This system has enabled us to produce the results we look for in rearing replacements and bull calves. We get consistently better producing heifers, the calves take up the feed straight away, wean easier so virtually no checks and once onto pasture they continue a steady weight gain. Another big advantage is that we don’t seem to have bird problems as we used to. The only problem we have is that they eat too much of it.

With the Fiber Fresh system we were able to wean our calves off milk within eight weeks and at that stage we were expecting a check but the calves’ growth was incredible. We never managed to wean calves that early with so much success. We saved a lot of costs by not having to take excessive amounts of milk out of the vat. During the 2007/2008 drought we noticed both the R1’s and R2’s kept on growing and seemed unaffected by the lack of grass and were able to eat lots of other supplements. This year we’ll see our first Fiber Fresh heifers come into the herd and I cannot wait as many people have commented on how good they look. We’re absolutely wrapped with our calves.

This system has consistently allowed us to wean our calves off milk earlier, with considerable milk savings and with less scours. Our calf sheds are cleaner with almost nil wastage and the calves are more settled and less stressed. We find there is no weaning check and they adapt to a life on pasture far easier. With minimal storage space available being able to store the product outside is great and rats won’t touch the FiberStart®. After 20 years of using the Fiber Fresh system, it has proven itself time and time again. Weaning at 6-7 weeks, we have 300-400 calves weighing 80kg on average (Friesians). No easy task when farming at 1400 feet.

"We were introduced to this system two seasons ago and it was a total shift in mind set to what we had been doing previously. The first thing we noticed was calves chewing their cud at five days old and they looked very content. The other aspect that blew us away was their fast rumen development; when they were first put onto pasture they just went straight for grass and did not experience any checks. We also noticed we can grow our calves a lot quicker. This system has proved to be cost effective, big milk savings, easier weaning, bags can be stored outside and ultimately produces the end result that we strive for. Honestly, we are sold on the system."

One of the major bonuses of the system is the calves wean so much easier, we normally weaned them between 6-7 weeks and once onto grass they seem to do very well. In fact, you can see them chewing their cud at 5 days old. We also experience big savings in milk, we use to feed milk up to 12 weeks and it became very expensive but this system allows us to sell it instead of feeding it to the calves. We’ve used these products for the last 12 years and we will continue to do so because it’s a very easy, time saving and cost effective system.

It’s a natural system using natural feed so you know what you are getting. We found it easy to use, one stop feed, we don’t need to use other supplements, saves time on farm and can be stored right next to calves which saves valuable shed space. Our calves basically wean themselves off milk and have shown distinct preference for the hard feed over milk! Our animals consistently weigh 130kg + at 12 weeks of age (Friesians)