The fodder had to remain under the sheds until November, but faced with the summer drought, many cattle farmers are forced to change their plan. “Stocks will be released in mid-August“, loose Fabrice Bournavaud, installed on 145 hectares in Maison-Feyne, north of Creuse, where he raises 400 Limousin cows.
An additional cost for the winter period
To delay the use of his fodder, the breeder organized a rotation of the cows on several plots: “Instead of putting them directly on four hectares, where they will waste a little bit of grass, we put them hectare by hectare.” The rotation saved him time, but in a week he will be forced to dig into his fodder reserveswhen he should have waited until November before using them.
– Julien Penot
Fabrice Bournavaud already knows thathe will have to buy fodder again in winter to fill his use in August. “If you have to compensate for two months without grass, it can go very very quickly. Hay is around 80 euros per ton, a herd of twenty animals eats five to six tons, and there are twenty of herds.“A bill that is added to already heavy charges, such as fuel and fertilizer.
Less meat on the shelves
If Fabrice Bournavaud plans to buy fodder for the moment, other breeders will not be able to afford it. “Either they will part with part of their livestock, or they will buy goods to feed the animals, but you have to have the means“, describes Pascal Lerousseau, president of the Creuse Chamber of Agriculture. The first option is less expensive, and will have consequences for consumers.
“This means that tomorrow, in supermarkets, there will be shelves that will be empty and it will be more complicated for the consumer to find food.“, adds Pascal Lerousseau. In the long term, it is a price increase which is therefore to be feared.