Iain Malcolm, our host at Cromlix, in the ring at Stirling with some Sim-Luing weaned calves

Approximately 350 cattle breeding enthusiasts recently enjoyed a visit to Cromlix Estate near Dunblane to see the renowned suckler herd belonging to Iain and Sarah Malcolm.

The Scottish Simmental Club joined forces with the Luing Cattle Society and the Northern Charolais Breeders Club to hold a joint Beef Open Day at Cromlix. The hosts Iain and Sarah Malcolm have farmed Cromlix Estate in partnership with Mrs. R. D. Eden and family for 12 years. Cromlix extends to 2,400 acres and is run along with the Malcolm’s home farm Wester Coilechat (part of Cambusmore Estate) near Doune. Wester Coilechat has been home to the Malcolm family for four generations and cover 300 acres. Both farms have great natural shelter and free draining soils suitable for outwintering cattle.

Cromlix is farmed very extensively; the estate is all grass with heather and mollinea grass on the hill. No cropping is undertaken. The Malcolm’s run 180 suckler cows all calving March/April to Simmental and Charolais bulls, 27 in-calf heifers calving in March to Simmental bulls and 31 bulling heifers. The cows are all hardy outwintering types mainly Luing and Shorthorn with 40 Sim-Luings. Calves are sold directly off the cows in September and October through UA and Caledonian Marts, Stirling and are consistent top sellers.

Calves are creep fed from early August until sold. Simmental bullocks sold on the 30th of September in Stirling recently achieved prices of £540 for a pen of 8 bullocks averaging 315 kg (£1.71 per kg). Calves are all sold prior to the first subsidy claim. 40 Sim- Luing heifers were sold for breeding on the 14th October in Stirling and they reached prices of £500/head. These prices illustrate the demand for the quality cattle this extensive system is producing.

All stock are outwintered and the cows calve outside but are checked every 4 hours night and day during calving time. The only cows to be housed are problems such as difficult calvings, but this is being eliminated by careful feeding and by buying bulls with good calving indexes.

The cattle are fed either magnesium rolls or rolled barley/oats through the winter-mid April when some receive hay. No silage or hay is made on the estate, but Timothy hay is bought from the Carse of Stirling – in spring 2002 130 4x4 bales were used, the least ever. The farms are currently in organic conversion and no fertilizer has been applied for 5 years, it is very much a low input/low cost system of management, but it is paying off very well for the Malcolms.

Visitors at the Open Day went home with a particularly good impression of the quality of Simmental stock within the herd.

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