Becky Fenton and husband Paul milk 180 pedigree Holsteins under the Springlebee prefix at Centenary Farm, a Cheshire county council farm. In 2021, they bought a farm in Staffordshire and they plan to farm there once the new dairy set-up has been built.
I start this column with achievement. After several years out of the show circle, we decided it was time to get back out there. So at the end of July we attended our local agricultural show, Nantwich Show.
The show has been cancelled the previous three years and was newly relocated this year. We decided to take just one third calved cow and three calves for our boys to show.
Im pleased to say we came away with overall supreme dairy championship. This is something that we are proud of, and the first time we have achieved this accolade in our showing history.
All three of our boys took calves into the showmanship class and our eldest son took home the award for champion calf handler.
We have always been fond of showing and I can appreciate a good cow, but two things I always remember about judging of any kind really is; it is only one persons opinion and, is it best to have one amazing cow for everyone to see at a show, or a good uniform herd of unrecognised cows at home?
One thing myself and fellow exhibitors noticed at Nantwich Show was there was a real engagement and interest in the livestock from the general public.
We were happy to answer questions they had and let them stroke the animals. We sometimes take for granted how lucky our children are to grow up on a farm. A farmer once said to me if you havent lived on a farm you havent lived at all.
Since our farming journey began, we have always been keen to build our portfolio. This has always proved us well when applying for farms, and other opportunities.
We recently entered the Cheshire Farms Competition and were fortunate to win two classes and were awarded first prize in the combined west and east Cheshire county farms class and also the and dairy herd black and white class.
This led us to be in with a chance in the overall supreme competition. Unfortunately we didnt win but I would like to congratulate the Beck family of Sandbach on their success. We attended their open evening and it demonstrated that they were worthy winners.
Here at Centenary Farm, we graze our cows day and night in the summer months, alongside silage fed twice daily. In normal circumstances we have enough grass in front of them to rotate fields.
However, in June and July we experienced exceptionally dry months with very limited rainfall, and therefore limited grass.
We were forced to open first cut silage and buffer feed 8kg of brewers grains and 1kg of blend. Adding moisture and palatability to the diet lifted intake and resulted in an increase of 2.8 litres per cow. That said we have finally had a downpour of rain and now ceased the blend.
Third cut silage was minimal and disappointing due to the weather. Fourth cut is looking more promising and bulking up well. And we have shut off grazed fields for extra silage.
We recently completed our carbon footprint assessment, it was relatively painless, some might think pointless. Our next inspection is from the Environment Agency, who are carrying out routine visits in Cheshire to see if we are complying with regulations and discuss ways to protect the environment.
Meanwhile I strive to get through the rest of the summer holidays without loosing the plot!
