Mineral Check

Trace elements are the talk of the town at this time of year, when everyone is checking the herd and flock level prior to winter. One very simple option for monitoring those mineral levels is checking the liver stores at the meatworks, with the help of a single piece of paper- the Mineral Check formthat goes with the truck driver. At least 10 animals are required to get a gauge of copper stores in the mob, as it can be variable, but just 5 samples are needed to establish selenium, cobalt and zinc levels.

One limitation of the Mineral Check option is that the cull animals are likely to be the worst-performing of the mob, so may have disproportionately low trace element stores. But it can be followed up by liver biopsies and/or blood tests for trace elements in live animals, to establish the average herd level. Mineral Check is an excellent starting point for establishing the lowest trace element levels and the process is very straightforward. Simply give us a call and we’ll send you a form to fill out. This includes your farm details, the name of the trucking company and the name of the meatworks the animals are going to. Then email a copy to the meatworks, give the paper copy to the stock truck driver with the ASD form, sit back and wait for the results!