Two weeks ago, Teagasc held sheep conferences in Kilkenny and Athlone. The purpose was to demonstrate ways in which income from sheep farming could be improved.

One of the speakers at these events was Dr Jon Hickford from Lincoln University, Christchurch, New Zealand. His paper focused on two main issues: how New Zealand sheep farmers had evolved their business in the absence of subsidies, and new technologies that are available to sheep farmers to help increase their profits.

Dr Hickford explained that sheep farmers in New Zealand lost all their subsidies in 1987 and were forced overnight to produce in an unprotected environment. Those that took on the challenge and succeeded are now running an average of 4,000 stock units on their farms, which are generally one-man operations (one stock unit is the equivalent of one ewe). So how can one man manage 4,000 ewes in New Zealand when many sheep farmers in Ireland struggle once the number goes above 700 ewes?

In addition to increasing the number of ewes per labour unit, New Zealand sheep farmers have also increased their productivity per ewe by 45pc in the past 10 years. This was achieved by increasing lambs reared per ewe and carcass weights. In contrast, over the same period, Irish production increases have been almost static.

The following is a list of some of the reasons why New Zealand sheep farmers are able to manage such large sheep flocks:

1. Operating a grass-based system where the sheep are outdoors all year round. Attention to grassland management (tight grazing, clover swards, frequent lime applications) allows for lambs to be finished off grass at an average carcass weight of 17.5kg for Romney and crossbred flocks.

2. Genetic selection. In New Zealand, a large proportion of the flocks used for breeding rams are recording for production and 'easy care' traits.

3. Intense selection. Sheep that require human intervention at lambing or subsequently for issues such as footrot are culled.

4. Widespread use of gene markers in pedigree flocks to identify sheep that have a high level of cold tolerance (lamb survival) and that are genetically resistant to footrot.

So what can Irish sheep farmers learn from their counterparts downunder?

In Ireland, we have a climate that enables us to grow grass yet we still end up feeding lots of meal to both the ewes and lambs to prop up their performance. More attention to detail is required.

To get good grass growth, pH and P and K levels are important. These issues need to be addressed on many farms. Tight grazing in spring and observing appropriate grass heights throughout the summer are essential if animal performance on grass-only diets is to be optimised. Clover is the magic ingredient that will help lambs to finish after weaning without meals. Again, this is a very under-utilised resource.

Genetic selection in Ireland is running at an abysmally low level. In the absence of a well-utilised breed improvement programme, Irish sheep breeders are going nowhere fast. This may be one of the main drivers for recent imports of New Zealand genetics by progressive farmers into Ireland and the UK. Breed societies in Ireland need to get the new ICBF sheep breeding programme off the ground ASAP.

Higher replacement rates will be needed on sheep farms that want to select for 'easy care' flocks. Ewes will have to be culled for issues other than just age, udders and mouths. Building an easy care flock is only possible where replacements are home-bred or sourced from a reliable source (one that has the same culling procedures as your flock).

The selection for an easy care ewe lamb starts the moment she is born. Any lambs that require assistance at birth, to suckle, that develop foot problems or display poor growth rates, should not be selected as potential flock replacements. Ewes in the flock that require individual attention during the year should also be identified so that they can be selected for culling or put to a terminal sire to ensure that their offspring do not end up in the flock.

The gene marker technology that is currently available to New Zealand farmers has also been made available to farmers in Ireland. This should be of benefit to pedigree breeders in identifying rams that have good scores for footrot resistance and cold tolerance.

In summary, Irish sheep farmers can learn some valuable lessons. Most mid-season lambing flocks are at the point of lambing at this stage and this is a good time to start selecting potential ewe lamb replacements for an easy care flock. The easiest way to do this is to notch the ear of every female lamb that is not suitable as a replacement. At weaning time you will be able to select the biggest ewe lambs that have clean ears as being your future flock ewes.

- Michael Gottstein