’ approach to reviewing processes on farm, which involved vet and nutritionist expertise, as well as implementing clear and measurable actions, seeking out funding to support any upgrades and improvements to facilities, and her exploration of public engagement.
Andrea said she was thrilled to be named as this year’s winner. “I was shocked because you don’t expect to be nominated, let alone win,” she says. “We have achieved a lot in a short space of time, and it feels great to win and for our success to be recognised. “I’m really proud of what has been achieved. There was a lot to take home from the conference and to share with the team – including this award.”
Two runners up, who each received a framed certificate, were Katy Alvis-Cleeves, from Somerset, and Leah Griffiths, from Cambridgeshire.
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