Summary of the Western Canada Swathgrazing Survey
Background
This online survey of cow-calf producers in Western Canada was conducted to understand the adoption of winter swath grazing and spring residue clean-up among producers. The survey asked about the motivations and deterrents of adopting winter swath grazing and spring-residue grazing practices. Behavioural ethics approval (File #2022-23-12) was obtained from the Red Deer Polytechnic Research Ethics Board on October 26, 2022.
The survey link was open from January 17, 2023, until March 31, 2024. Respondents were recruited by sharing the link (e.g. presentations, QR-codes posters and cards) at industry events, social media posts and e-communications. A total of 245 respondents completed the survey. After reviewing for suspicious responses, 18 were removed, resulting in 227 responses for analysis and reporting 1 There were fortyeight questions in the survey which used skip logic (i.e., irrelevant questions suppressed) on the Voxco Survey Platform administered by the Canadian Hub for Applied and Social Science Research (CHASR).
Even though swathgrazing is one of the least-cost winter feeding strategies (Kelln et al., 2011), reports from the Beef Cattle Research Council (BCRC) show that swath grazing is adopted by less than 20% of producers (BCRC 2024, 2019) who extensively feed their cattle. Swathgrazing provides a system that offers labour and fuel savings with reduced tractor use.
Study Responses and Results
To participate, respondents were cow-calf producers with over fifty beef breeding females calved in 2022. Respondents also had to reside in Western Canada (AB, BC, SK, and MB). Most lived in Alberta (55% of respondents). Ninety-nine percent (99%) of the respondents were cow-calf producers. About 75% of the respondents indicated that they feed their cattle in the field while 38% swathgraze. The popular extensive feeding method was feeding with rolled bales. The majority of the respondents supplied water to their cattle in heated water bowls while 21% deployed equipment to manage swaths during spring. The respondents indicated that the greatest motivation to swathgraze was reduced fuel use (95%) and reduced labour (60%). The top three deterrents for respondents to winter swathgrazing were biomass waste, wildlife damage and the frigid weather. The majority of the respondents started swathgrazing in November and grazed for an average of 69 days. The results also showed that swathgrazing was adopted in spring-calving herds, retained enterprise operations and producer-owned land.
1 When survey links with honourariums are shared online there is potential for fraudulent responses. CHASR reviewed responses and provided suggestions for possible impostor responses (e.g., same email for honourarium, identical start and/or connection times, no cow-calf enterprise, improbable start dates for swathgrazing, extreme bull:cow ratios)
1 . Respondents by province.
Forage (own use)
Grain (own use)
Backgrounding
Grain (sale)
Stocker/Grasser
Forage (sale)
Other
Dairy Finishing
Table1. Respondents by age category
Table 2. Respondents by level of education
Table 3 . Respondents by off-farm employment category Statistics Canada, 2022.
Winter feeding
Table 4. Percentages of feedstuffs fed to cow herds in field/pastures and dry pens.
Field Feeding
Table 2 Number of respondents and average feeding days by field feeding method (n=166)
† Other includes: Silage (9), TMR (1), Lg squares (1), Straw bales (1), processed hay/greenfeed (1), graze hay/bush/sloughs (1), fall rye (1), chopped feed (1), annual forages (1), no detail (2)
Swath grazing
Figure 3. The top reasons that respondents swath graze.
Other responses: most often utilizing crops still in the field from poor weather conditions or, in some cases, seeded late intentionally for grazing, cheaper, improved soil health, weight gain on yearling heifers, cattle stay cleaner.
Oats
Peas
Hairy Vetch
Seeding Month, Swathing Stage and Swathgrazing Start
Seeding Month
Swathing Stage
Do You Provide Supplements at Sub-Zero Temp?
Yes No
Primary Water Source
Use of Animals For Swath Residue Grazing
Classes of Animals Used For Swath Residues Clean-Up
Reasons For Not Using Animals
Muddy fields
Little or no residue
Poor residue quality
Not worth time/money
Other
Animals don't do well
58% of Swathgrazing Practitioners Manage Residues Before Seeding
Yes No
Residue Management Strategies
Disadopters and Reasons for Non-Adoption
Figure 1 Respondents that provided reasons for why they no longer swath graze
REFERENCES
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 2022. Forages and Beef/Dairy, Pork, Poultry and Other Livestock. https://profils-profiles.science.gc.ca/en/research-centre/centre-de-recherche-et-de-developpementde-lacombe/forages-and-beef-dairy-pork
Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development 2004. Swath Grazing in Western Canada: an Introduction. Agri-Facts, Agdex 420/56-2, https://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex9239/$file/420_56-2.pdf
Beef Cattle Research Council 2020. Grazing Management. https://www.beefresearch.ca/researchtopic.cfm/grazing-management-48
Beef Cattle Research Council (2019). Adoption Rates of Recommended Practices by Cow-Calf Operators in Canada. Calgary, AB: Canfax Research Services.
Beef Cattle Research Council (2024). 2022-23 Canadian Cowcalf Survey Summary Report. Calgary, AB: Canfax Research Services.
Canfax. 2022. Canadian Beef Industry – 2021 Census of Agriculture. https://canfax.ca/uploads/2021_COA_Summary.pdf
Kelln, B.M. , H.A. Lardner, J.J. McKinnon, J.R. Campbell, K. Larson, D. Damiran, 2011. Effect of winter feeding system on beef cow performance, reproductive efficiency, and system cost, The Professional Animal Scientist, 27(5): 410-421, https://doi.org/10.15232/S1080-7446(15)30513-1
O’Keefe, C.L. 2021. Validating the stage of maturity at harvest for barley, oat and triticale for swath grazing. MSc Thesis, University of Saskatchewan. https://hdl.handle.net/10388/13526
O’Keefe, C., G.B. Penner, J.J. McKinnon, K. Larson, D. Damiran, H.A. (Bart) Lardner, 2022. Effects of stage of maturity at harvest of cereal crops on biomass and quality, estimated forage dry matter intake, beef cow performance, and system economics, Applied Animal Science, 38(6): 607-619, https://doi.org/10.15232/aas.2022-02327
Statistics Canada. 2022. Canada’s 2021 Census of Agriculture: A story about the transformation of the agriculture industry and adaptiveness of Canadian farmers https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220511/dq220511a-eng.htm
Union Forage 2018. Union Forage Crop Guide. https://www.ediecreekangus.com/Union_Forage_Crop_Guide_2018.pdf
Peace Country Beef and Forage Association 2012. Stage at Swathing Oats for Swath Grazing. https://www.peacecountrybeef.ca/post/stage-at-swathing-oats-for-swath-grazing
Williams, Claire. 2023. Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems and the Prairie Landscape: A Feasibility Assessment. MSc Thesis, University of Saskatchewan. https://hdl.handle.net/10388/15071