A recent survey of livestock farmers conducted by the National Farm Research Unit (NFRU) has found that in 2009 over half of farmers interviewed (51%) called the vet only when there was a problem, which had increased from 41% in 2008 and 46% of farmers in 2007. A further 33% of livestock farmers said that the vet visited only when called, a lower percentage than reported in 2008 (40%) or in 2007 (41%). In 2009 only 10% called the vet routinely and just 5% of farmers used the vet only in emergencies, an increase on the 2007 figure of 3%.

In Scotland, 56% of livestock farmers used veterinary services when there was a problem, with 31% said that the vet visited the farm only when they were called. Just 8% of them said the vet visited routinely, with a further 4% saying the vet call only in emergencies.

Sources of non-farming income

Many livestock farmers are now earning income through non-farming activities and a wide range of business enterprises have been adopted by them in recent years. The most frequent sources of non-farming income were found to be residential lettings (12% of farmers who responded), holiday lets (11% of all farmers), livery/equine services (11%) and agricultural contracting (9%). Other non-farming diversifications included caravan sites (6%), letting out land (5%), bed & breakfast (5%) and haulage (3%).

In Scotland the most popular non-farming activities was residential letting (22% of farms) followed by agricultural contracting (14%) and holiday lets (10%). Other diversifications include bed & breakfast (6%) plus a wide range of other activities including storage, livery, letting out land, haulage, horses, mobile masts, shooting, business units, education, construction, dog breeding, plant hire, timber, sawmills and energy generation.

The contribution of non-farming activities to the overall farm income has become more significant. In 2009 39% of livestock farms earned between 10-20% of their total income from non-farming activities compared with 31% in 2006. A further 13% of farms earned between 41-50% of their income and 12% of farms earned between 21-30% of income this way. In 2009 just 12% of farms earned less than 10% of the total farm income from non-farming activities, compared with 19% of farms in 2006.

Calving patterns

The survey indicates that 77% of livestock farmers calved their animals all year round, with 14% doing so in the autumn and spring. In 2007 86% of farmers said that they calved all year round.

In Scotland 71% of farms in 2009 calved all year round, with 9% calving just in the autumn and 14% both autumn and spring.

The most popular calving month was September (32%) followed by August (16%), October (12%), March (10%) and July (9%). Three years before, September was still the most frequent month for calving, selected by 24% of livestock farmers, followed by October (20%), August (16%), March (8%) and July (8%).

When asked at what age their heifers normally had their first calf, the most frequently given answer was at 30 months (46% of farmers), followed by 24 months (21%). In 2006 38% of farmers reported the age for heifers to have their first calf were 30 months, 20% said 24 months and 14% said 28 months. This showed a trend towards later calving.

In Scotland 49% of farmers gave 30 months as the most frequent age for first calving, followed by 17% saying 24 months was the most frequent age. Three years ago, 39% said that 30 months was the most common age for first calves, with a further 14% saying that calving for the first time took place at 24 months, 16% at 26 months and 16% saying 28 months, reflecting the overall trend for later calving.

Trends for organic farming

The NFRU survey calculates that in 2009 and 2008 5% of livestock farms had some organic land, either registered or in transition. This is an increase over 2006 and 2005 where just 3% of livestock farms had some organic land.

In Scotland just 3% of livestock farms had some organic land in 2009, 2008, 2007, and 2006 indicating little change over this time period.