Extra feed with autumn grass didn’t help steers
In Eddie O’Riordan’s trial at Teagasc, Grange, Co Meath, 66 spring-born Aberdeen Angus cross Holstein-Friesian steers, having grazed predominantly perennial ryegrass swards for three months until early July, were divided into three groups and offered either:
*grazed grass only.
*grazed grass and 1.5kg of rolled barley.
*grazed grass and 3kg of concentrate.
After 112 days, half of the animals in each group were slaughtered, and the remainder housed and offered ad-lib quantities of barley-based concentrates until slaughter, 89 days later.
At the end of the three-month period of supplementation, animals getting 1.5kg of concentrates daily were 10kg heavier that grass-only steers.
Supplementing with 3kg daily added 2kg extra to liveweight. The response to concentrates at pasture was 62g of liveweight per kg of dry matter for 1.5kg, and 43g for 3kg.
When slaughtered off grass, the meal feeding increased kill out by 1%.
Where subsequently finished indoors, all three pasture groups had similar carcass weights, fat and conformation scores.
