“Suckler Beef - A practical guide to profitability” offers tips on every aspect of production including profit drivers, suckler cow management, replacement heifer management, calf management, genetic evaluation, sire selection and management, and calf fattening. In each chapter, the key factors are discussed and best practices and guidelines are explained in an easy to understand manner. This text offers something for the full range of farmers from the beginner, who needs to know the basics, to the experienced farmer, looking to fine tune his techniques.

"This guide is one of the most concise and useful books on cattle production that I have ever encountered" - says Lee Leachman from Leachman Cattle of Colorado.

Its focus is simple: What is the most profitable model for beef production in the UK, and how do you build it? Based on a lifetime of astute observation by Richard Fuller, this book offers practical advice that has been proven in the field, not just studied in the classroom. For thousands of years, man has been captivated by breeding and improving cattle. In the early days, cattle represented valuable sources of milk, protein, and farm work while being an effective way to store wealth. Then came the modern annals of breed formation and improvement. The very first breeders of pedigree stock sought a uniform type and kind.

Only within the last two hundred years did cattle production turn into a source for mass food production. Farmers began to produce far more beef than they could eat themselves or even consume within their local village. Instead, the production was developed to supply beef to the growing urban populations. With this shift, came the inevitable quest to make the beast better at producing beef. As home to many of the dominant temperate region breeds including Angus and Hereford, few, if any, countries enjoy a more storied history in cattle breeding than does the UK.

In the late 19th and 20th centuries, UK stockmen gained a strong worldwide reputation for their good cattle, keen eye, and professional herdsman abilities. However, their leadership and global importance waned near the turn of the century as spiraling land values, decades of EU subsidies, BSE, and a quest for leaner, heavier muscled carcasses made them less and less competitive in the global beef market.

Today, a small cadre of dedicated beef farmers continues the long tradition of cattle breeding in the UK. Their struggle is significant, but they are resolved and dedicated to continue turning grass into beef. Their worthy goals are to preserve their heritage, their land, and their family’s way of life. This work, “Suckler Beef - A Practical Guide to Profitability” by Richard Fuller, is designed to aid and encourage this group of beef farmers.

‘’Suckler Beef’’ is one of the most concise and useful books on cattle production. Its focus is simple. What is the most profitable model for beef production in the UK and how do you build it? Read it. Read it again. Mull it over. Talk about it with other farmers. Put it into practice. Then, you will see the results in your own herd on your own farm!

• Chapter 1 16 - 31: The Principles of Production
• Chapter 2 32 - 53: Management of the Suckler Cow
• Chapter 3 54 - 61: Heifer Replacements
• Chapter 4 62 - 67: Managing the Suckled Calf
• Chapter 5 68 - 77: Genetic Evaluation
• Chapter 6 78 - 85: The Herd Sire
• Chapter 7 86 - 93: Finishing Suckled Calves
• Chapter 8 94 - 99: Net Feed Efficiency
• Chapter 9 100 - 109: The Stabiliser™ Story
• Chapter 10 110 - 127: The Stabiliser™ Philisophy

"This is a most impressive publication by an author who has the knowledge and experience to stimulate the reader – be they a farmer, consultant, student or lecturer. I would have been more than pleased to have a copy when lecturing on the subject years ago!   The layout and presentation is modern, most attractive and enhanced by excellent images, graphs and tables. The use of colour for each Section is most helpful to the reader, as are the highlighted, bracketed key statements.  The content is comprehensive, in a logical order and demonstrates that with excellent management and control, a suckler beef enterprise can in fact be profitable.  The Author explains clearly the importance of using new technologies to produce animals which meet market requirements, as well as the essential need for a moderately sized cow which can be achieved by establishing a composite breed.

I congratulate the publishers on a stimulating, well presented book and especially Richard Fuller – Master Breeder, Great Author and Excellent Photographer."

Prof J Malcolm Stansfield  MBE