Teamwork helps hit home-growth goals

Fresh from the success of our Lionesses football team, we’re all feeling a sense of pride as we reflect on what can be achieved when a team works cohesively together. And whilst we at Kelvin Cave Ltd can’t claim to have achieved the same adulation, we are all very firmly focussed on how we can work as a team both with and for our customers.

We have always been keen to supply far more than just a product, rather seeking a whole system solution, helping growers recognise how their land can produce exactly what their livestock (or customers) need and often finding contractors who can help make this happen. Our goal is to ensure the best home-grown feed – whether forage or concentrate – is always preserved and stored at the highest possible nutrient value.

This is illustrated in our case study in which Lancashire farmer, John Norris, describes his reservations about switching from wholecrop to crimped wheat (Switching from whole crop to grain in England’s wet northwest). However, by working with Kelvin Cave Ltd, whose team has helped him identify and arrange three local contractors to fulfil different functions, the family has overcome its concerns. Today, the Norrises produce crimped wheat as a high value concentrate feed in place of wholecrop forage from their entire cereal acreage. This has slashed the amount of purchased grain coming on to the farm and cut the cost of rations for dairy and beef. For this family, 2025 has been their most productive ever cereal-growing year.

In continued drought conditions, some growers have had to whole crop cereals originally destined for crimping and are now looking for alternative concentrates. Despite the obvious option, of reaching for the traditional compound feed, there may be more cost-effective and carbon-friendly alternatives, including buying from other farmers.

Late cut silage

For those who continue to suffer from forage shortages, there may be a chance to take a late cut of silage when the rains come. However, the process is likely to be carried out in less-than-ideal conditions. Our chemical preservative, MultiMax, has been uniquely formulated and tested to deal with high levels of soil contamination, and can be depended on to ensure a successful fermentation in such conditions. Some top tips for making late season silage can be found in our article Making the best quality silage from autumn-cut grass.

Forage maize

The independent work on forage maize preservation featured in our Summer 2025 issue of KnowHow (New research confirms some silage additives are no better than untreated control) continues in this issue in the article Ongoing research raises extra concerns over some additives on maize and highlights the significant benefits of using Safesil Pro. This is corroborated on farm by father and daughter team, Martin and Elaine Sedgewick, who have introduced maize to an area that’s marginal for this crop in County Durham and have treated it with Safesil Pro (Pushing the boundaries with maize). So impressed have they been with this preservative, it is now used on every forage on the farm, including wholecrop beans for the first time this year.

Whatever the feed or forage you are seeking to grow and preserve, the team at Kelvin Cave Ltd – from those in the backroom who ensure your products and spares are delivered, to the independent scientists we work alongside to trial and test the products we recommend – are all pulling together to meet your goals. Our aim is to make sure home-grown feeds are a cornerstone of your business so you can hit the back of the net for performance and profit.