Page 7 - Commercial Suffolks 2019

GWEN

TAKES

STOCK

ewes by a Suffolk ram scanned at 163%. ‘I wanted a
At 24, Gwen Price is already
Lambing in February, her first batch sold
proving that she has the on 22 May 2020 and the last batch went commercial flock
drive and expertise to on 29th June with an overall average price
build an excellent of £93. The average of lamb weight and producing what
grades for 2020 were:
farming enterprise the market wants
GRADES
1 2 3L 3H 4L 4H 5 in the best way
E
tudying for her BSc in agriculture and taking on more responsibility in both U 13.04% 43.48% possible’ Gwen Price
then her masters, she also worked full administration for the family business and R 39.13% 4.35%
S time for Wynnstay. A multiple award stock management. Gwen has her own O evidence of weight gain and helps identify
winner, Gwen now farms in her own right 20ha (50acre) rented unit just 10 minutes P- top performing lambs. She examines
as well as working as a Farming Connect from home. Sitting at 130m (420ft) above P+ her cost of production in fine detail and
development officer for Brecknock. sea level she runs a flock of 100 Suffolk produces lambs from a low cost system
cross speckled face ewes, 48 Suffolk/ WEIGHT PER GRADE Kg based on tetraploid HRG, white clover and
Growing up with three older brother speckle yearlings and 50 Suffolk ewe 1 2 3L 3H 4L 4H 5 rape for high energy – high protein forage.
triplets, she has been involved in farming lambs. She also rears British Blue cross and E
as long as she can remember and is now Hereford cross calves to sell on, either as U 20.4 21.4 Gwen’s goal is to produce lambs and
stores or in-calf heifers. heifers as cost effectively and efficiently as
R 18.3 19.6 possible, making the best of what she has
O
Gwen’s lambs are sold to nearby Dunbia rather than stretching herself financially
through the Wales YFC Lamb initiative P- in the short to medium term by trying to
P+
which provides an extra £1 per head if expand acreage or stock numbers too
lambs are hitting the required scheme soon. She plans to increase her flock over
specifications. She finds both the maternal With a strong focus on key performance the next 5 years by selecting and keeping
and more traditional terminal sire traits in indicators (KPIs) Gwen used Welsh the best ewe lambs for breeding stock. ■
the Suffolk suit her enterprise. In December Government funding to buy an electronic
2019, her 22 Suffolk ewes put to a Texel lamb weigher so she can monitor weight Based on an article originally published in
ram, scanned at 200% and 100 speckled gains at least every fortnight which provides the Farmers Guardian July 2020
6 | COMMERCIAL SUFFOLKS | AUTUMN 2020 | | AUTUMN 2020 | COMMERCIAL SUFFOLKS | 7