Challenges and opportunities for Sheep farmers in Sweden By: Tomas Olsson, Norrby gård Sheep Breeders Round Table 2013

Tomas Olsson Who am I: Sheepfarmer, working with sheep for 20 year Chairman for Sweden´s Lambproducers Association. -for commercial farmers. -knowledge between farmers. -have discussions with government about our terms. I will talk about: - The challenge for Swedish sheep production. -How do we tackle the challenge on our farm.

What do you know about Sweden? Do you know anything about sheepfarming in Sweden?

Challenge for Sheepfarming Small industry -Lamb is 1,5% of beef and pork slaughter. - Large country with long transports. -Small volumes (3000 lambs/week) Cheap imported lamb - “Swedish fresh lamb year round” - Cooperate with restaurants and chefs Few players in the market. -One abattoir have 80% of the market (SCAN) - Three big retailers. (ICA, COOP, Axfood) - Sell “lamb in box” direct from the farm increases. Slaugher lambs The most lambs are sold direct to slaughterhouse, the price includes transport cost. No markets

Challenge for Sheepfarming The Breeds. -the majority are native breeds with bad carcasses, sometimes the skin to be more valuable than the meat. (Gotlandsheep) -Many love there breed and do not care about the market. A common crossbreed is to cross Finnsheep with Dorset New genetic Sweden are scrapie free and we can´t import live animal. We import Suffolk, Texel, and Dorset semen from UK. We are using vaginal insemination. A few Dorper have been to Sweden with embryo from Canada -

Challenge for Sheepfarming Poor knowledge -We are good on housing sheep. -We improve the production of knowledge from you! -Together with Innovis we have had seminars about: -Parasites and FacPak with Eurion Thomas -Grass management with Charlie Morgan -Animal heath with Neil Sarigson -Sheep management with Lesley Stubbings -Breeding with Sam Boon & George Fell -Shearing courses M Sandercock and A Marshall -We get influences from NZ thru our scanner C Williams

The solution on Norrby Farm Norrby Farm 200 ha land 80 ha cereals 120 ha grass 900 Ewes 600 Finndorset 100 Finnsheep 100 Dorset 50 Texel 50 Suffolk

Norrby Farm Family business -My wife Anna and 3 children Grass from may to October, 200 days housing. -500mm rain per year - Can be cold down to -25

Norrby Farm, Housing Straw: 100kg/ewe per year Area: Ewe 1,4 m2 Pregnant ewe 1,7 m2 Ewe, 2 lambs 2,4m2

Norrby Farm, Housing Silage: 600 t DM per year Barley: 70 t per year Soya:30 t per year

The Commercial flock Work together with a restaurant wholesale - 4 farms lambs March- April (our farm 800 lambs) lambs August- November (our farm 900 lamb) -same customer for 25 year, our farm 15 year -high quality

Early lambing Goal -Lamb on menu 1 March, lambing in January -U grade 3H fat -cw 14-15kg lw 27-28kg -growth 400 g per day weeks old -400 ewes to ram -synchronised

Early lambing

Ewe Crossbreed Finnsheep-Dorset -Finnsheep for fertility and good mothering -Dorset for early mating. -75 kg -scan % -good milking -goal to sell 2 lamb/ewe this year we sold 1.9 lamb/ewe

Early lambing Terminal sire - Texel -Suffolk?

Finnsheep The “love and hate sheep” -Old native shorttail breed from Scandinavian -High fertility % -Good mothers kg -grade O,R -Fine wool Old

Pedigree flock TexelSuffolkDorset -Upcoming sire for indoor lambs -Genetic from Denmark - Some genetic from UK - Focus on muscle and easy lambing -Sustainable exterior -Very popular now, most common for grass feed lambs. -Genetic from NZ and Denmark now semen import from UK -High fertility, 200% Very small breed, 500 ewes in Sweden. Important for crossbreed and out of season lambing Genetic from Denmark Now semen from D Rossiter UK

Spring lambing Pedigree flock and commercial flock. -Indoor lambing in April out on grass around 1 may -Finndorset ewes, tupped with Suffolk -Pedigree flock, Dorset, Texel,Suffolk and the Finnsheep -Struggling with high grass grow rate in June. -no tailing or castration.

Grass season -weaning end of July -using FecPak for parasite control, prescription from Vet for worm drench, no resist problem -slaughter from mid August to mid November -same buyer as spring lamb. -cw 20 kg, lw kg U,R grade, 3l fat We use the dry ewes from early lambing on land with environmental payment.

Economics Lamb to slaughter Autumn: 4.20£ / kg dw (average Sweden 3£ per kg dw) Spring: 6.80£ / kg dw ( average Sweden 4.80£/kg dw) Includes transport wool If you sell, most don´t do it £ /kg Cost Straw: 80£ /t Barley:160£/t Soya:400£/t Texel ram on farm 400£, average auction 800£ Shearing: 3£/ewe

Thanks!