Management Strategies to Improve the Economics of Sheep Farms in Norwegian Coastal and Fjord Areas—The Effect of Animal Size and Capacities for Rangeland Utilisation
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
- Alternative 1—Delayed season: Delaying lambing for 16 days until the start of grazing (around 1 May) and a corresponding 15 days delay in slaughtering until around 5 October.
- Alternative 2—Hogget production: Overwintering of female lambs and marketing them as hogget in July or August.
- Alternative 3—As with Alternative 2, and with first lambing when 2 years old
- Alternative 4—As with Alternative 3, but assuming longer ewe lifespan. The first lambing at two years of age, and, in addition, increasing the ewe life span to five (5.3) years.
3. Results and Discussion
4. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Description | NOK | Description | NOK |
---|---|---|---|
Basic price cull ewe meat, per kg | 7.18 | Support per sheep, 1–150 | 883 |
Basic price hogget, per kg | 10.28 | Support per sheep, >150 | 194 |
Basic price lamb, per kg | 66.10 | Lamb support, grade O, per carcass | 450 |
Basic support meat, per kg | 3.81 | Lamb support, grade <O, per carcass | 41 |
Shearing costs, per kg of meat | 0.52 | Concentrate Lamb, (92, 11) * per kg | 3.69 |
Wool, per kg | 53.8 | Concentrate Fibre, (86, 11) * per kg | 3.72 |
Relief support, per sheep | 458 | Concentrate Sheep, (96, 12) * per kg | 4.21 |
Grazing farmland, per animal | 50 | Diesel, per Liter | 11.52 |
Grazing rangeland, per animal | 205 | Mineral fertiliser, 22-2-12, per kg | 3.72 |
Alternative Scenarios | Description |
---|---|
1. Delayed season | Delayed lambing for 16 days until the start of grazing (around 1 May) and a corresponding 15 days delay in slaughtering until around 5 October. |
2. Hogget production | Overwintering of surplus female lambs and marketing them as hogget in July or August. |
3. First lambing when 2 years old | As with Alternative 2, but with first lambing when ewe is 2 years old. |
4. Longevity increased to 5.3 years | As with Alternative 3, but assuming longer ewe lifespan (5.3 years). |
Gross Margin, 1000 NOK | Breeding Sheep | Hoggets for Meat | Lambs (0–1 years) | Hired Work, (hours) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Current practice, lifespan 3.3 years | 401 | 119 | 0 | 53 | 570 |
Alternative scenarios a | |||||
1. Delayed season | 369 | 116 | 0 | 52 | 510 |
2. Hogget production | 279 | 99 | 52 | 44 | 593 |
3. First lambing when 2 years old | 354 | 157 | 0 | 70 | 693 |
4. Longevity increased to 5.3 years | 417 | 163 | 0 | 38 | 612 |
Gross Margin, 1000 NOK | Breeding Sheep | Hoggets for Meat | Lambs (0–1 years) | Hired Work (hours) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Current practice, lifespan 3.3 years | 423 | 132 | 0 | 59 | 754 |
Alternative scenarios a | |||||
1. Delayed season | 389 | 134 | 0 | 59 | 763 |
2. Hogget production | 372 | 112 | 59 | 50 | 583 |
3. First lambing when 2 years old | 388 | 160 | 0 | 72 | 593 |
4. Longevity increased to 5.3 years | 451 | 163 | 0 | 38 | 718 |
Concentrates FEm */Sheep | Roughage FEm */Sheep | Yield FEm */ha | Concentrates FEm */kg Meat (overall) | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Current practice, lifetime 3.3 years | 98 | 348 | 2699 | 3.59 |
Alternative scenarios a | ||||
1. Delayed season | 117 | 325 | 2550 | 4.33 |
2. Hogget production | 105 | 409 | 2700 | 3.00 |
3. First lambing when 2 years old | 81 | 285 | 2694 | 4.31 |
4. Longevity increased to 5.3 years | 68 | 330 | 2701 | 3.10 |
Gross Margin, 1000 NOK | Breeding Sheep | Roughage FEm */Sheep | Concentrates FEm */kg Meat | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Current practice, lifetime 3.3 years | 22 | 13 | −39 | −0.28 |
Alternative scenarios a | ||||
1. Delayed season | 20 | 17 | −55 | −0.02 |
2. Hogget production | 94 | 13 | −58 | 0.15 |
3. First ambing when 2 years old | 34 | 3 | −11 | −1.30 |
4. Longevity increased to 5.3 years | 33 | 0 | −1 | −1.68 |
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Bhatti, M.A.; Eik, L.O.; Steinheim, G.; Ådnøy, T.; Hopkins, D.L.; Asheim, L.J. Management Strategies to Improve the Economics of Sheep Farms in Norwegian Coastal and Fjord Areas—The Effect of Animal Size and Capacities for Rangeland Utilisation. Sustainability 2020, 12, 3713. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093713
Bhatti MA, Eik LO, Steinheim G, Ådnøy T, Hopkins DL, Asheim LJ. Management Strategies to Improve the Economics of Sheep Farms in Norwegian Coastal and Fjord Areas—The Effect of Animal Size and Capacities for Rangeland Utilisation. Sustainability. 2020; 12(9):3713. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093713
Chicago/Turabian StyleBhatti, Muhammad Azher, Lars Olav Eik, Geir Steinheim, Tormod Ådnøy, David L. Hopkins, and Leif Jarle Asheim. 2020. "Management Strategies to Improve the Economics of Sheep Farms in Norwegian Coastal and Fjord Areas—The Effect of Animal Size and Capacities for Rangeland Utilisation" Sustainability 12, no. 9: 3713. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093713