A dairy calf to beef system made simple

A Virginia family will show how they run a simple yet profitable dairy calf to beef system during a farm walk next week.

Father and son team Charles and Charlie Smyth will open their farm gates (Eircode A82 DA00) to host the Teagasc DairyBeef500 event on Thursday, July 10 at 7pm. This event promises to be a valuable opportunity for anyone involved in dairy calf to beef to see at first-hand how a system from calf rearing to finishing beef cattle can be labour efficient while at the same time generating goods levels of profitability.

While the weather has generally been favourable in 2025 it still has being a hectic few months on this busy calf to beef farm.

Charlie Smyth, alongside his father Charles, run a progressive and commercially successful dairy calf to beef operation. Their system is built around maximising beef output from grass, consistently hitting key performance targets, and managing costs to ensure a healthy profit.

Each spring, the Smyths purchase around 100 calves (both male and female), from dairy farms across the country. Calves are of mixed breed, including Fleckvieh, Angus, Hereford, Friesian, and a small number of continental crosses such as Belgian Blue, Limousin, and Charolais. Whether sourced directly from farms or through local marts, calf selection is based on strong beef genetics and high Commercial Beef Values (CBV), with Charlie placing a firm emphasis on quality.

The last of the calves are currently still indoors being weaned off of milk, however the bulk of the calves are now outside grazing. Charlie does things slightly different when it comes to weaning calves, they are usually kept inside for one month after coming off milk and are fed a diet of ad lib meal and straw. Charlie believes that this is key to having a calf that is well able to thrive when they go to grass.

These calves were on 1.5kg of meal until July 1 when it was reduced to 1kg. Meal is kept with calves throughout the summer, “I think the kg of meal is great for holding the condition on calves because not every day is going to be dry and sunny and the reality is not every day they will be going into the right grass covers either.”

Despite sourcing calves from a wide range of suppliers, a strict health plan keeps calf mortality impressively low at under one per cent annually. All calves are put on a vaccination programme for pneumonia and IBR shortly after arrival. Calves are out about three weeks now and they will receive their first worm dose shortly.

Operating across five fragmented land blocks on a mix of free-draining and heavy drumlin soils, the Smyths’ farm presents a challenge that many beef farmers face, yet they are able to generate good levels of profit every year from calf to beef production. If weather conditions are tricky in the spring cattle may not get out until April in this part of the country. So key to keeping the meal bill down is to make good quality silage. First cut silage was mown on May 15 and will test at around mid-70’s DMD. At the moment with such high growth rates, a lot of surplus paddocks are being taken out as high quality baled silage.

Since joining the DairyBeef500 programme, the Smyth’s have invested heavily in farm infrastructure. In 2024, they constructed a modern finishing shed capable of comfortably housing 64 finishing cattle.

Grass utilisation is another focus area on the farm and Charlie has installed a new paddock system with centralised water troughs and temporary fencing to allow for flexibility and rotational grazing. Cattle are typically moved every three days to improve grass utilisation.

Animal performance

Looking ahead, Charlie is determined to push animal performance further by improving grazing management. “If you're not measuring what you have, you're more than likely to graze heavy covers out of fear of running out of grass,” he says. “That can really affect weight gain. This year, I’m putting a real focus on measuring grass to optimise cattle performance.

“I want a lot of my yearling cattle as close to 500kg by the first of October and I just won’t achieve this if I’m constantly going into heavy covers.”

Along with the Smyths, Teagasc advisors and specialists will be available on the night for interactive discussions and to answer all questions that arise. On the night, attendees will see and hear about how the Smyth’s maintain calf performance at grass and how they maximise grass production whilst improving water quality.

There will be a live demo on selecting heifers for finishing and an interactive discussion on calf to beef budgets and the financial performance of the farm will take place. There will be a lot of valuable information and experiences to be shared on the night and anyone with an interest in dairy calf to beef systems should feel free to attend.