William Waterfield (Andover)

Many organic farmers are struggling with forage this year, but before you hit the panic button and either spend a fortune buying in inferior material or selling a lot of stock there are several points to be considered.

Quantifying the problem should be starting point and if your feed plan is up to date this should be quite straight forward.  One small benefit from this summer is that most silages are higher in dry matter than normal so the problem may not be quite so serious as you feared. However, the bulk density in the silage pit is likely to be less than normal so there may not be as many days feed in the pit as you are hoping for.

With the organic milk price to concentrate ratio now firmly in positive territory it may be worth considering feeding a bit more concentrate especially if you can incorporate cheaper straights such as lucerne or maize, whilst staying within the feeding standards.

Do you need to feed all the stock organically? With a derogation from your certification officer it is possible to temporarily decertify some replacement organic stock and then feed them organically for the 6 months prior to them becoming productive either entering the dairy herd, calving or lambing. This option is particularly relevant to autumn calving dairy herds who could ensure that they can turnout at least 6 months prior to calving. If you go down this route, then it must be remembered that this stock will never be organic and can only be sold as converted stock which may not be an issue, but it does incur another layer of record keeping when they are finally sold.

If all else fails, then you can apply to DEFRA in catastrophic circumstances drought flood or fire for a derogation to exceed the non-organic allowances. This form is submitted to DEFRA by your Control/ Certification Body.  Organic Farmers and Grower use Record Sheet 29 which needs to be completed in full. The control body will check that the application is suitable and needs to be supported by a feed plan showing how the organic standards will be complied with.  As well as the efforts that you have gone to source organic forages.

A derogation will be allowed if there is no suitable organic forage available locally, normally this refers to in yours or adjoining counties.  It is not sufficient to argue that price is prohibiting the acquisition of the organic forage.  Low quality hay or silage may not be appropriate to higher yielding cows, and this might be grounds for buying in replacement quality forage.

For more information and help in applying for a derogation, contact William at w.waterfield@fcgagric.com or your local FCG Office.