Cowmanagement March-April 2019

M ARC H/AP RIL 2019

Grassland renovation and adding resilience to forage systems

Gene editing:

what could this tech mean for dairy breeding?

NMR/RABDF

Gold Cup winning herd profile

GET THE LATEST NEWS AT WWW.C OWMA NAGEMENT.CO.UK

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08-03-19 13:54

FatBoost

The unique feed to enhance butterfat.

FatBoost is an amino acid based product which manipulates fatty acid production in the rumen and prevents milk fat depression.

It is suitable for all dairy production systems and will be especially beneficial to grazing cows this spring and summer.

For more information contact your local account manager or call:

Enhance butterfat Boost milk yields Supply essential amino acids

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CONTENT FEATURE S

5 6 13 19 23 35 39 43 47 50

main article gene-editing

From the editor Cow talk Value added: golf driving range Roger Evans Boehringer Ingelheim Health News ForFarmers Nutritional News/ Thompsons Nutritional News CRV Avoncroft Breeding Information Veterinary practice: ventral hernia NMR Dairy Management News Events and contacts MAIN A RT IC L E

8 Gene-editing tech: benefits and controversy REPORT

14 Dream team helps Gold Cup winners to realise life-long ambition HEA LTH

20 Positive about pregnancy 36 BVD survey results reveal positive trends SPECIAL

25 High-sugar grasses, renovating swards and adding resilience

8 herd report Gold Cup winner

special grassland and forage

FEEDIN G

40 Going green: nitrogen fertiliser/ Investing in grass leys fit for the future BREEDI N G

44 Kiwi sires suit UK grass-based systems

MAR CH/A PRIL

2019

tion Grassland renova resilience

and adding to forage systems

Gene editing:

tech mean what could this ? for dairy breeding NMR/RABDF

g Gold Cup winnin herd profile

.COW MAN ST NEWS AT WWW GET THE LATE

AGE MEN T.CO

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25

Philip Metcalfe:

Derek Haworth:

“It’s been a long time coming, but we finally made it”

“Grass is cheapest and best quality feed”

.UK

ON THE COVER

Feeding time: cows enjoying their fresh TMR Picture: Mark Pasveer

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26 cowmanagement MARCH/APRIL 2019

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17-01-19 15:10

FROM THE EDITOR

Spring signals start of

renewed focus on forage Thank you to everyone who came to our stand at Dairy-Tech 2019 to say ‘hello’ and take part in our snowball-throwing competition. The prize winners have all been informed and we should have a photograph of the lucky winner of our star prize – a CalfOTel Comfort hutch and pen – in our next issue. We’ve also had some extremely positive feedback about CowManagement’s new design. You like it, which is good news. Change isn’t always so well received!

The arrival of spring is a change that’s always welcome and, judging by our Twitter feed, many herds were already out grazing, albeit part time, in February. This time of year also focuses minds on the coming forage growing season. And plans are much sharper this year after what was, for many, a difficult 2018 season. Drought hit many grass leys – and newly re-filled silage clamps – hard in the summer. And this blow was particularly heavy on units that had already seen a late spring and subsequent turnout and were

planning to bolster dwindling forage stocks when the good grass growing weather finally arrived.

Some forecasters are saying that summer 2019 could mirror 2018 – or that conditions could be even drier. So what steps can producers take to build some resilience into their forage systems and plug any gaps created by slow, or no, grass growth?

Renovating drought-damaged swards is a good start, but what alternative crops could help to provide a robust solution to any potential shortages? Take a look at our Grassland and forage special, which starts on page 25.

We also profile this year’s NMR/RABDF Gold Cup competition winning herd on page 14. Read our herd report and see if it whets your appetite for a visit to this summer’s open day.

And Roger Evan shares more of his ruminations, this time on bTB, on page 19. Unlike the weather, he says that there’s been little change on that front for more than 50 years.

RACHAEL PORTER

cowmanagement MARCH/APRIL 2019

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COWTALK

First 100% grass-fed organic cheddar launched West Country cheese-maker Lye Cross Farm, based at Redhill near Bristol, has launched a cheddar cheese produce using milk from herds that are 100% grass fed.

Genuine 100% grass-fed dairy products have a more balanced omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid profile, and additional vitamins and minerals, compared to milk from cows that are fed grains as part of their ration.

The cheese is made using organic milk from commercial producers Mat and Jessica Boley, who farm in Somerset, and Wiltshire-based Jonny and Rachael Rider. Both herds are members of the Pasture-Fed Livestock Association (PFLA).

The cheese is certified ‘Pasture for Life’, which means it has been independently audited as being produced using milk from cows that have been 100% grass-fed. Lye Cross Farm is also a certified Pasture for Life creamery.

The first 100% grass-fed organic cheese, made from milk produced in spring 2018, has been maturing for nine months and was exported for sale in America in January 2019 “This is one of the first 100% grass-fed cheeses to be sold into America, using the ‘A Greener World 100% grass-fed’ label – the equivalent to ‘Pasture for Life’ here,” says Lye Cross Farms’ Ben Hutchins.

Up to a third of feed lost in waste Producers could be losing as much as £1.00 in every £3.00 they spend on feed, according to the results of a UK pilot study to measure feed conversion efficiency and feed waste.

“Feed is the single biggest cost for UK dairy businesses, accounting for 60% of variable costs, yet industry research suggests it is one of the most under-utilised inputs, with as much as 45% of its potential lost,” says Alltech’s Ian Leach.

“Preliminary results from a pilot study, involving 34 herds and carried out in conjunction with industry, reinforces the scale of the feed-waste issue,” he explains. “The study is assessing a variety of different critical

control points where feed wastage occurs, including in the field, during storage, at feeding out and inside the cow.”

Mr Leach adds that the study has confirmed that it is likely there is scope for huge improvement across the spectrum of UK dairy units.

“Results show that average dry-matter losses in silage clamps is around 25%. On the majority of units in the study, the greatest losses were in the most nutritive part of the silage resulting in the undigestible proportion increasing.

“Not only does this reduce dry matter intakes, but it also has the potential to lead to health

issues, such as SARA, as it alters the balance of the ration.”

Mr Leach adds that at feeding out, physical ration presentation and feed barrier space was also an issue.

“There was evidence of sorting and ‘balled’ silage on 19 of the 34 test farms.

And 23 of the units also fell short of the target feed barrier space of 65cm per cow.

Both can impact on feed conversion efficiency, which averaged 1.2 across the pilot-study herds. And we know that incremental improvements in this key parameter can significantly reduce feed wastage.”

Selenium supplement offers immunity boost A selenium supplement, which has been developed to help ensure that cows are better placed to fight immune-system challenges, particularly around transition and other periods of high oxidative stress, has been launched by Zinpro.

AvailaSe is a unique organic form of selenium and is the only selenium source proven to be highly resistant to degradation in the rumen, meaning more is available for absorption.

“Selenium is essential for an effective immune system,” explains the company’s Jonathan Huxtable.

“A daily supply of selenium, as well as mobilising body reserves of selenium, helps cows to fight oxidative stress and immune system challenges.

“Body reserves of selenium are particular important because at times of high demand,

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such as transition, intakes can be at their lowest. Only selenium that is absorbed in combination with an amino acid, such as methionine, will be incorporated and stored in body tissues.”

So effective selenium supplementation requires high levels of initial absorption from the diet followed by efficient storage in the body tissues.

Just 35% of inorganic selenium passes through the rumen to be absorbed in the small intestine and inorganic sources are poorly accumulated into body tissue.

The company says that its product is absorbed almost entirely as selenomethionine and delivers 1.6 times more seleno-methionine to the tissues and colostrum than other sources of selenium yeast.

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Pocket-size analyser offers instant on-farm results Producers and nutritionists can now measure silage dry matter on farm using a hand-held sensor in less than a minute. Eurofins Agro UK, in partnership with Consumer Physics, launched the SCiO sensor at Dairy-Tech 2019.

This is an a on-farm feed analysis tool, which is already being used by early adopters in the UK, such as Harpers Feeds.

The analyser is a hand-held connected smart sensor that allows producers and nutritionists to test the dry matter of a variety of silages.

This then allows them to adjust rations based on real-time data. The technology is cloud based, which allows for regular app updates as part of the service. And it also allows any new calibrations that are currently being developed by Eurofins, including additional forage types and attributes, to be delivered to the user.

“This technology provides users with insight into dry matter variation over time and gives an indication of when further in-depth lab testing is necessary to fine-tune rations, optimise yield, and realise crucial cost efficiencies,” says the company’s Isobel Dale.

Harpers Feeds says that it has adopted this service to provide its customers with an extra level of responsiveness. “This technology allows our nutritionists to adjust rations during

the farm visit based on real-time analytical results,” says the company’s Bruce Forshaw.

“Once a ration is set up, dry matter is the key factor determining the potential

productivity on farm and this hand-held system helps us to keep track of this dynamic factor in a simple, immediate and digital way.”

Dairy marketing hits the big screen Cinema advertising will be used for the first time in AHDB and Dairy UK’s £1.2 million consumer marketing campaign, which will run nationwide for 10 weeks from mid March.

Now in its second year, the promotional activity will also include videos on social media and on-demand TV, alongside digital outdoor advertising throughout London.

The campaign will continue to target millennials (16 to 35 years olds) including young parents through the spoof organisation – ‘The Department of Dairy Related Scrumptious Affairs’ – using emotive taste messages to remind them about the nutritional value of dairy.

“We want millennial parents to re-evaluate their love of dairy so we have invested heavily in media that will drive noticeability and engagement,” says Dairy UK’s chief executive Judith Bryans.

Attitudinal research conducted after the first year of activity showed 8% of the target audience were less likely to cut down their dairy intake and 11% were less likely to replace dairy with alternatives.

“People really enjoyed the humour from the initial campaign,” says AHDB’s head of dairy marketing Rebecca Miah. “The next phase builds upon that success and introduces new ways dairy can be enjoyed using cinema, iconic poster sites, and social media activity.

“Cinema advertising is a great way to target a captive audience while they’re in a positive frame of mind. They often combine the experience with a meal out, so it’s a perfect time to promote positive dairy messages.”

The ‘Department’ has also recruited a consumer panel to test the emotional and physical response to dairy versus nondairy food, using brainwave EEG headband technology. Results will be announced with an integrated PR launch and supported by Instagram influencer campaign.

Producers can also promote the campaign locally by ordering branded posters, banners, re-useable coffee cups, and car stickers to use on-farm and at local events, from http://dairy.ahdb.org.uk/materials

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MAIN ARTICLE GENE-EDITING

Gene-editing tech – Gene editing has the potential to revolutionise dairy breeding. It allows researchers to accurately adjust DNA. But is the technique as promising as it sounds and what about the ethics surrounding the technology, not to mention the public perception of this controversial science? We spoke to some leading geneticists to find out more.

TEXT INGE VAN DRIE

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magine that the polled gene could be added to dairy cattle DNA, making disbudding a thing of the past.

Or suppose that by simply adjusting a gene a genetic defect could be repaired. With gene editing these scenarios could become reality, according to Henk Bovenhuis, who is professor of breeding and genetics at Wageningen University, in The Netherlands.

“Gene editing is a precision tool to change the DNA,” he explains. “Towards the end of the 1980s, it was already possible to alter the genome. The genetically-engineered bull Herman was an example of this, but then a much more basic or primitive method was used. It was very much a case of ‘wait and see’ where an extra gene ended up. Now scientists can work more specifically, and the technique is also much easier to implement.”

The discovery of the CRISPR-Cas technique was what really allowed the gene editing technique to take off.

“The technique is not as simple as cutting and pasting on a computer, but CRISPR-Cas certainly makes gene editing much easier, whether you’re talking about a plant, an animal, or a human being.”

European ban That said, this technology is still banned from use in practice in Europe. It can be used for research purposes, but nothing more. The European Court of Justice recently confirmed that gene editing falls under current

GMO regulations. “The technique could also be used, for example, to add a gene from a different animal species.

That is genetic modification, of course,” says CRV’s innovation manager Sijne van der Beek.

Even though gene editing technology is not yet permitted, or indeed ready, for use by the dairy industry right now, scientists are already thinking about what it could deliver. For example, it is possible to repair genetic defects, such as BLAD and CVM. Improving production traits is also a possibility.

But Wageningen University’s breeding and genetics researcher John Bastiaansen is still skeptical. “The potential for genetic progress through gene editing is currently very small. This is because most of the traits in breeding, such as milk production, are influenced by many genes. And all of these genes, some of which we have yet to even identify, have a small effect. “Even if all the genes are known, the question is whether you can add all these effects together. It is likely that interactions will take place, an interaction between genes.”

More realistic, according to Mr Bastiaansen, is the adaptation of an individual allele – a certain variant of a gene – through gene editing. “Naturally polled is a good example of this. Adapting just one gene will result in polled animals.”

With this in mind, he set up a simulation study, together with his colleagues professor Bovenhuis

Genus gene editing update Genus is exploring applications for gene editing technology, including a project in the early stages of development intended to address Bovine Respiratory Syndrome (BRD), with various collaborators including the University of Missouri, Roslin Institute and with Caribou Biosciences. The company is engaged with the appropriate regulatory

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bodies in several countries to understand the regulatory requirements necessary for approved use of gene editing technology in food-producing animals. And it has taken leadership roles in several cross-industry and cross-species gene editing coalitions.

These coalitions are dedicated to advocating for the responsible use, regulation of, and

communication around gene editing.

Genus has also begun work to ensure consumer acceptance for this technology, building alliances with key stakeholders, compiling a comprehensive outreach plan to engage with our food chain partners, and working to understand consumer perceptions of modern agriculture and this technology.

cowmanagement MARCH/APRIL 2019

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h – benefits and controversy POLLED

HORNED 2

3

1

Gene-editing example: from horned to polled Gene editing is a precision instrument for adjusting the DNA at a specific location.

By opening DNA in a cell (1), the gene for horns can be removed for example (2) and then replaced by the gene for polled (3).

and Han Mulder. “Imagine that ethical and practical dilemmas do not play a role, what does gene-editing in the case of polled cattle mean?”

Their work is examining how many generations it would take for a population to be 100% polled, assuming a starting population with 1% polled animals. Even without gene editing, it is possible to breed a 100% polled population.

If there is pure selection for polled – and not for traits such as milk production, fertility or udder health – it

would take about four generations before all animals in the population would be polled. “That’s quite quick, but in this instance the genetic progress for other important traits is significantly lower,” says Mr Bastiaansen. “If we do consider those previously mentioned traits, genetic progress would be higher. But then it also takes longer – in this study up to 19 generations – before all animals are polled.’

And if gene editing is applied? The researchers assumed that gene-editing was carried in 10% of the animals, and

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MAIN ARTICLE GENE-EDITING

Gene-editing technology could be used to replace the gene for horns with the gene for polled cattle

that all edits were successful, and they found that it was still vital to select for polled animals.

“If not, it will take around 13 generations through geneediting before the gene is recorded in the population,” explains Mr Bastiaansen. “That’s a very long time. The advantage is that you do not lose out on genetic progress for the other traits. But a disadvantage is the cost of gene editing.”

With the current technology, there has to be a selection pressure for polled in gene editing. “But we have found that if you apply a small amount of selection pressure to the trait, that immediately helps a lot. The trait is then ‘tied up’ faster and fewer ‘edits’ are required.”

Mr Mulder also points out that the assumption that all ‘edits’ are successful, is a bit too optimistic. “In reality, gene editing is currently only successful in a tiny percentage of cases. For example, editing does not always work or there are no live-born offspring.”

Thorough debate Although scientists slightly temper the enthusiasm about gene editing, several breeding organisations are already working on gene editing. Genus announced a partnership with the US-based biotech company Caribou a few years ago. And in 2017 Semex announced a partnership with Recombinetics, another American biotech company. Together they are working on building in the gene for polled animals, so that producers will no longer have to disbud calves.

CRV is not currently investing in gene editing. “But we’re keeping an eye on developments. We have already discussed the subject with our members and with our ethics committee,” says Mr van der Beek. He certainly sees the advantages of this technology.

“Gene editing is a powerful technique that has the potential, for example, to result in a polled cattle population more quickly. This application is, in fact, similar to extremely targeted breeding.”

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But, before that happens, he says some questions still have to be answered. “Do the benefits of gene editing adequately outweigh the risks? We’re assuming that if one gene at one specific location is changed then nothing else will change. But is that really the case?”

Under what conditions the technique may be applied is another question. “Can you also use the technique, for example, to improve production or only to improve animal welfare?”

Perhaps even more important, Mr van der Beek believes that a careful debate about gene editing is necessary.

“That must certainly take place as far as CRV is concerned. And not only with researchers and stakeholders, but also with wider society. How does society view gene-editing?”

His role is to ensure that the issue of gene editing stays on CRV’s agenda. “It’s something that should be discussed each year, to stay up to date, because the technology is developing quickly.”

Potential ‘snags’ Gene editing is sometimes presented as the ‘golden goose’. Professor Bovenhuis does not want to go that far. “There’s a lot of hype around gene editing, but we only have knowledge about a handful of genes at the moment. In the longer term, gene editing may well be a ‘game changer’ in cattle improvement, but there are still many potential ‘snags’.”

Mr Van der Beek agrees. “It will take a while before gene editing is sufficiently safe, reliable and efficient. And that was also the case with genomic selection”, he says.

“But it is possible to imagine the technology’s potential.

If we know that there’s a certain place in the DNA where there’s a gene occurs in an undesirable form. Then we can imagine what could change if we we’re able to ‘edit’ that gene to a more desirable form. Technological progress begins when you’re able to imagine how things could be different and how to change them.” l

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cowmanagement JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019

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06-03-19 13:14

VALUE ADDED GOLF DRIVING RANGE

Name Colin Mernagh Herd size 130 cows Adding value golf driving range

Wexford

Diversification drives up dairy income ‘Teeing off’ is paying off for one Ireland-based dairy business.

Colin Mernagh runs a 130-cow unit, in partnership with his brother David and father Jack, near Wexford and, in 2005, the family took the decision to invest in a 10-bay golf driving range.

“We knew we had to diversify if the business was going to generate enough income to support three families,” says Colin.

“I’d just returned from college and I’d also been working with a firm that built golf courses. That gave us the seed of an idea.”

They looked at golf range facilities in their local area, which is a tourist hot spot during the spring and summer. “We saw a gap in the market at a time that golf was growing in popularity. So we decided it was a good investment.”

Colin estimates that they spent around £52,000 on building the 10-bay, flood-lit driving range. “And we kept the cost down because we did a lot of the concreting and other work ourselves. It was well worth it – we recouped our investment within five years.”

So the enterprise, which is situated on a two-hectare plot close to the road and away from the central dairy unit, was a resounding success from the start and an additional three bays have been added to the range since then.

“We took advice from a local golf professional. He helped us

design the 10-bay range, which is the longest in the area. Length was important – our range is 275 metres long, compared to others that are typically between 135 and 220 metres, and this gave us a USP,” explains Colin.

Two of the more recently added bays are also now privately rented by another local golf pro and this provides the business with a regular fixed income.

Pay-as-you-go machines mean that, for two Euros for 30 balls, anyone can come and use the range between 9.00am and around 9.30pm. “Opening hours are weather dependent.

And we do close the range during the winter, if the weather is particularly wet.”

Colin says that the range is also fairly low maintenance. “We have to cut the grass, typically on a weekly basis, using a 2.5-metre mower. The biggest cost is buying replacement golf balls. And we spend a little time opening up and closing the range each day.

“But we’re on the farm anyway, well before opening time, milking and managing the cows. So there’s little additional work, really.”

And do they venture down there for an occasional drive too?

“Yes – sometimes,” says Colin. “If you’ve had a difficult day, it can a be good way to wind down.”

cowmanagement MARCH/APRIL 2019

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HERD REPORT GOLD CUP WINNER

Dream team helps to

realise life-long ambition A drive to achieve high standards of cow and staff management while pursuing efficient milk production are just two of many reasons why this herd lifted the 2018 NMR/RABDF Gold Cup. We spoke to a key member of the winning family to find out more.

TEXT RACHAEL PORTER

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t’s something they admit to having an eye on for a while. And they finally got their hands on the coveted NMR/RABDF Gold Cup in February. Philip Metcalfe, of Metcalfe Farms near Leyburn in North Yorkshire, was presented with the trophy by HRH The Princess Royal at Stoneleigh, during a nail-biting awards ceremony at Dairy-Tech.

And he says that, although he and his brothers knew that the herd was capable of winning the accolade, he was in utter shock when Metcalfe Farms’ name was announced. “It took a while to sink in – probably until the next day, to be honest. Everything just seemed to stand still.

“We became interested in the competition many

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years ago – following the finalists and the winners to see what they were doing that made them the best.

We wanted to be like that and run a herd and dairy business as good as theirs. It’s been a long time coming, but we finally made it. We feel like we’re really part of it now,” he says.

This year was the second time they’d entered – and the second time they’d made the final. “That’s an achievement in itself – just being in the running. But actually coming top is the stuff of dreams.”

The herd has expanded rapidly during the past two years, through the integration of three Holstein herds, which increased cow numbers from 900 to today’s 1,300 milkers. Philip runs the herd, plus 900

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COMPANY PROFILE Name Herd size Average yield SCC Calving interval System

Metcalfe Farms (Philip Metcalfe) 1,300 Holstein cows, 850 young stock 11,200kg of milk at 3.90% butterfat and 3.30% protein 124,000 cells/ml 403 days calving all year round, 525 hectares is dedicated to dairy enterprise

followers, at Washfold Farm. His brothers, Brian and David, run the business’s other enterprises, which include a haulage company. Through attention to detail the dairy management team, headed up by Philip, has kept cow performance on track.

Increasing yields During the 12-month qualifying period for the competition, the pedigree Holstein herd’s average yield increased by 1,600kg to 10,800kg at 4.00% fat and 3.25% protein, on three-times-a-day milking.

Somatic cell count dropped by 30,000cells/ml to 124,000 cells/ml and the calving interval is now 403 days – down from 423. Average milk yield has increased again during the past five months, to 11,200kg at 3.90% butterfat and 3.30% protein.

The dairy business occupies 525 of the 1,300 hectares farmed by the Metcalfe brothers. Only 200 hectares of this is owned, with the rest rented.

Prior to investing in more cows, a new 72-point rotary parlour and additional cow accommodation was installed. An anaerobic digestor uses manure from the herd to produce electricity for the business.

“We’ve got the capacity to increase cow numbers further,” adds Philip. “But we’re consolidating and

Leyburn

fine-tuning at the moment – it’s important to make sure that all our management targets and protocols are on track.”

With this in mind, the family has also invested in new calf accommodation to increase the number of pens for the young dairy heifer calves and dairy bull and beef cross calves. “It’s important to ensure that calves get off to the best start – both dairy replacements and our dairy-bull and beef-cross calves. We have two good buyers for our bull and beef-cross calves, so it’s vital that we maintain our reputation as a source of well-grown, healthy stock.

Many of these calves are reared for beef.”

Good-growth guarantee Philip says they are selling calves with a high-health and good-growth guarantee. The price he sees reflects that. “The buyers also like that we can supply them with good-sized batches of calves – typically 20 in a group.”

And the same consistency and care is seen in the dairy stock – starting with breeding. A keen Holstein breeder – Philip can never imagine milking another breed – a third of the herd is classified VG or EX. “We have classified with Holstein UK for more than

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HERD REPORT GOLD CUP WINNER

Rotary parlour: cows are milked three times a day through the 72-point system

Calf-rearing blueprint: dedicated staff ensure that all young stock get off to the best possible start

20 years. It’s a vital tool for breeding as we get an independent view on our stock.”

It certainly helps when it comes to breeding decisions and deciding which cows in the herd are to be bred for replacements and which for beef – particularly now he’s using an increasing amount of sexed semen. “We need 30 heifer calves a month to ensure that we have enough on the ground for cover our 25% replacement rate,” he says.

Sexed semen is used, predominantly, on maiden heifers. “But we have been trialling it on first calvers, with some success. We use beef sires on around a third of the herd. If we can guarantee more heifer replacements from our heifers and best cows, we could push that beef figure up to half the herd.”

It’s a large team – comprising 35 people – that keeps the dairy on track and makes it the success it is today. “Dedicated and skilled staff really are a vital component on this unit. I have line managers in charge of each of the key management areas, such as milking, calving, calf rearing, hygiene, and cow

Anaerobic digestor: manure from the dairy herd produces electricity to power the business

health. And we hold regular staff meetings and keep everyone up to date through text messages.”

Local workforce All of the workforce is from the local community and, certainly among the milking team, they are all offered a flexible rota to suit their lifestyles and other commitments. Two thirds of the team are female. Most staff work at the unit on a part-time basis and the majority have been recruited from outside agriculture.

“We provide a staff induction,” adds Philip. “We explain carefully what’s expected of them. And we’ll offer regular training sessions for specialist areas and encourage communication and feedback that might help improve our system. We can always improve.”

And because it was a team effort, winning also meant a lot to all the staff at the unit. “We bought them all a large box of chocolates and we’re now working together to make sure that the open day, in June, sees us at our very best and is one to remember.” l

Date for your diary See for yourself what it takes to be a Gold Cup winning herd this summer. The annual NMR/ RABDF Gold Cup winner’s open day will be held at Metcalfe Farms on Tuesday June 18, 2019.

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A FEW WORDS FROM ROGER EVANS

Award-winning columnist and Shropshirebased producer Roger Evans wonders why bTB is still such a huge problem, 60 years on.

No bTB progress When I was in secondary school, tuberculosis had a big impact on my life. It was at this time that I started helping out on local farms during the school holidays and at weekends. And it was at this time that I was first bitten by the farming bug. Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) was a big part of conversation back then because the industry was trying to eradicate it from cattle.

I didn’t understand everything that I heard, but I worked out that some herds were clear (attested) and some were still in the process of becoming free of the disease. I understood, at that time, that there was still an opportunity to buy and sell reactor stock. But I didn’t understand why. Most of the dairy herds in our locality were between 20 and 30 cows and housed in cow sheds (shippons). Milking parlours were still relatively new, and most cow sheds had wooden stalls that were used for milking. These were to be replaced with tubular steel if you were to be ‘attested’, at least that’s what I recall. I can still remember a farmer coming home from market and telling us that he had just seen the highest yielding cow in the county sold for very little money because she was a TB reactor. And she was sold to a producer retailer, which beggars belief!

The other significant impact came from a human perspective. Just outside our village was a large stately home that had been converted to TB hospital. I think they called it a sanatorium. On sunny days we would see the more-able patients taking a walk. This was visual evidence of just how terrible a disease TB can be.

When I started farming in my own right, I don’t remember bTB being a problem. The national herd was predominantly clear of the disease and the sanatorium had closed. I think that we had to test for bTB every four years. And I recall that that was a bit of a nuisance.

The next TB issue that sticks in my memory was when there was a bTB problem in the far south west of the country. It was 20 or 30 years ago.

There was a testing blitz in the area and as it was in the farm animal quiet time (summer), the practice I was with despatched their youngest vet to help out. I will always remember him telling me, when I asked him how he’d got on, that he had seen cows approaching the crush, that were showing all the visual signs of long-term bTB infection.

Some were so bad you could have put a photograph of them in a text book. I remember thinking, how on earth could that happen. And since then I have often asked: is that where the trouble we’re all now in first started? Sixty years on, bTB is still the biggest issue that many producers face. There’s progress for you.

“I often ask, is that where the trouble we’re all now in first started?”

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HEALTH MILK PREGNANCY TEST

Positive about pregnancy Confirming pregnancy with a simple and accurate milk test, about six weeks after scanning, is part of routine management on one dairy unit in Northern Ireland. Picking up one or two cows that have lost a pregnancy and re-breeding them covers the cost of this test. It’s money well spent.

TEXT KAREN WRIGHT

W

Herd fertility: the conception rate at Carrickfarm Holsteins is currently around 44%

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illiam Bolton runs the 160-cow Carrickfarm pedigree Holsteins herd along with his father Joe and uncle George. The herd averages 9,300kg of milk, at 4.00% fat and 3.25% protein. Cows calve from late September through to early May and, although they are not block calved in its truest form, the family is still keen to keep cows on target and not let the calving interval slip – or to unknowingly keep barren cows.

He combines running the herd and young stock on the 150-hectare unit, near Magherafelt, with a sales role for genetics company World Wide Sires. So he’s well-versed in breeding targets and on how to keep herd breeding on track. All fertility data for the herd is recorded in the herd management software, Uniform Agri.

“We look at all the data,” says William. “Insemination rates, conceptions rates, 100 day in-calf rate, 200-day not-in-calf rate, cows culled for infertility – everything.

But the end goal is to have a high pregnancy rate, which will ultimately boost profitability.”

The conception rate for the Carrickfarm herd is currently about 44% with the pregnancy rate for 2017/18 sitting at 19%. The aim is to get this up to between 24% and 26%.

“We use the Cow Manager heat detection system to help pick up bulling cows and we aim to serve cows 60 days after calving,” explains William.

“Our vet, Treenie Bowser from Parklands Vets, then scans for pregnancy from 30 days after service and examines any cows that haven’t been served 80 days after calving. She will also check cows at this stage for any other fertility issues, look at overall body condition, and discuss any other herd health issues.”

Pregnancy re-check Since March 2018, William has also re-checked cows that scanned PD positive 40 days later using the milk PAG test. PAGs – Pregnancy Associated Glycoproteins – are only produced if there is a foetus and it is around 95% accurate if it is carried out between 70 and 110 days after serving. “We milk record monthly and I give the NMR recorder a list of cows that are more than 70 days in calf,” says William. “The milk sample taken for quality testing will be used for the PAG test and I get the results back by email.

“This is an easy and quick pregnancy re-check. There’s no hassle for the cow and less work for us, because there are fewer cows to hold back for the monthly vet check – just those testing negative.”

Among these there might be ‘false negative’ cows that the vet finds are pregnant. But some may have lost their pregnancy and stopped cycling for some reason. “If there’s no under-lying issue we will breed her again.

“In the past, the vet would have checked all cows for pregnancy a second time.”

PAG testing the cows costs the business £576 a year, based on £3.60 per test. William says it’s money well spent and also gives him peace of mind. “If I pick up one or two cows through PAG testing and rebreed them – maintaining the calving pattern – then I have covered the cost and with no extra effort on my part.”

Treenie is fully on-board with the extra pregnancy test.

“I scan the cows here quite early. Then there’s time to pick up any not in calf, synchronise and rebreed without the calving pattern slipping too much.

“But a pregnancy is quite fragile up until 60 days, so some cows that scan positive at 30 days will naturally lose the pregnancy and we could miss those no longer in calf one

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Belt-and-braces pregnancy checker • The milk pregnancy test measures Pregnancy Associated Glycoproteins (PAGs)

• PAGs are produced by the placenta once pregnancy is established

• Estimates show that between 15% and 20% of cows may lose a pregnancy from 28 days after breeding

• PAG test complements PD scanning by the vet. It is

recommended for re-checking pregnancy in cows from 70 days after service • The test can reliably confirm pregnancy in at least 95% of cows, between 70 and 110 days post service.

• Results are emailed and used to update the cow’s fertility status on NMR’s Herd Companion

or two months later. The PAG test is a useful re-check for any herd. “It’s easy and non-invasive and it pinpoints those cows that I need to examine in time to treat her or to rebreed.”

Scanning benefits But she stresses that such a milk test is only suitable for a re-check and can’t replace the value of scanning. “We see a lot when we scan the cow – we can check the uterus and the structure of both ovaries, as well as look at cow condition and the whole herd.

“The scanning is easy, it’s the more holistic look at the cow and the herd that is important as part of the vet visit. This can’t happen with a milk test that’s carried out in the lab.”

Best practice suggests that pregnancy status should be re-checked after early pregnancy diagnosis to verify that pregnancy has been maintained.

“This will help to reduce the risk of pregnancy loss going undetected.” l

William Bolton and vet Treena Bowser agree that the PAG test has a key role to play in picking up lost pregnancies

Evaluation of PAG milk pregnancy test A two-year study carried out across six UK herds evaluated the use of the milk pregnancy test as part of a veterinary-led reproduction programme.

All cows were confirmed in calf using ultrasound by the vet from 28 days post service and the routine herd recording samples were tested for PAG. The study was completed once all cows had calved the second time. Cows with lower than expected PAG results were flagged and Eamon Watson

re-examined at the next routine vet visit. NMR vet Eamon Watson says: “When the results were applied to a 100-cow herd, the milk PAG test, used between 70 to 110 days post-insemination, was able to identify six out of seven open cows that were otherwise undetected. Of these six cows, three were successfully re-bred. The cost benefit of keeping these three cows in the herd alone is around £700 a cow, which is considerable even when offset against the test cost and vet time to recheck cows with low PAG levels.”

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HEALTH NEWS

Bolus supports drying-off period An oral mineral supplement that’s formulated to help support the drying-off process in cows has been launched by Boehringer Ingelheim.

Bovikalc Dry is a bolus, which contains anionic salts including ammonium chloride, calcium chloride and calcium sulphate. It helps to support the natural decrease in milk production at the end of lactation.

Cows may still be producing considerable amounts of milk at this time and, within a few hours, the accumulation of milk in the mammary gland can lead to udder distension and engorgement. So a tool to helps reduce milk production will, in turn, help to reduce

milk congestion in the udder, and any associated pain and inflammation.

Discomfort from udder distension during drying-off can result in reduced lying times, with cows resting for shorter periods in an attempt to relieve pressure on the udder.

This is also a high-risk period for new intramammary infections, which may not become clinical mastitis cases until the following lactation.

High yielding cows have been shown to have elevated stress hormones at drying off compared to low yielding cows. In addition to physical discomfort, cows are likely to experience social and metabolic stress during this period, as the herd management changes. This can also reduce lying times.

So careful dry-period and transition management can help to ensure that cows are comfortable and able to make the most of the dry ‘rest’ period to prepare for their following lactation.

Two boluses should be administered at the final milking before drying off, or between eight and 12 hours before. Following oral administration, the bolus dissolves within 30 minutes in the rumen, where the anionic salts are released and then absorbed.

National BVD survey prize-draw winners announced More than 1,200 producers took part in the 2019 National BVD survey – a record number of responses. The survey was run in Winner Guy Prudom, of Davison Farm near Whitby, whose beef unit is one of AHDB’s strategic farms

conjunction with each regional eradication scheme, as well as farmers unions, and was available online and via a drop-out card in many farming publications. As well as sharing their important data and opinions on BVD control, respondents were also automatically entered into a prize draw to win one of 10 Lenovo tablets.

The prize-draw winners are: • G Prudom, Whitby • L Cornish, Holsworthy • D Lang, Gloucestershire • H Sadler, Aldersey • R Campbell, Stokesley • D Treharne, Northampton • R & G Williams, Caernarfon There were three more winners in Annan, Barnard Castle, and Sanquhar. They will all be receiving their Lenovo tablets any day now. Boehringer Ingelheim’s Matt Yarnall said: “Many thanks to all who took part.

Your information is invaluable and the survey was a huge success. We couldn’t do it without you.”

bovens bovens regel o

Case-study success Northumbria-based vet Anna Brugera Sala is the winner of Boehringer Ingelheim’s biennial BVDzero case study competition. Vets from throughout Europe were invited to submit farm case studies to share information and learn from each other’s experiences.

Anna’s case study examined a farm in the north of England that had been BVD free for four years. But then, unexpectedly, three PI (persistently infected) calves were born and that year’s crop of calves were badly affected by cryptosporidiosis and pneumonia. The source of infection was traced back to 17 bought-in in-calf heifers that, unlike most bought-in replacements, had not been vaccinated against BVD. Various other issues helped the disease to spread.

Once testing had identified the PI calves, they were immediately removed from the herd. All calves – born dead or alive – at the unit are now tagged and tested and the producer has also reviewed their biosecurity policy.

“The calibre of case studies entered was extremely high and it was great to have two UK case studies placed in the top three,” said Boehringer’s Matt Yarnall.

Anna wins a share of the £13,000 prize fund, which is split between the top 10 case studies selected.

For more information about Boehringer Ingelheim’s products: www.boehringer-ingelheim.co.uk www.calfmatters.com Telephone: 01344 74 69 60 Email address: ukcustomersupport @boehringer-ingelheim.com

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GRASSLAND AND FORAGE 26 High-sugar grasses Varieties play key role in boosting efficiency and reducing GHG emissions.

28 Renovating swards

Reseed and tackle weeds to restore grass-ley productivity.

30 Adding resilience

Replenish stocks and take steps to plug any forage gaps.

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FORAGE SPECIAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

Grasses cut emissions and increase efficiency Negativity already levelled at the livestock industry around greenhouse gas emissions is often ill-informed – taking no account of the carbon storage function of soils and grassland, or the ability of ruminants to produce nutritious food from feed we cannot eat.

TEXT MATT MELLOR

B Zero grazing: Derek’s herd tuck into fresh-cut grass

26

uilding greenhouse-gas mitigation strategies into future farm business planning should be in every producers thinking. And the good news is that efficiency targets, such as increasing output per hectare, are often directly correlated with a smaller carbon footprint. So meeting environmental targets can sit alongside higher productivity and profitability.

Researchers at IBERS Aberystwyth University have recognised the importance of improved grassland productivity, bringing quality traits to the fore and breeding varieties of forage plants that stand out on the Recommended Grass and Clover Lists for their high yields and exceptional D-values. Significantly, through the combined efforts of grass breeders and ruminant scientists, these Aber high sugar grass varieties also offer

the added attribute of helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the livestock that consume them.

Nitrogen excretion The EU’s 23 million dairy cows excrete 2.2 billion kilogrammes of nitrogen a year, producing an average annual surplus of around 68kg N/ha. This nitrogen contributes to greenhouse gas emissions when it contributes to nitrous oxide (N2O), a powerful greenhouse gas. Artificial fertiliser is the main source of N2O, but this is closely followed by the nitrogen in urine of grazing animals and spread manure.

Cattle are not efficient convertors of nitrogen, with the average dairy cow only converting about 28% of the nitrogen she consumes into milk protein, for example.

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s

Rose Farm performance (2018) • Average yield: 8,900 litres, at 4.51% fat and 3.47% protein • Milk from forage: 3,982 litres • Feed rate: 0.29kg/litre • Grass silage analysis: 15.6% protein, 11MJ/kg ME, 70 D value • Zero-grazed grass analysis: 20% protein, 11.5MJ/kg ME • Forage DMI/cow/day: 14kg, comprising 3kg grass silage, 3.5kg zero-grazed grass, 7kg grazed grass

Derek Haworth: “Grass is cheapest and best quality feed”

IBERS trials have shown a significant decline in the proportion of dietary nitrogen excreted in urine when high-sugar grasses are fed. This is important because of the contribution that nitrogen excreted in urine makes to N2O emissions. At the same time as reduced rates of nitrogen excretion, more dietary nitrogen could be converted into milk protein when these grasses are fed.

Ruminants also contribute significantly to the methane that is produced by modern agriculture – released by livestock through belching or from manures.

Dairy, beef and sheep account for more than 90% of all the methane produced by livestock in the UK. This underlines the importance of the research at IBERS that has found a significant reduction per unit of production in daily methane emissions from livestock grazing high sugar grasses compared to control varieties.

Higher yielding cows or faster growing animals that excrete less nitrogen and methane result in a lower environmental footprint per unit of production – good news all round.

In addition to being selective about perennial ryegrass varieties, there is new evidence to suggest that systems of feeding can also have an impact of greenhouse gas emissions. Research carried out at the SRUC Dairy Research Centre, Dumfries, and reported in Grass and Forage Science in 2018, revealed that methane production from cattle on a grazed grass diet was significantly lower per unit of production than those fed a total mixed ration. In fact, three treatments were compared in this study, with a group fed fresh grass on a cut-and-carry basis producing 17% less methane and the grazing group producing 39% less methane.

Whilst the research does not suggest a shift away from feeding total mixed rations, it does show that increasing the proportion of fresh grass in cattle diets could contribute to farms meeting UK emissions reduction targets and could be part of an economically sustainable climate change mitigation strategy.

where he manages the red Holstein and Ayrshire herd with his wife, Kirsty, and their son, Robert.

“Grass is our cheapest and best quality feed. Cows are designed to eat grass, so my philosophy is to make the most of the cow’s natural ability,” he says.

Having struggled to grow maize consistently on the farm’s 52 hectares of marginal ground, grass is the mainstay of the system. With just 12 hectares easily accessible for grazing, Derek has adopted a zero-grazed system to cart fresh grass direct to the cows from further afield.

Grassland improvement Zero grazing starts in March and continues through to November, with grazing beginning in April and running through until October. During the main grass growing season, cows will receive zero-grazed grass, grazed grass and silage. Grassland improvement has been focused on the zero-grazing block of around 32 hectares, which is also used for silage. Mixtures including high-sugar grass perennial ryegrasses and some timothy, plus medium and large-leafed white clovers, are selected to maximise ME yield per hectare. l

Cut and carry: fresh grass is harvested from March through to November

Carbon footprint For most producers, optimising production from homegrown forage will increase efficiency, profitability and should reduce their carbon footprint. That’s certainly been the case for Derek Haworth. He has always viewed 4,000 litres of milk from forage, from an average total yield of between 8,500 and 9,000 litres, as the ‘sweet spot’ for profitability for his 70-cow herd. And he’s hitting this target at Rose Farm, in North Yorkshire,

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FORAGE SPECIAL RESEEDING

Productive sward: the reseed has established well and is thick and dense

Reseed and weed to restore productivity Strengthening swards, after 2018’s tough conditions, means replenishing and reseeding on many units, as well as tackling weeds.

Grassland specialists offer some tips and pointers on successfully rejuvinating and replacing drought-damaged leys.

TEXT SARA GREGSON

S

ummer 2018 pushed the grassland on many UK dairy units to its limits. A relatively mild winter has allowed some swards to recover, but many more require over seeding, or even a total reseed, to get them back to full productivity.

Producers certainly learnt a lot about which fields performed best during 2018’s ‘challenging’ conditions, according to Oliver Seeds’ Rod Bonshor. He says that younger swards were likely to have stayed greener for longer during the summer drought and would also have been the first to recover. And it should now be pretty obvious which ones would now benefit from reseeding.

“But reseeding is a significant investment – costing between £400 and £700 per hectare – so it has to be carefully planned and carried out,” he says.

“Considerable preparation work is needed before

28

producers can even get the drill out. Walk the fields and assess every sward. Is there much ryegrass left or are there a lot of unproductive plants, like annual meadow grass?

“And soil test regularly. Aim to assess 25% of the farm each year and apply phosphorous, potassium and magnesium, according to the results. Check soil pH too – it should be up at levels of between 6.0 and 6.5. Any lower and it will definitely benefit from lime.”

Mr Bonshor also urges producers to dig a soil pit and check for compaction, as grass will not grow well if it cannot get its roots down deep into the soil. “Alleviate any tight areas with appropriate machinery, as long as conditions are not too wet.”

Only then is it time to decide how to prepare the ground for the new grass seed. “And bear in mind that there is

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no longer any chemical control available against grass pests, such as leatherjackets, making grass-to-grass reseeding risky,” he adds.

The seedbed must be fine, firm and level. “Remember that soft seedbeds can allow grass seed to be sown too deeply. But rolling post sowing with a heavy roller is essential to enhance seed to soil contact.”

Mr Bonshor says that it’s also important to determine and select species and mixtures that will be the most appropriate for the field, and the livestock, that will eat it. “Species, such as festuloliums, are adaptable and high yielding even in tough conditions. And think about clover too. Don’t just take the first grass mixture off the shelf. Discuss your options with grass specialists, who know how different grasses will perform.”

Weed control Controlling weeds, including tough perennials like docks and thistles or annuals like chickweed, is also essential to maximise grass growth and is easier to do when the weeds are young and small. So says Corteva Agriscience’s Nicola Perry. “Ground-hugging chickweed has germinated and grown well during what has been a relatively mild winter conditions. So we’re advising producers to tackle that now, if it’s a problem.”

Tackling docks is also vital and trials have shown that long-term control can be best achieved by applying a suitable herbicide to small docks, shortly after reseeding. “And any docks that do emerge in following years, rarely get established due to strong competition from the grass,” says Dr Perry.

Where there is a range of unwanted weeds, she recommends using a selective herbicide, such as Leystar, which will control annual weeds including fat hen and mayweed, as well as seedling docks and thistles.

It can be applied from 1 February to 31 August in new sown leys, so can be used on autumn-drilled and springsown grass reseeds this year. Reseeding can also follow a break crop – to help tackle stubborn weed issues and provide a ‘clean’ start.

That’s exactly what Devon-based producer Andy Broomfield did, back in 2017. He runs his family’s Andy Broomfield (right) and John Harris in a weed-free reseed

Rod Bonshor, grassland specialist: “Plan and prepare well, before you get the drill out” 100-cow herd, which is currently averaging 8,500 litres of milk, on 55 hectares of grassland.

Six years ago, the family switched to an autumn-block calving system. The aim was improve both the growth and utilisation of grass, in a bid to make the business more sustainable and profitable.

Working with Oliver Seed’s John Harris, Andy soil tested the whole farm and found that some fields had a low pH of 4.9. Lime was applied, at a rate of 5.5t/ha, to correct this. “The worst performing fields were wet and had rushes, docks and couch in them,” says Mr Broomfield.

Compaction issue “Digging holes revealed compaction at a depth of 10cm.

And in 2017 we decided to burn the sward off with glyphosate and make a clean entry for the next grass crop, by sowing forage rape.”

The field was ploughed to help alleviate the compaction and then rolled with heavy rollers to produce a seedbed.

Emerald forage rape was broadcast with nitrogen and sulphur fertiliser (the phosphate and potash indices were acceptable), and the growing crop was sprayed to protect against flea beetle.

“We had never grown anything like it before and it was a bit of a leap of faith,” says Mr Broomfield. “We started strip grazing it in the second week of July, allowing the cows to graze grass first so they were not too hungry.

They loved it and being high protein it also helped to reduce the cost of the ration, by as much as 20%.”

He explains that the idea was to reseed with grass in autumn 2017: “But conditions were too wet and operations were delayed until the following spring. The field was sprayed with glyphosate to deal with emerging thistles and shallow ploughed.”

In the spring a contractor rolled it again with a heavy roller, power harrowed and then rolled it twice more before seeding it with Fortress – a dual-purpose mixture with intermediate and late perennial ryegrasses and festulolium and Timothy. Once the seed had been spread, the field was rolled again.

Nitrogen was applied, at a rate of 60kg per hectare, at sowing, with another dressing four weeks later. The young sward was sprayed to control small docks, nettles and thistles.

“Spring growth was impressive and we had to cut it after eight weeks – we made round-bale silage. It really flew back and we had four grazings through the summer, even throughout the 2018 drought.”

Mr Broomfield adds that, at £320 per hectare, this was a cost-effective way to reseed. The field produced 14t DM/ha in 2018. “We reseeded a further 3.2 hectares in 2018, with Megabite grazing mixture. And we will continue to use forage rape as an entry for new grass.” l

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FORAGE SPECIAL BOOSTING STOCKS

Building resilience into forage systems

Forage stocks were low again on many UK dairy units this past winter, as summer 2018 failed to provide the opportunity to replenish clamp levels following a late spring. So, in the face of what some are saying could be another dry summer, what should producers be considering in a bid to make their forage production systems more robust?

TEXT RACHAEL PORTER

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B

uilding more resilience into forage systems starts with identifying where the bottlenecks are. So says Welsh Borders-based independent grassland specialist Charlie Morgan. “And this will vary from unit to unit and from system to system.

“For example, some producers in the drier regions found that they were short of grazed grass midseason. They got a good first cut of silage, but they then ended up feeding it back to the cows to fill the forage gap.”

Planning for that particular scenario could mean sowing a brassica or whole-crop forage. Perhaps a barley and brassica mix or an arable mixture, which could be cut and fed as an arable silage before it reached the whole-crop stage if grass growth slows again in the middle of the summer. Just anything that will plug that gap and avoid producers having to dip into the silage clamp.

“Growing an arable silage would also give producers the flexibility of taking it as whole-crop at a later stage, if the season goes well and it’s not required beforehand.”

Mr Morgan says that silage clamps will be light again

Ben Stroud: “Lucerne adds the ‘scratch factor’ to our herd’s TMR, which is good for rumen health” as we head into the spring. “For the second year running, many producers will be nearing – if not hitting – the silo’s back wall. So building up stocks again this summer will be essential.”

He adds that producers are typically proficient grazing managers. “Good grazing systems are already in place on most units. But there’s always scope for some fine tuning, to reduce waste, to graze a little harder, to reseed tired leys that could be more productive. And mixture selection is key here – particularly if drought-stress conditions are to become the norm. So discuss that with your agronomist and weigh up your options.”

Mr Morgan says that this is the year for a ‘shake up’.

“Question what you’re doing – particularly if you’re just copying what you’ve always done without questioning it. There’s probably a more suitable seed mixture, a better rotation, or a different approach that can cut waste, maximise efficient forage utilisation and ease the pressure on grassland and forage stock.

“In the best managed systems, more than 80% of grass is utilised. On worst managed units up to 50% of grass production is wasted. Even on a seemingly well-managed system up to 30% of production can be lost. So there’s always room for improvement.”

Sward damage He adds that if spring 2018 didn’t focus minds, when turnout was delayed for many herds and some producers were facing serious winter forage shortages, then the summer certainly did.

“There was a lot of damage to swards in the summer – due to the severe drought in most parts of the UK. And the poorer leys didn’t survive. This has increased the awareness of a regular reseeding programme – and, on the back of this, producers should consider which grass seed mixtures are best suited to the unit’s conditions. Grass seed sales are likely to be high this year.

If a reseed is on the cards, he stresses that it is important to get all the components right such as ensuring that soil nutrition and conditions, and pH, are all conducive to good grass establishment and growth.

“Ideally pH should be between 6 and 6.5. Applying N, P and K to grass can make the soil acidic, so it’s important to check that pH and spread lime if required. And check for compaction too. There’s

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FORAGE SPECIAL BOOSTING STOCKS

from bales, which are 50% dry matter,” explains Ben. Lucerne yields on this unit have been consistent. “Two years ago, the third-year field produced 33t DM/ha, which gave us approximately 50 round bales per hectare from a total of four cuts.”

Lucerne, with its nitrogen-fixing qualities, can provide a crop for grazing in October but should be ready for first cut in mid-May. The crop should ideally be cut, using a mower conditioner, early in the morning, leaving a 100mm stubble to protect the vital growing points of the plants. The crop should then be left to wilt for 24 hours before being rowed up early in the morning to prevent losses due to leaf shatter.

Second bite

Bounce-back variety: hybrid brassica Skyfall offers a second bite later in the season

no point spending money on good quality seed mixtures and reseeding without laying good ‘foundations’.”

Alternative forages and specific species to include in seed mixtures, particularly those that are more droughttolerant, can help to plugs any potential gaps. These can include lucerne, hybrid brassicas and root crops, and species such as plantain and chicory to grass mixtures.

Deep rooter Arable and dairy producer Ben Stroud first drilled lucerne in the summer of 2014, in two fields that were blighted by blackgrass. Weed control in the first autumn and regular cutting for silage the following spring and summer, soon sorted out the problem.

“We drilled lucerne variety Daisy in August after winter wheat, into a very good seedbed,” explains Ben. It’s is a deep rooted crop, but it hates compaction, so being on primarily heavy clay, Ben sub-soiled the ground first.

“We then prepared a shallow seedbed in the cereal stubble with discs, before consolidating with a press and Cambridge rolls.

The seed was broadcast onto the surface of the soil using a drill that is lifted almost out of work and literally dropped the seed onto the soil. The field was then rolled again.

The lucerne was baled and fed in a TMR. It adds fibre – scratch factor – to the TMR, which is good for rumen health. “We are feeding up to 9kg of lucerne fresh-weight,

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In the first year at Ben’s unit, lucerne from the first two cuts was clamped and topped up with wholecrop silage.

For the past two years, Ben has made round bales with it, because this offers more feeding flexibility. It can be ensiled, made into bales, or zero grazed. After each year’s first two cuts, Ben applies between 30t/ha and 40t/ha of slurry to give the crop a good dose of phosphate and potash.

If producers are looking for fast-growing annual crop to add to their forage rotation and plug summer gaps, then hybrid brassicas, kale or forage rape hybrids could be the answer. And Limagrain UK has launched what it calls a ‘bounce back’ variety this spring.

Like many hybrid brassicas and kale, Skyfall can be sown between May and July so it offers some flexibility. It will provide a highly nutritious leafy forage crop that’s ready for grazing in just 12 weeks. And, in trials, the hybrid has produced between 30t/ha and 35t/ha of a palatable soft-leaved forage.

Where the crop is sown in the earlier part of the growing season, it can be grazed once and then closed up to allow ‘regrowth’ before a ‘second bite’ later in the season.

“It has deep and narrow roots, which means that it can thrive in drier soils through the summer,” says Limagrain’s Martin Titley. “This deep-rooting system and the crop’s hybrid vigour supports regrowth, enabling it to ‘bounce back’ and provide a second grazing crop.”

A crop sown in early May, for example, can be grazed by the end of July and into August before being closed up for six to eight weeks for regrowth. It can then be grazed – for a second time – in late September and October.

Break crop “To maximise the ‘bounce back’ potential of this hybrid brassica, between 30kg N/ha and 40kg N/ha should be applied to the crop after the first grazing. Regrowth can also be maximised by back-fencing the initial crop. This ensures that some leaf and growing points are retained to allow for easier regrowth.

Mr Titley says that this hybrid brassica is also an ideal crop to use as part of a grass reseeding programme, sown after first-cut silage or spring grazing. “Rather than reseed immediately, this hybrid can be sown and grazed through summer and autumn, and then followed with a grass reseed. This will provide a break in the grass crop that disrupts the pest cycle and provides a natural control system.” l

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FORFARMERS FOCUS

Limit milk-fat depression this spring Butterfat levels in milk can decrease in spring and early summer as cows are turned out onto fresh grass. With constituent levels playing an important role in many milk contracts, supporting butterfat production nutritionally makes good sense financially.

Fresh grass in spring is nutritionally different to both fresh grass later in the season and grass silage.

Rumen microbes The key grass nutrients to focus on, in order to improve milk quality, include: oil, fibre (NDF), and sugar. Oil is high in polyunsaturated fatty acids, which can prevent rumen microbes from breaking down fibre into butterfat pre-cursors (C2 and C4). NDF is important because lower-fibre grass passes through the rumen quicker and this reduces the opportunity for it to be broken down.

ForFarmers is launching an amino-acid-based product that helps to reduce milk fat depression (MFD) in cows. FatBoost is a different approach to the usual nutritional solutions, such as increasing dietary fibre levels or direct addition of rumen protected fats (C16). This product limits the negative effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) found in spring grass, and feeds such as brewers’ and distillers’ grains, on rumen bacteria.

The result is a stabilising effect on rumen biohydrogenation, greater production of saturated fatty acids, and a reduced MFD. Several trials have been carried out in 2018 across Europe and the UK in a number of different feeding systems.

The results showed a 0.3% increase in

butterfat percentage response to adding FatBoost to rations. The lower the butterfat base the greater the response. Based on the trials and butterfat responses achieved, the return on investment will range from 1:2 to 1:3, depending on producers’ milk contracts.

FatBoost is a reliable and sustainable nutritional tool to increase the butterfat in situations where MFD is present or where milk fat is low.

In those situations the average increase in milk fat is up to 0.3%. It will be available in a specific range of compound feeds and meals from ForFarmers this spring.

The product needs to be targeted at specific challenges to get the most effective response, in other words diets with high amounts of fresh grass or PUFAs. ForFarmers’ Feed2Milk rationing system can help to identify these situations.

Nutritional strategy FatBoost can also be combined with other milk-fat stimulating products, such as ButterLac (C16), to prevent MFD and further increase butterfat levels.

Plan a nutritional strategy prior to any issues with reduced butterfat levels, assessing both the quantity and the nutrient quality of grass, and review the feeds that are available to the cows.

With this information to hand, developing and implementing a solution that fits both the situation and timing of the problem should be relatively straightforward.

For more information about FatBoost, call ForFarmers on 0330 678 0982, or visit www.forfarmers.co.uk

Focus on species when reseeding

Now is the time to assess the condition of swards and consider not only the importance of reseeding but also the species used when renovating leys.

Leys that have been reseeded, or regularly over seeded, will provide greater yields but also better-quality grass. Using PLUS Grasses, which are a cross between a fescue and an Italian or perennial ryegrass, not only add longevity to the ley but also provide some stress tolerance in both dry and wet conditions. These grasses combine the characteristics of fescue and ryegrasses. Fescues contribute high dry matter yield, resistance to cold, drought tolerance and persistence. Ryegrasses offer rapid establishment, good spring growth, digestibly, high sugar content, and palatability. PLUS Grasses are also higher yielding than their parent lines.

Depending on the variety and growing conditions, these grasses produce between 5% and 25% more forage and between one and two years of additional persistency, compared to standard fescues and ryegrasses.

They can also withstand colder winters and drought.

ForFarmers are featuring the PLUSGrass Hipast Perennial Tall Fescue Plus in its TOPGRASS grazing leys, to provide additional yield, persistency, and stress tolerance. With an extra 1.5t DM/hectare yield, compared to standard tall fescues, along with increased protein content, Hipast Tall Fescue PLUS, as well as 60% diploid perennial content in TOPGRASS All Graze and 80% diploid perennial content in TOPGRASS Dairygen, will provide good sward density.

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HEALTH BVD

BVD survey results reveal positive trends

The 2019 National BVD survey attracted a record numbers of responses – 1,243 across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales – and the data has now been analysed, with some interesting results. Boehringer Ingelheim’s Matt Yarnall shares some of the findings.

TEXT CHARLOTTE GRIME

T Matt Yarnall: “Producers throughout the country are seeing real health benefits due to eradicating BVD from their herds”

he results of the fourth annual National BVD Survey are in and, once again, they reflect the different phases of the regional BVD programmes. “This is the second year that questions have reflected the variations between the English, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish schemes,” says the brand manager for Boehringer Ingelheim’s BVD vaccine Bovela, Matt Yarnall.

“This ensures that the questions are more relevant and that comparisons within the data are more meaningful.”

Improved health He adds that one of the most encouraging trends picked up by the 2019 survey is an improvement in herd health, which is leading to a reduction in antibiotic use. “This is good news. Producers are moving towards a more preventative approach to herd health and this, in turn, is resulting in a decrease in antibiotic use.”

This was most notable in Scotland, where the BVD eradication scheme has been running since 2011. “We know that BVD is one of the most complex diseases affecting cattle. The stage of pregnancy or age of livestock exposed to the virus has a huge effect on how the disease manifests in a herd,” he says.

“Improved calf health is one of the benefits highlighted by producers who are taking steps

to control BVD. And this is one of the key target areas for reducing antibiotic use.

Fewer cases of calf pneumonia means reduced antibiotic use. So there are positive improvements all round.”

Tagging calves All eradication schemes – in Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland – can make use of tag testing of all calves (born alive, dead or aborted) to identify BVD virus in herds.

“The reason why a calf is born dead or is aborted could well be because it was exposed to the BVD virus in utero. Yet we know from the survey that too many producers are failing to test all calves,” says Mr Yarnall.

“According to the Scottish results, almost half of producers do not tissue test calves born dead or stillborn, which is a huge concern.

“The nature of the BVD virus, and the way that it is spread with an unborn calf being exposed during pregnancy, means it can easily go undetected in a herd,” he says.

“All too often we hear reports of herds with a devastating outbreak of calf pneumonia or an abortion storm, or even clinical BVD or mucosal disease signs, and it is only then that testing is carried out and active BVD infection is identified. Continuous and ongoing testing, coupled with vaccination and good biosecurity, are at the heart of effective BVD control.” l

BVD survey information A questionnaire was posted out, and also available on-line to complete. Using multiplechoice option, producers were able to give information about the BVD situation in their

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herd, what experience, if any, they had of the disease, and how they work and plan to control it.

Throughout the UK, marginally more beef

units than dairy units responded (58% compared to 42%), but this reflects the higher number of beef farms in the country.

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BVD survey results show that schemes are tackling disease Scotland

England

• Scheme started in 2011 – the first of the four

• 279 dairy units participated in the survey,

regions to roll out such an eradication programme • 65 dairy units responded with 290 beef units reflecting higher prevalence of beef farms • 60% of producers stated they had never had a not-negative (positive or inconclusive) BVD test result • 51% claimed herd health has improved since engaging in BVD eradication • Ear tagging is popular – 44% do it, but 56% only tag and test calves that are born alive • Majority of producers vaccinate against BVD, with 60% valuing it as an insurance policy

and 199 beef units

• Despite BVDFree’s ‘Stamp it Out’ initiative, which offers free testing and vet support, 209 respondents were not aware of it • Increasing numbers using Tag & Test – 33% up from 28% a year ago • But only 42% are tagging all calves born, dead or alive, and this could lead to virus being undetected • 62% of producers said that they run closed herds yet around a quarter of these buy in stock, or rear calves away from their main unit • 10% of these ‘closed herds’ do not vaccinate, which leaves them vulnerable to BVD infection

Northern Ireland

Wales

• Compulsory phase of the eradication

• 61 dairy producers responded with 102 beef

programme approaching end of its third year • Roughly equal numbers of producers participated in the survey – 87 dairy and 95 beef – with above average herd size for the region • 60% of herds described themselves as closed, yet 20% still brought bulls on to the farm • 22% of respondents said that the incidence of calf disease has fallen and 12% claim a reduction in the use of antibiotics • 26 producers have retained a PI • Majority said they were happy with verbal assurance of BVD status

units reflecting farm numbers in Wales

• Above average herd size at 171 cows for dairy and 53 for beef

• Gwaredu BVD rolled out in summer 2017 and more than 50% of Welsh herds have been tested, but 26% of respondents said they were unaware of the scheme • 56% of herds described themselves as closed herds, yet 12% brought bulls on to the farm • 44% of producers say they have identified a PI, yet almost half do not cull immediately • Main impact of BVD was poor fertility (45 respondents), high levels of disease in calves (31) and poor weight gain (28)

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BREEDING INFORMATION

bovens bovens regel o

Cross-bred team

Rocky daughters Zandenburg Rocky Ebony 2 (left) and Zandenburg Rocky Ebony 1

Bouw Rocky: the health specialist With more than 100 daughters in their third, or more, lactation, Bouw Rocky tops the list as the undisputed number one for longevity (1,149 days) in The Netherlands. Bouw Rocky (Shamrock x Goli) shares the same cow family as the famous CRV bull Bouw Snowfever (Snowman x Goldwyn).

If producers choose Bouw Rocky, they can expect to breed sound cows who score well for both Better Life Efficiency (10%) and Better Life Health (9%). Rocky daughters are well balanced, strong and display good dairy type.

Rocky daughters Zandenburg Rocky Ebony 2 and Zandenburg Rocky Ebony 1 (pictured

above) have been classified again recently, both as third calvers. Ebony 2 was classified VG 89 and Ebony 1 went EX90.

Like other Rocky daughters, they are persistent, late to mature, and healthy cows.

CRV showed a daughter group of Bouw Rocky at Agriflanders in Gent, Belgium. Rocky displayed easy-to-manage cows with good body condition and great udders, and excellent feet and legs.

Rocky, who is one of the most heavily used CRV Avoncroft bulls in UK, is available both in conventional and SiryX semen.

Celsius daughter Vitesse just keeps on going “A cow from the past as an example for the future”, is how CRV chairman Peter Broeckx introduced Vitesse. The Celsius daughter, owned by the Lahousse family from Elverdinge was put in the spotlight, just as she was two At Agriflanders 2019 Vitesse was honored as the cow with the highest production in Belgium

years ago, at the Agriflanders in Gent (Belgium).

In 2017 she appeared as a textbook example of a sustainable cow. This year she appeared as a cow with the highest life time production in Belgium.

So far she’s produced 166,000kg of milk and more than 12,500kg of fat and protein – and she’s not finished yet. “She’s currently producing 30kg a day and she is now more than 30 days pregnant,” says owner Dries Lahousse. “Until she reached the 100-tonne milestone, she had never been to one show.

She was not big enough for the real show work. But in recent years she has won the CRV Efficiency Award for the highest fat and protein production at various shows,” he adds.

If it is up to Dries, 16-year-old Vitesse will remain in the herd for many years to come.

“Vitesse is still in the herd with the other cows. And do you see her claws? They are extremely hard. Vitesse just keeps on going.”

The cross-bred team has been strengthened by the addition of leading sires Jack-Frost and Pelorus.

Both InSires are Friesian dominant and can be used to add robustness in a cross-bred herd and add size in a Friesian herd. They have good milk flow with excellent udders.

With good scores for Better Life Health, their daughters will be problem free and easy to manage.

Breeding sales advisors Looking for a new challenge? As part of our future plan, exciting opportunities have arisen for a number of breeding sales advisors.

You will be enthusiastic, self-motivated and ethical – with a real passion for UK dairy farming. The role will be to professionally promote CRV Avoncroft’s comprehensive portfolio of bulls, products and services to producers in a defined area.

For more information, visit https://www.crvavoncroft.com/ breeding-sales-advisors/

All-Holland Dairy Show The bi-annual All-Holland Dairy Show takes place on June 28 and 29, 2019.

CRV Avoncroft would like to take the opportunity to show producers several daughter groups at the two-day show. in the week preceding the show, CRV is offering producers the opportunity to visit CRV’s Dairy Breeding Center and a few CRV test farms. If you would like to take part, please contact your breeding sales advisor.

For more information on products and services of CRV Avoncroft: phone: 01562 861582 www.crvavoncroft.com www.facebook.com/CRVAvoncroft/

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FEEDING GRASSLAND INVESTMENT

ForFarmers’ Chris Woodget (left) and Olly Neagle

Investing in grass

leys fit for the future

One Hampshire-based producer has been renovating grass leys, before moving to a new unit, to secure the future performance of his Jersey herd. We caught up with him to find out more.

TEXT KENDRA HALL

W

hen Olly Neagle’s county council tenancy, near Botley in Hampshire, was earmarked for development by Winchester City Council, he saw the replacement farm that he was offered as a chance for a fresh start and to move his pedigree Jersey herd to the next level.

With a significant investment from the council, the 70-hectare Attwoods Drove Farm is undergoing a facelift

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ahead of the milking cows’ anticipated arrival in summer 2019. At his current location, Upland Farm, the 120-cow herd is averaging 6,100 litres of milk, at 6.10% fat and 4.02% protein. Alongside his contract with Arla, Olly and his partner Julie also sell around 1,000 litres of milk a week through an on-farm vending machine.

“We have people come from as far as Oxford just to buy our milk. It’s been a huge success and we have plans

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“Extragen is 35% Lofa, a hybrid ryegrass plus, and a mix of Aber tetraploid hybrid ryegrass and diploid perennial ryegrass. This has been developed for multi-cut systems and is well suited to Olly’s requirements.

“The fourth-cut silage harvested in August 2018 was really good quality with 29.1% dry matter, 11.2 MJ/kg of ME, 169g/kg of protein, and a pH of 4.1. This was all from a crop grown in difficult conditions.”

Cost saving

Vending machine: around 1,000 litres are sold from the farm gate each week

to expand this venture once we are at the new farm,” he says.

As well as upgrading cow housing and installing a new parlour, a significant project at the soon-to-be occupied farm has been the renovation of grassland. “The fields were in a poor state when I first saw them,” says Olly.

“They were full of weeds and the ground was very rough. This site offers us a lot of flexibility in terms of grazing and cutting options. With 50% of our milk coming from forage, it is important that we get this right from the start and maximise our use of the drier ground to get as much from the grassland as possible.”

Grassland investment Olly asked ForFarmers’ forage specialist Chris Woodget for advice on how to bring the grassland at Attwoods Drove back to life. After assessing soil type and conditions, Chris recommended reseeding with Extragen, a medium-term multi-cut silage mix, and Trogen, a long-term cut-and-graze silage mix. Both are from ForFarmers’ TOPGRASS range. “This farm has dry, chalky soil and we needed grass leys that were suited to a multi-cut silage system,” explains Chris.

“We planted the Extragen in several fields during autumn 2017 and again in different fields in autumn 2018, as well as the Trogen,” says Olly. “Even after the dry summer, we harvested more than 54.4 tonnes fresh weight per hectare of silage and I was even able to graze beef cattle for an additional eight weeks. Based on those results, I’m looking forward to what we get in a more typical growing season.”

He adds that this has underlined the importance of investing in grassland. “If I had any advice for other producers then it would be to invest in fertiliser and better leys. Grazed grass is the cheapest feed on the farm, and you get out what you put into it. The money I spend on seed and fertiliser is a small investment compared to the value of the resulting forage. And because our forage is high quality I can reduce, and save money on, the level of concentrate we feed.”

With grazing somewhat limited in his current location, Olly is looking forward to seeing how his cows perform once they are relocated. “My herd has the genetics to deliver excellent results. With the new forage setup, plenty of grazing, and a decent milking parlour, I know that their intakes will increase. There is no reason why we shouldn’t be seeing yields closer to 7,000 litres.

“And once we see how the cows do on the new farm, I’d like to look at how to adjust our rotations to add different leys, or even remove maize due to the time and effort it requires. Grass is easy to establish. The cows can graze it and we can cut it. It just doesn’t fail us.” l

Future milkers: heifers at Attwood Drove Farm

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VETERINARY PRACTICE DEBBY BROWN Barnard Castle-based vet Debby Brown, who works for Dugdale Nutrition, takes a look at health and welfare issues that can affect dairy herds across the UK. This time she focuses on a rare condition that often requires surgery – where possible.

Battle of

the bulge

Ventral hernia is an unusual condition that’s difficult to treat It’s not a typical condition to see in dairy cows – but it does occur.

I’ve seen just two in more than 20 years of practice, thankfully, because treatment isn’t easy and cows are usually sent off at the end of their lactation. Pregnancy will simply exacerbate the issue and a strenuous calving won’t end well – for the cow or her calf.

The first one I saw was memorable as the cow just couldn’t push her calf out. The muscle was so badly breached by the hernia and this meant that there was nothing to ‘push’ against and she was in trouble. That case resulted in a C-section and a hernia repair in one operation. I think she completed her lactation, but I doubt she’d have been put back in calf – it would have been too risky.

There was a recent hernia case highlighted on Twitter – a cow carrying twins who, after calving, looked like she was still carrying a third. The vet was called and a hernia was diagnosed. She is a relatively small cow and was carrying two calves, each weighing 37kg. Unfortunately this hernia is untreatable – the rumen has pushed through the abdominal wall and is sitting next to the skin.

So any attempt to operate and correct would most likely puncture the rumen. It’s unsightly – she looks to be still in calf – be she’s otherwise healthy. Another pregnancy and calving would probably result in further problems. So this cow will complete her lactation but there will be no more calves.

A kick or knock from other cows can injure and weaken the muscle wall can predispose the cow to And carrying twins or even a large calf can be the cause, particularly in older cows.

There’s nothing really that producers can do to prevent it – it’s just bad luck.

Encyclopaedia: ventral hernia Cause A weakening or injury to the abdominal wall. This could be as a result of a knock from another cow or carrying a large calf or a multiple pregnancy. Most typically seen in cows that have carried twins and older cows.

Diagnosis A large ‘bulge’, either through the cow’s flank or underside.

Veterinary diagnosis typically follows a physical examination, when other conditions have been ruled out.

Treatment: surgical intervention is possible and sometimes

successful – depending on the size and position of the hernia.

The cost of the operation can be high and has to be offset against the value of the animal and the likelihood of a successful outcome.

Prevention Difficult to prevent due to the random and rare nature of the condition. To minimise the risk of a hernia caused by injury, ensure that adult cattle in the herd are polled. A head butt from a horned cow can injure, and therefore weaken, the abdominal muscle wall.

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BREEDING SIRE SELECTION

Kiwi sires suit

UK grass-based systems Kiwi-proven sires are helping UK producer to breed cows that are best suited to extensive grass-based systems. We spoke to a Walesbased producer and a New Zealand based breeding specialist to find out more.

TEXT RACHAEL PORTER

Sue Duffy: “When breeding a more ‘compact’ cow, capacity can sometimes be compromised” 44

S

ire selection is key to breeding cows that best suit your management system and unit set up – whether they are high input, high yielders that are filling the milk tank, or an extensively run grassbased herd. New Zealand’s dairy herds typically fall into the latter category. Most block calve in the spring and complete their lactation on a diet of just grazed grass.

So Kiwi breeders are adept at selecting the best sires – with the most suitable traits – to breed trouble-free, efficiency and productive milkers.

Little wonder, then, that CRV Ambreed’s Kiwi genetics are going down well with UK producers who have switched to grass-based, block calving systems.

Spring calving CRV breeding consultant Sue Duffy visited the UK in January and was impressed with the cattle that she saw on the grass-based units that she visited.

“I’ve visited the UK four times now. This latest trip was a whistle-stop two-week tour of 35 herds, based across Cornwall, Wales and the Midlands,” says Mrs Duffy.

“Many UK producers have switched to managing their herds on extensive grass-based system – predominantly

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spring calving. And to ensure that this system is a success requires, in my opinion, the right type of cow.”

Mrs Duffy says that this cow has to be ‘efficient’ – so not too tall or large in stature, but with good capacity, strong udder traits and, of course, longevity. And that’s what she’s seeing on these units across the UK, although she does think that producers would do well to focus more on capacity. “In the strive to reduce stature and breed a more ‘compact’ cow that’s better suited to a grass-based system, capacity can sometimes be compromised.

“But capacity is vital when selecting sires for use on grazing herds because this ensures that they have the physical attributes requires to eat large volumes of grass. And good functional udders are also a must.”

And she says that UK producers can add value to their herds by using CRV Ambreed sires to breed herd replacements suited to grass-based systems. “These sires perform well under UK conditions where producers are managing their herds on kiwi-type grass-based systems.”

Breeding success Martin Mathias runs a 350-cow cross-bred herd, at Stackpole in Pembrokeshire, and switched to a springblock calving system 10 years ago. The cows are predominantly Friesian. He did cross once with Jersey sires, a few years back, but now uses Friesian sires. “I didn’t want to cross again – I felt that the first crosses lacked size and milk yield. So I’m happy with breeding for a Friesian-type cow. These are best suited to our system and set up,” he says. So he’s used a lot of Russo and has daughters on the ground that he’s extremely pleased with. There’s still some Russo semen in the AI flask and this year he’s also been using Timeline.

The catalyst for switching system was the poor winter milk price, back in the 2009. “At that time we were predominantly autumn calving and it was a struggle to make a living on those milk prices. The farm is quite dry, which means that we can get the cows out to grass pretty early in the grazing season. It was a no brainer really to make the switch. And we also knew we needed to have cows that were also better suited to a more extensive grass-base system.”

Cows calve in a 12-block, starting at the end of January.

And they’re turned out to grazing as they calve. This year they began grazing on January 28. “And we like to have them out for at least 10 months of the year – if not longer. In 2018 they were out grazing until November 29 and only came in because conditions turned wet. We’ve had them out as late as December in past years.”

Even 2018 was a good grazing year, despite the exceptionally dry and difficult season. “Looking back – and knowing how well this system works – it beggars belief that we ever managed the cows any other way.”

Sue Duffy visited Mr Mathias’ unit in late January and he says it was really useful and interesting to hear her thoughts and views on the cows. “I wanted her to come and see my herd – to see if she had any suggestions on what we could do better, in terms of breeding,” he says.

“With her Kiwi breeding and management system background, I was interested to see how she thought we compared – as a herd and a business. Sue said that our cows were bigger than she expected – that’s probably because we’ve not gone too far down the Jersey cross route.” He adds that they also discussed the importance

Martin Mathias: “Our cows were bigger than Sue expected, because we’ve crossed back to Friesian” of capacity. “Size isn’t everything, but grazing cows need plenty of capacity so they can consume plenty of forage. I don’t want my cows to be too small, but I’m also looking for capacity and milk volume with high solids.”

The herd is currently averaging 5,300 litres, at 4.30% butterfat and 3.65% protein. Somatic cell count stands at 155,000 cells/ml and milk is sold to Dairy Partners.

“New Zealand producers are paid on solids contracts. But we’re still looking for milk yield. I found that the Jersey cross yields were lower than I would like – and culls and bull calves also had very little value. That’s another reason why we’ve taken the Friesian route. We want size, capacity, milk volume, and calves and culls with a value.”

Physical capacity After their chat about capacity, Martin says that it’s something he will keep a closer eye on going forward.

“I’m happy with our cows and the breeding route we’re taking – we’re focusing on Better Life Efficiency. And what Sue said to us about capacity for forage struck a chord. It would be good to push our cows to consume more dry matter and they can’t do that if they don’t have the physical capacity.”

So, for the foreseeable future, Mr Mathias will be sticking with CRV Avoncroft-Ambreed sires. “They just do what we want them to do – they’re taking our herd in the right direction. And I also think they’re good value for money.” l

Breeding focus: Martin is looking to produce heifers with capacity and milk volume, and bull calves with a sale value

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DAIRY MANAGEMENT NEWS

Medicine use on record National Milk Laboratories (NML) introduced its new medicine recording database, FarmAssist, in February. Working alongside milk buyers, the system is used to record medicines dispensed to dairy farms by participating vets. Arla Foods is now using FarmAssist and encouraging vets with Arla suppliers to participate as part of their approach to responsible use of medicines.

The aim is to support vets and producers in reviewing medicine use on farm, particularly antibiotics. “This is a voluntary scheme,” says NML vet Eamon Watson. “And we’re expecting other milk buyers to come on board with the scheme. There is an increasing need for reliable recording and reporting on antibiotic use in a standardised way.”

As well as recording medicines dispensed from the vet practice, FarmAssist also holds the medicine residue results from the NML laboratory tests that are carried out for payment purposes. This information can support Red Tractor requirements, and a vetled review of antibiotic use on farm.

NML will provide FarmAssist reports back to participating vet practices who can use them to help benchmark medicine use and monitor trends with their farmer clients. NML will also provide aggregated and anonymised reports to Arla, providing an indication of medicine use across its suppliers.

Further information on FarmAssist is available on www.nationalmilklaboratories.co.uk/vets/ farm-assist or from NML on 01902 749920.

Bulk milk test for disease part of Welsh scheme Welsh dairy producers taking advantage of the HerdAdvance initiative, which offers financial and technical support to improve herd health management and disease control, will get their bulk milk tested for key diseases through NMR. Bulk milk samples routinely collected for

NML’s payment testing service will be used for the disease tests, requiring no further input from the producer.

Tests from participating herds are being used to identify IBR, Leptosporosis, Liverfluke and Neospora.

HerdAdvance is part of a five-year Dairy Improvement Programme in Wales, which is run by AHDB and funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government. It will provide producers with a free herd health plan review and a biosecurity assessment. These will look at other factors influencing herd health and disease control, such as nutrition, genetics and the suitability of buildings.

Consultation with farms’ vets and AHDB advisers will review individual farm health plans and create an action plan with measurable targets.

“The bulk milk test results will provide a valuable starting point to assess the disease challenges on farm and the priorities for herd improvement,” says NMR vet Karen Bond.

bovens bovens regel o

Scottish herd stays top Messrs Harvey, from Beeswing in Dumfries, have retained top position, for the third year running, in NMR’s latest Holstein production rankings.

Nerewater Farm’s herd, which is based in Cumbria, is in first place for the British Friesians. R Kite’s Shropshire-based herd ranks top in the Shorthorn listings and FJ Bunney and Sons, from Hampshire, have the top Jersey herd.

The Cox’s Guernsey herd, based on Alderney, and the Tinklers’ Park Head Ayrshire herd, from Yorkshire are top of their respective breeds.

The results are published in NMR’s Annual Production Report for the year ending September 2018 and rank the top 1% of NMR-recorded herds, nationally and by county and are available from the NMR website. NMR customers can get login details from customer services.

GeneTracker dates The next three dates in 2019 for submitting tissue samples for genomic testing through NMR’s GeneTracker service are: • May 2, with results on June 4 • May 30, with results on July 2 • July 4, with results on August 13

Farm walk Will Hawking and herd manager James Smith, winners of the 2018 HerdWise Best Practice competition, will host a farm walk on Wednesday April 24, 2019, at Oldfield Farm near Chippenham.

Open to all producers, attendees can register by emailing customerservices@nmr.co.uk or by telephoning 03330 043043.

For more information on NMR products and services contact customer services: 03330 043 043, email: customerservices@nmr.co.uk www.nmr.co.uk

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ADVERTISERS’ INDEX Alta Ambic Berry’s Agriculture Boehringer Ingelheim Cogent Breeding Ltd. Concept Cowhouse Ltd. Cosy Calf Cowcare Systems CRV Avoncroft Ltd./CRV Dairy Spares ForFarmers/Thompsons Heuven Livestock Intershape Lallemand Animal Nutrition Mayo Cow Comfort Neogen BioSecurity NMR Noluma light protection Quill Productions RPC Agriculture Trouw Nutrition VDK Products Volac Zinpro

18 22 24 51 34 38 42 48 12 22 2 48 24 49 46 38 4, 33 11 46 24 17 38 46 52

SHOWS AND EVENTS 2019

May 15-18 May 29-June 1 June 6-8 June 19-20 June 20-23 July 9-11 July 22-25 September 11 September 12 October 2

Balmoral Show, Balmoral Park, Lisburn, Northern Ireland Royal Bath & West Show, Shepton Mallet, Somerset Royal Cornwall Show, Royal Cornwall Showground, Wadebridge, Cornwall TotalDairy Seminar, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Stratford-upon-Avon Royal Highland Show, Ingliston, Scotland Great Yorkshire Show, Harrogate, North Yorkshire Royal Welsh Show, Builth Wells, Powys UK Dairy Day, Telford International Centre, Shropshire Westmorland County Show, Crooklands, Cumbria The Dairy Show, Shepton Mallet, Somerset

COMING UP

MAY HOUSING AND EQUIPMENT May 3: Our next issue will focus on housing and equipment. We’ll take a closer look at the key role that good facilities play in maximising cow comfort, health and productivity.

CONTACTS CowManagement is published eight times per year by CRV BV, Publishing Department Editorial team Chief Editor Jaap van der Knaap Editor Rachael Porter Phone: 01394 270587 E-mail: rachael@reporterjournalism.co.uk Editing, design and production CRV Publishing Contributing writers Emily Ball, Roger Evans, Sara Gregson, Charlotte Grime, Kendra Hall, Allison Matthews, Matt Mellor, Inge van Drie, and Karen Wright Publisher Rochus Kingmans Chief editor’s address P.O. Box 454, 6800 AL Arnhem, The Netherlands Phone: 0031 26 38 98 821 E-mail: cm.office@crv4all.com CowManagement online Facebook: www.facebook.com/CowManagementUK/ Twitter: @cowmanagement Website: www.cowmanagement.co.uk

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Subscriptions CowManagement is available free of charge to customers of NMR, CRV Avoncroft, Thompsons and ForFarmers. If you think you are eligible, or if you wish to no longer receive CowManagement, then please contact: National Milk Records plc, Fox Talbot House, Greenways Business Park, Bellinger Close, Chippenham SN15 1BN Phone 03330 043043 E-mail: customerservices@NMR.co.uk www.isubscribe.co.uk Advertisements Nicci Chamberlin, NMR. Phone 07970 009136 E-mail: niccic@nmr.co.uk Jannet Fokkert, Froukje Visser, Hilda van der Wal P.O. Box 454, 6800 AL Arnhem, The Netherlands, E-mail: hilda.van.der.wal@crv4all.com

Disclaimer CowManagement does not necessarily share the views expressed by contributors. No responsibility is accepted for the claims made by advertisers.

No responsibility can be accepted by CRV BV for the opinions expressed by contributors. Whilst every effort is made to obtain reliable and accurate information, liability cannot be accepted for errors. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system without the express prior written consent of the publisher.

Printer Stephens and George Ltd. Phone 01685 352097 ISSN 1570-5641

Illustrations/pictures Photographs by Veeteelt Photography, Nicola Reddy (13), Ruth Downing (25, 44-45), Alger Meekma (39), and Mark Pasveer (40-41 NI).

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MAKING BVD HISTORY EXPERIENCE THE LIVE VACCINE DIFFERENCE

Now that we’re moving from BVD control to eradication, and with BVD costing over £40 per cow per year1, you’ll want a vaccine that is proven to deliver a full 12 months’ prevention of the birth of PIs after a single injection.

Speak to your vet to find out why Bovela is now the market leading BVD vaccine in the UK2.

Dual protection made simple References: 1. Yarnall and Thrusfield (2017) Vet Record doi: 10.1136/vr.104370 2. Kynetec BVD sales data by value. Full year 2018.

Bovela lyophilisate and solvent for suspension for injection for cattle contains modified live BVDV-1, non-cytopathic parent strain KE-9: 104.0 –106.0 TCID50, modified live BVDV-2, non-cytopathic parent strain NY93: 104.0 –106.0 TCID50. UK: POM-V. Further information available in the SPC or from Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health UK Ltd, RG12 8YS, UK. Tel: 01344 746960 (sales) or 01344 746957 (technical). Email: vetenquiries@boehringer-ingelheim.com. Bovela is a registered trademark of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica GmbH, used under licence. ©2019 Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health UK Ltd. All rights reserved.

Date of preparation: Jan 2019. AHD11824. Use Medicines Responsibly.

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