EVEN the top 5pc of beef producers are forecast to lose money in the new era without farm subsidies.

Richard Fuller, farmer and technical director of the Beef Improvement Group, said costings by the Meat and Livestock Commission and Scottish Agricultural Colleges both reached that conclusion.

"We should not underestimate the scale of the challenge," he said. "What is clear is that it will not be a profitable option just to carry on running the current systems using high-cost Holstein-bred cows and heavy birth-weight terminal sires.

"Major adjustments in breeding strategies, wintering costs, capital expenditure, feed costs and marketing strategies will be necessary to establish profitability over the next few years."

He assured producers attending the conference that, by introducing the Stabiliser as a functional suckler cow, they could cut herd costs by more than £100 a head.

Mr Fuller said the English Beef and Lamb Executive had warned that average suckler herds would lose more than £150 a cow per year under the new CAP regime without headage support.

"While some farmers claim they cannot strip out any more costs, there is ample room for improved technical efficiency," he said.

"Stabilisers, with their lower maintenance requirements and high fertility levels, can make a major contribution towards achieving that goal and returning the unit to profit."

Stabiliser cows were demonstrating a 20pc improvement in feed efficiency from grass, reducing winter silage requirements by two tonnes a head. "And they are hardier - they can be housed up to two months later than average," he said.

"Overall, we've been able to make savings of 20pc on labour and building depreciation, and a similar level on wear and tear on machinery and power requirements."

Mr Fuller, who manages BIG's demonstration nucleus herd of Stabilisers at Givendale in East Yorkshire, told the conference that Stabilisers offered high performance and further cost savings.

"For example, 97 per cent of our Stabiliser cows get in calf within the first three cycles, a vast improvement on the average 20 per cent barren cows recorded by Eblex in UK suckler herds, and that in a long, 20-week calving period," he said.

Stabiliser calves had a relatively low birthweight, averaging 35kg, with no real calving problems. All heifers were mated at 14 months and were expect to wean on average ten calves.

The savings on variable costs of £49 a cow; fixed costs of £29 a head, and improved output estimated at £38 a cow, meant Stabilisers could help suckled calf producers gain an annual £116 a cow over the average suckler cow.

"Stabilisers offer a complete and consistent breeding system using low input, high output cows producing high quality beef which we believe presents a branding opportunity," said Mr Fuller.

"Furthermore, Stabilisers will eventually offer farmers, for the first time ever, the chance to capture a higher share of retail value at the lowest cost.

"This is vital if UK Beef Ltd is to survive."

The Stabiliser had been developed in America to do exactly what was required in the UK - to produce consistent, high eating quality beef for least cost per kilo.