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Alltech’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond mere emissions reduction. It’s part of Alltech’s vision of a Planet of Plenty, in which natural resources are preserved and agricultural practices nourish both people and the planet, addressing such crucial issues as climate change mitigation and food security for a growing global population.
Agricultural traders and suppliers RD Chesters Ltd. are on a mission to facilitate increased demand for locally sourced animal feeds and KEENAN are playing an important role.
RD Chesters has been supplying beef, sheep and dairy farms in Herefordshire and surrounding counties with feeds, seeds, fertilisers and harvest products for over two decades. Managing Director, Owen Thomas, talks through his business plan for expansion.
“I bought RD Chesters back in 2002 from David Chesters. Dave had a successful career locally and was a well-known name. We’ve expanded RD Chesters down the line of buying and selling on the merchant side of the business. In 2011, we decided to make use of the old farm buildings and put in a new farmyard for rearing calves from 2-6 weeks right the way through to finished bulls”.
“We’ve always made blends for ourselves on the back of growing our own cereals. As time went on, predominantly local farmers started asking us to do blends for them. We saw this as an opportunity to grow the business to sell blends from arctic-size delivered loads right the way through to totes. As our cattle numbers have increased to 1,300 and the potential for selling blends to customers has grown also, we saw the need for a more substantial mixer”, says Owen.
Owen explains the rearing and finishing system, which is also used as a way to refine the feed blend process.
“Chris Thorpe, an independent nutritionist, oversees the nutrition for our cattle and the blends we supply too. We start them off on our own Chesters Golden Maverick milk powder, which is 23% protein and 20% oil, along with a calf starter pellet. After about 2 weeks, we start graduating them onto our 16% grower blend. They stay on our 16% grower blend adlib until they reach 350 kilos. Then we transfer them onto the finisher ration over a couple of weeks which they stay on until they are slaughtered at 12.5 to 14 months. They are all fed with adlib straw and rock salt,” explains Owen.
“Based on what we look for with our own farming system, we want to offer a really practical performance-based ration with excellent local service”, says Owen. “For example, we will be able to do tote bags that can hold 1.2 tonnes of feed. 2.4 tonne is about the maximum of what you can tow on a truck and trailer, making it practical for people to collect. We want to offer little practicalities like that all the time.”
“Our customers also like the fact that we source our cereals and ingredients locally, and because we are mixing regularly, our mix is always fresh. This is all proven by our cattle which are here to see to give them a bit of confidence in what they’re buying,” says Owen.
RD Chesters has made a bold investment to facilitate their continuing growth.
“To make us more efficient and to give us the opportunity to produce blends for the local market, we’ve recently invested in a new blending plant and the KEENAN ProMix machine.”
“Before this, we had a trailed High Spec wagon on a tractor. We liked the machine – it was simple and mixed well. On that basis, and given that I could see we were going to get a good service, we made the switch to KEENAN. The brand is well known, so I didn’t really need to be sold on the product,” explains Owen. “We have only just got it going, but so far so good. The whole side opens up and dumps the ration into a pit in less than half a minute which allows us to continually mix.”
“We need to get a few things refined, and we need to learn more than anything. Will Brocklehurst from InTouch is going to come out to us for another day to fine-tune our knowledge on the KEENAN. Our local service agent, Keith Evans, is really practical. He’s already suggested a couple of improvements to the set-up”.
KEENAN ProMix machine specification
Owen Thomas, Managing Director, RD Chesters Ltd.
If you have a project in mind or would like more info please email: keenaninfo@alltech.com
The researchers found that 19%-30% of methane emissions were from the cattle, but the rest was from the wetland soils. If the cows are removed, their research shows, it actually increases the amount of methane the wetland ecosystems give off.
Alltech’s broad spectrum lab-based mycotoxin analysis
More and more evidence is highlighting the negative impact of the multi-mycotoxin challenge on animal health and productivity. Utilising advanced mass spectrometry techniques, Alltech 37+ is designed to reveal the presence of multiple mycotoxins in raw materials, compound feeds and TMRs.
With a network of testing laboratories across North America, Europe and Asia, Alltech can support feed and livestock producers with developing a sampling and testing program that is most suited to their individual needs.
Linked to Alltech’s Mycotoxin Management Portal, producers can easily view and assess their results, and with the support of the local Alltech team can ensure any necessary actions can be implemented to maximise feed quality and protect the health and performance of livestock.
Learn more here: https://www.knowmycotoxins.com/mycotoxin-detection/alltech-37/
KEENAN launched its updated MechFiber+ range of paddle feeders two years ago. Midland’s farm Cows.ie bought the first 28m3 machine and it hasn’t had a day off in two years.
Peter Thomas Keaveney reports.
Click on the link below to view the full Farmers Journal article.
From the first of January 2024, Alltech and KEENAN have become more closely integrated.
Cathal McCormack, Alltech's country manager comments:
“This is a significant business change and one that will see it grow and develop KEENAN in a more efficient and integrated way. Housing KEENAN within the Alltech structure means that we are bringing the KEENAN customer closer; we will have a shorter communication chain and we can respond quicker to farmers’ needs and opportunities.”
With increased consumer demand for low-cost protein and a growth forecast of 1.5-2% for the global poultry market (Rabobank 2023), poultry producers will continue looking to optimise production efficiency. Multi-enzyme complexes can be used to enhance nutrient use and reduce feed costs.
Alltech’s latest annual feed survey found global volumes holding roughly steady, with the 142 countries surveyed having produced an estimated 1.29 billion metric tonnes of feed in 2023, only 0.2% less than 2022. The company’s 2024 Agri-Food Outlook, released yesterday, detailed the regional and sector-level trends behind that figure.
In a year marked by volatility, Alltech's Agri-Food Outlook for 2023 provides a comprehensive overview of the intricate dynamics shaping the feed production industry worldwide.
Analysis of global pig feed conducted by the Alltech 37+ analytical laboratory reveals the ubiquitous nature of these unwanted contaminants. 100% of samples contained mycotoxins, with an average of 8.1 mycotoxins per sample (284 samples, June 2023 to January 2024). The presence of these mycotoxins in feed can have negative effects on the growth, feed intake, feed efficiency, gut health and immunity of pigs. We typically associate animal impacts with higher concentrations of mycotoxins, i.e.
