SPRING Sheep Newsletter 2014
Finishing Lambs The Easy Way!
Unfortunately, it looks like our grass growing season has finished six weeks early and decisions need to be made. Should you sell now as
store lambs or hang on to them and get a better price later as heavy lambs? According to the picture below left (the black line is this years’
prices) from the MLA, lamb prices for store lambs are $4.58 in early November, and there are contracts floating about for $5.20 in
January so there is potential to value add your lambs through feeding pellets. The graph (below right) shows the pasture growth rates from
satellite images taken by the CSIRO (Pastures from Space). The red line shows that grass stopped growing early in October, which means
that summer crops aren’t likely to provide much nutrition either.
At the above prices, a 16kg lamb is worth $73 and a 24kg lamb is worth $125. By our feed budget calculations, the cost of getting from 16 kg
weight to 24 kg is about $24, depending on your farm situation. There is definitely a margin in feeding pellets if that is the decision you make.
WHY FEED FIVE STAR PELLETS?
At Five Star we believe there are four basic rules to formulating rations and pellets.
Firstly it must cause no harm, secondly it must work and finally it needs to be
profitable. The fourth is to offer plenty of flexibility of choices.
CAUSE NO HARM
*The big concern most clients have with finishing lambs on grain or pellets is grain poisoning (starch overload or acidosis). All our pellets contain Bentonite
and Lime, both which act as neutralisers of acids formed in the rumen when grain ferments. With over 15 years experience feeding lambs, our nutritionists
know how to meet the energy and protein requirements of growing lambs without resorting to over cooking them with starch. We also include other additives
which reduce the incidence of pink eye, make them less susceptible to coccidiosis and reduce the impact of stress.
* Rumen bacteria in any ruminant like a steady environment, and for a lamb they are normally well adapted to a diet of dry grass. At the time they are
introduced to feed, they will have no or very little starch digesting bacteria in the rumen. The transition from a healthy population of fibre digesting bugs to
starch digesters can take weeks, which is why the process with transitioning lambs onto feed has traditionally taken so long, costing time and money. Five Star
have successfully adapted their rations to cut down this time dramatically and safely, while still achieving excellent results and keeping it simple for the farmer.
IT HAS TO WORK
There are many problems to consider when formulating a ration or a pellet. We all know that no lamb gained weight from feed it didn’t eat.
*Number one priority is that the pellet has to hold together, otherwise it will block feeders and create significant feed wastage. Five Star formulate with
sufficient wheat in the ration to glue the pellets together and then put them through a durability testing machine before they are allowed to leave the mill.
* Once the green grass disappears from the diet, so to do the vitamins and minerals in that green grass. All Five Star pellets have added vitamins A, B, D, & E as
well as zinc, copper, selenium, cobalt, iodine, manganese and chromium to maintain the health and growth of your lambs.
*The lambs have to take to the pellets quickly in order to help achieve high growth rates. To the best of our knowledge, Five Star is the only mill in this district
which adds herbal flavour agents to our pellets, which also has the beneficial effect of promoting more efficient microbes in the rumen.
* Once eaten, the nutrients in the pellets have to be utilised effectively and efficiently by the lamb, otherwise they are wasted. Once consumed, the energy in the
pellets is converted into glucose in the blood. This glucose must be adsorbed into the muscle or else it will leave the lamb via the kidney. Five Star use
chromium as a standard inclusion as it assists insulin to help move glucose out of the blood and into the muscle more efficiently.
* Five Star understands that farmers are busy and don’t have much time. Five Star have a simple and proven 4 day introduction method that is unique to Five
Star and Five Star Sheep products. Imagine buying 5000 lambs which had never seen grain; transporting them and having them on fully opened self-feeders in
three days with no deaths and no sick lambs, but that’s what our customers are doing. When you buy from us we include a lamb feeding guide that is
proven for our products - provided you follow our instructions.
IT HAS TO BE PROFITABLE
*Five Star understand that ultimately feed conversion, certainty of outcome, rapid weight gain and safety of the product matter more than a few dollars
difference in the purchase price. We are able to accurately predict growth rates on various rations and predict the final cost of achieving your targets. Our
experienced nutritionists can work through a feed budget for your situation which takes into account the entire diet – not just the pellets, so that you get the best
possible result. We can even predict milk production in ewes on various diets, as well as lamb growth.
* Five Star recognize that lambs sold over the hooks usually get a premium price compared to those sold through the yards. There have been some years where
the grid premium has paid for the stockfeed. We also know that if lambs are sold over the hooks and doesn’t make the required specifications, the penalties are
high. That is why we set the protein to energy ratio in such a way that we maximise your chances of passing the fat score as well as maximising deposition of
muscle. We strongly recommend if you are using our feed that you talk to your stock agent about the advantages of selling over the hooks.
* Five Star are also very price competitive for the quality product you are buying. We offer generous discounts for prompt payment (up to $25 per ton). Five
Star also offer ex-mill prices if you wish to collect yourself, or you can deliver a load of grain in and collect some lamb pellets at the same time.
FLEXIBILITY OF CHOICE
* Five Star have three standard rations to cover most situations. The EWE and LAMB pellet is just for the purpose its name implies. Like all our pellets it has
our unique vitamin mineral premix and rumen buffers. Our most popular product is the LAMB GROWER PELLET which contains all the rumen buffers and
vitamins and minerals you would expect from a very good lamb feeding pellet to produce good growth and a high degree of animal safety.
* The PREMIUM LAMB STARTER is the best pellet we can manufacture for finishing lambs. The Premium Lamb Starter has extra buffers to shorten the
adaptation period from a fibre based diet to a grain based diet. The extra rumen buffers encourage the lamb to eat more grain and grow even faster. Betaine acts
to reduce heat stress on hot days and assists the lamb to stay hydrated in warm weather.
* Five Star can also manufacture “CUSTOMISED” pellets to suit your individual circumstances. In the past we have made protein pellets that you can add to
your own grain for better results. We can add specific ingredients to suit particular problems encountered on your farm, including putting a stop to ryegrass
staggers with customised pellets.
* Finally there are times when your sheep or lambs don’t need the energy and protein in pellets, but could benefit from extra minerals or buffers i.e. lambs on
summer crops, or ewes in the lead up to lambing or with lambs at food. We have RAIN RESISTANT MINERALS, a water-resistant loose mineral lick at a
reasonable price which are ideal for those situations.
BULK SHEEP
PRICE LIST
Effective: 6th March 2015 — landed price (within 200 km) exclusive of GST (prices are subject to change without notice).
Prices are quoted on 12—27 tonne loads. Smaller loads are also available—freight surcharge will apply.
Five Star Ewe and Lamb (7006):
Recommended for feeding to ewes heavy in lamb or with lambs at foot. Contains high
levels of minerals essential for gestating and lactating ewes, rumen buffering for prevention of acidosis and ammonium chloride to
prevent urinary calculi. Also contains Bovatec for prevention of coccidiosis.
$418.00 + GST ($393/tonne + GST paid in 7 days).
Five Star Lamb Grower (7000.1):
Recommended for feeding for growing and finishing lambs. High energy, high protein
ration contains essential vitamins and minerals for growing lambs. Contains rumen buffers and ammonium chloride for prevention of
acidosis and urinary calculi, and Agolin for palatability and good rumen function. Contains Bovatec.
$428.00 + GST ($403/tonne + GST paid in 7 days).
Five Star Premium Lamb Starter (7000.4):
A very similar product to our Lamb Grower, but contains extra rumen
buffering for feeding to growing and finishing lambs in a feedlot situation, or for those farmers who want an easy to use starter ration
with the protection of extra buffering. Also contains Betaine to prevent heat stress, and Bovatec for increased feed conversion
efficiency and prevention of coccidiosis.
$448.00 + GST ($423/tonne + GST paid in 7 days).
For more information, please contact our sales team:
Sales Manager: Iain MacPherson M: 0417 540 343
Sales/Nutrition: Jess Harmsworth M: 0448 931 100 Tim Huggins: 0467 677 066
Logistics Co-ordinator Ron Anderson: 0458 932 367
Custom mixes can be quoted separately. Credit applications must be completed before delivery.
Guaranteed delivery within 3 days of ordering..
“If the farmer is poor, then so is the whole country”—Polish Proverb.
“If you hit the target every time it’s too near or too big.” – Tom Hirshfield
We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.
- George Bernard Shaw
“You do not lead by hitting people over the head - that's assault, not leadership.”
- Dwight Eisenhower
“The difference between genius and leadership is; genius has its limits” -Albert Einstein
Five Star Stockfeeds
Rain Resistant Minerals.
Rain Resistant Minerals are a safe and easy to use loose lick free choice mineral supplement
which are designed for feeding in a paddock or in feed lot situations. Rain Resistant Minerals
are weather proof, so rain has no effect on the effectiveness or the palatability of the product.
Rain Resistant Minerals contain Calcium, Magnesium, Sulphur, Salt, Zinc, Copper,
Selenium, Cobalt, Manganese, Iodine, Antioxidants and Vitamins A, D and E.
All animals have a requirement for minerals and vitamins in their diet. As we expect more
from them, their requirements for many of these minerals increase—gestation, lactation,
growth and times of stress.
Mineral deficiencies can cause reduced performance and health problems at a subclinical
level, and can be difficult to pin point unless they reveal themselves as a clinical issue. Rain
Resistant Minerals will help prevent with clinical diseases such as grass tetany, milk fever,
pregnancy toxaemia, but also improves animal performance by improving animal health,
fertility, production and growth rates.
Directions for use: Rain Resistant Minerals are simple, safe and easy to use. Feed out in an
empty sloping trough so that water can run off freely, and place in a spot where stock will
have ready access i.e. around a water trough or in a spot where stock camp regularly.
We recommend that you allow 10 grams/50 kg bodyweight per animal per day for the week
(i.e. for a mob of 100 50 kg sheep, allow roughly7 kgs of minerals for the week). Cattle and
sheep will often consume high levels of the Rain Resistant Minerals in the early stages and
then will settle in their intakes as they top up on their mineral requirements.