Beef cost of production: Suckler herds

We present costing and performance insights for beef production suckler herds, using Farmbench data.

What does the 2024/25 season tell us?

Suckler herds for the 2024/25 season recorded in Farmbench saw a slight rise in cost of production from the previous year, however total income increased for 2024/25 due to higher prices for cow and calves.

The Top 25% performers in 2024/25 have a higher cost of production than the 3-year average however net margins are higher in 2025 than the 3-year average. Farms in the top 25% continue to have the larger herd numbers and utilise grazing more than the middle 50% and bottom 25%.

Overheads are a key differential between the top 25%, middle 50% and bottom 25% − top 25% total overheads are £461.39 per cow put to the bull with the bottom 25% being £1288.35 per cow put to the bull.

Top 25% and Middle 50% Farmbench users for suckler herds in 2024/25 experienced an improved year in terms of full economic net margin. The middle 50% and bottom 25% performers in Farmbench, net margins remain negative in 2024/25 (per cow put to the bull).

Beef suckler herds ranked by total economic margin, per cow to the bull

Figure 1. The 2025 beef suckler herds and three-year average cost of production and net margin

Suckler Herd - cost of production		2024/25 (Calving 2025)			3 year average (2023, 2024, 2025)
Suckler Herd - cost of production		Top 25%	Middle 50%	Bottom 25%	Top 25%	Middle 50%	Bottom 25%
Key performance indicators	Cost of production per calf (£/kg)	2.90	3.87	6.56	2.54	3.92	6.26
	200 day weaned calf weight per kg of cow bulled (%)	32.30	32.67	32.22	35.89	33.26	32.48
	Age at first calving (months)	24	28	28	24.83	27.27	29.55
Enterprise details	Number of cows/heifers put to bull	152	52	34	135	64	35
	Total forage area allocated to enterprise (ha)	169.16	61.20	61.38	134	68	60
	Number of weeks housed (weeks)	17	20	23	16	20	21
Technical performance	Cow to bull ratio	27	26	22	28	28	22
	Cows/heifers scanned in-calf (%)	91.17	93.45	93.90	92	92	92
	Calves died from birth to weaning per 100 cows/heifers put to bull (%)	1.75	1.74	2.35	2	2	2
	Calves reared per 100 cows/heifers put to bull (%)	85.72	87.31	91.96	88	87	89
	Daily liveweight gain for weaned calves (kg/day)	0.99	1.01	0.92	1	1	1
	Weight produced per forage hectare (kg/ha)	157	148	99	197	163	112
	Non-forage feed fed DM (kg/hd)	126.49	149.24	148.12	124	155	113
	Harvested forage fed DM (kg/hd)	667.63	1,220.44	1,753.12	857	1,184	1,572
	Creep feed fed (kg/hd)	11.65	22.62	127.93	24	36	43
Income (£/cow put to the bull)	Total income	1,013.40	854.99	877.56	865.67	759	705.47
Variable costs (£/cow put to the bull)	Vet and medicine	43.06	36.77	39.49	38.32	41	43.08
	Bedding	41.36	47.14	83.34	36.66	53	57.65
	Total variable costs	119.37	204.29	217.48	113.68	171	180.08
	Purchased feed including minerals	37.27	51.68	68.88	31.22	53	42.94
	Homegrown forage variable costs	38.72	58.14	116.70	40.93	68	83.86
	Total feed and forage costs	93.50	120.41	255.00	85.20	143	170.15
Overheads (£/cow put to the bull)	Total labour	135.39	183.96	435.66	137.42	198.21	446.03
	Total machinery and equipment	112.13	143.37	292.87	107.47	171.79	298.84
	Total property and energy costs	32.97	42.85	70.77	32.75	56.41	86.16
	Total administration costs	39.74	54.86	96.15	38.71	53.62	90.16
	Total overheads	461.39	616.48	1,288.35	451.45	657.85	1,252.48
Cost of production & margins (£/cow put to the bull)	Full economic cost of production	674.26	941.18	1,760.82	650.33	971.71	1,602.71
Cost of production & margins (£/cow put to the bull)	Full economic net margin	339.13	-86.19	-883.27	215.34	-212.25	-897.24

Source: Farmbench

Understanding the data

Farmbench is an online benchmarking tool that allows you to compare your farm to similar businesses. The latest production year insights have been pulled from the tool and displayed below.

A ‘production year’ means a 12-month period which covers all financial and physical activity relating to the production of the annual crop (plant or animal) from an enterprise. For example, the 2024/25 production year is associated with 2025 lambing, and calving for autumn 2024 and spring 2025.

All the data has been averaged into three benchmark groups and ranked by full economic net profit margin: top 25%, middle 50% and bottom 25% performers.

The Farmbench service will be closing on 30 September 2026. The Farmbench website will remain available to users until then to complete activity relating to the 2024/25 production year and to download reports and data.

Explore our FAQs for more information on the closure of the Farmbench service

Beef: Cost of production and performance