Keeping Your Livestock Performing This Summer with Dugdale Nutrition
July is in full swing, and for many farms that means long days, full schedules, and making the most of every weather window. Whether you’re in the thick of silage work, keeping an eye on crops, or managing livestock through the warmer weather, it’s one of the busiest, most important stretches of the farming year.
Warmer temperatures bring their own set of challenges. Heat stress can quietly chip away at performance long before it becomes obvious – reduced intakes, dips in milk yield, and lower fertility can all creep in if cows aren’t kept comfortable. Making sure there’s ready access to clean, plentiful water, good ventilation and shade, and a ration that accounts for lower dry matter intakes can all help keep animals performing through the hotter spells. It’s also a good time to keep a close eye on fly control and mineral status, both of which can have a bigger impact than people expect during summer months.
For those in the middle of silage work, getting cutting timing, wilting, and clamp management right now will pay off in feed quality later in the year – and it’s always worth a conversation with your nutritionist if you’re weighing up cutting decisions against the weather forecast.
As always, we’re here to support the farms we work with. If there’s anything you’d like to talk through, or you’d like advice tailored to your own situation, don’t hesitate to get in touch with one of our specialists on 01200 420200.
We’ll also be out and about at a number of shows over the coming few months, including Nantwich Show, Denbigh & Flint Show, Westmorland Show, and the Cheshire Ploughing Match – do come and say hello if you’re there.
And if you’re looking for more information beyond this post, our website is full of helpful resources – technical articles, seasonal advice, product information, and practical insights from our team.
News From the Mill
Behind the scenes, work has been underway at our Bellman Mill site in Clitheroe, where we’ve been carrying out a roof replacement on the mill warehouse. It’s an important investment in the site, but one that meant the mill had to shut down for 60 hours, no small thing for a site that’s usually running around the clock to keep feed moving out to farms.
Rather than let that downtime go to waste, our team used it as an opportunity to get ahead on essential maintenance that’s harder to fit in during normal running hours. That included replacing the CXC1A conveyor, as well as renewing all the outside silo slides, so that everything continues to run smoothly behind the scenes once the mill was back up and running.
Alongside the physical investment in the site, we’ve also been placing a strong focus on finished product quality across the mill. With margins on farm so tight right now, there’s very little room for inconsistency – every bulk load and every bag needs to perform the same way, every time.
That means close attention to detail at every stage of production, from raw material intake right through to the finished feed leaving the mill. It’s not always the most visible part of what we do, but it’s one of the most important – because consistent quality is what helps farmers get the most out of every tonne fed. In practice, that translates to better feed conversion, less waste, and steadier, more predictable results, whether that’s measured in the parlour or on the scales.
It’s this combination – investing in the site itself and continually raising the bar on what leaves it – that we believe makes the real difference for the farms we supply.
Rob, Production Manager, Clitheroe
Get in Touch
Whether you’re planning ahead or tackling a challenge on farm, our team is on hand to help. Give us a call on 01200 420200, or visit our blog here for more seasonal advice and technical resources.
