Cowmanagement uk january-february 2017

V O LU M E 15 N O 1 JA NU A RY /FE BR UARY 2017

IN THIS ISSUE

HE R D R E P O RT

M A IZE SPEC IA L

BULL PROOFS

Scottish family take top spot for a second time

Selecting varieties for quality forage and to manage risk

We analyse the latest sire rankings

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SEVERUS n

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AUTENS KWS n

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AURELIUS KWS n

Early FAO 180

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SEEDING THE FUTURE SINCE 1856

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CO NTENT

FEATURES

Cow Talk Overalls Off: football coach Roger Evans NMR Dairy Management News ForFarmers Nutritional News/ Thompsons Nutritional News 37 Business update: farm energy audits 41 CRV Avoncroft Breeding Information 42 Events and contacts 4 11 19 31 35

REPORT

12 Scottish herd reclaims number-one position in NMR’s APR ranking BREEDING

16 Clear breeding goals reap benefits 28 Cows that can graze and put milk in the tank FEEDING

38 Focus on forage quality drives business growth/Economic impact of metritis

John Harvey “We kept our nerve when milk prices dropped” 12

Editor Rachael Porter Mitigating volatility

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elcome to 2017’s first issue of CowManagement. And we’re starting as we mean to go on.

Milk prices may be moving up, rather than down, but there’s a long way to go before producers and businesses really begin to feel that the financial squeeze has eased. So, as ever, we’re committed to arming you with a wealth of useful and interesting information that should help you to continue to manage your herds and businesses as efficiently as possible.

Our Dairy Directions series continues with a look at diversification. There are so many possibilities here and it’s impossible to include them all in one article. So we’ve focused on a handful of ideas that are already helping to mitigate volatility and add value to UK dairy businesses.

Take a look at page six and see if you feel inspired to set up a sideline to buffer your bottom line.

Maize is also topical this issue, as producers look ahead to the spring and

make decisions about which forages they plan to grow this coming season.

Does maize have a place on your unit?

And, if so, what varieties should you be looking to grow in 2017 and why? Our special, which answers some key maize-growing questions, begins on page 21.

If you resolved to continue cutting costs, without compromise, at the start of 2017, then a farm energy audit may be just the thing to get you off to a flying start. The consultant we spoke to, on page 37, says that it’s not unusual for producers to save thousands of pounds each year following a thorough energy usage and tariff check. Water cooling and heating and vacuum pumps are all power-hungry systems. So he offers some pointers on how to reduce their consumption and trim your energy bills.

Roger Evans is on fine form with his regular column, on page 19, in this issue – I think he’s found his mojo again. And you’ll also find some light ‘sports’ relief on page 11, in our Overalls Off column.

Series Dairy directions

Special Maize

Breeding Bull proofs

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21

32

Future-proofing some dairy units could mean diversifying

Tips on variety selection, managing risk and a maize update

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The gap between genomic and daughter-proven sires continues to widen

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C O W

TA L K

Mixer-wagon attachment launched A simple attachment that distributes baled straw straight into TMR mixer wagons and significantly reduces mixing times and running costs, as well as wear and tear, was launched at LAMMA ’17.

The Feed-a-Bale, from Spread-a-Bale, can also distribute baled straw, hay, haylage and lucerne from along feed fences.

Feed-a-Bale can be fitted on all Spread-aBale machines dating back to 2001, both the M Range and SBL Range, and is available in two sizes.

The Mini/Midi/SBL100 Feed-a-Bale weighs 28kg and folds down in two sections.

When not required for feeding, it folds up on top of the machine in the stored position – a process that takes less than one minute to change from stored to feeding, without the use of any tools.

The Maxi/SBL125 Feed-a-Bale weighs 30kg and similarly folds down in two sections. Prices range from £1,065 to £1,260 for the machines.

AD plant ‘future proofs’ dairy unit Investing in anaerobic digestion can offer dairy producers a stable income, reduced energy costs and an opportunity to add value to waste products, which is key to long-term sustainability.

Ireland-based producer Stephen Carson runs a 300-cow herd and has recently invested in a 500kW biogas plant, known as Tievenny AD. “We decided to look into anaerobic digestion nearly four years ago, when milk prices were low. The driving force was that we wanted to reduce the effects of market price fluctuation on the farm business,” he explains.

“It’s been a long and involved process.

The planning took a long time, as did securing the grid connection. But I was pleasantly surprised by how straight forward it was to secure funding for the project.

Finance was provided by Privilege Finance and the company has helped every step of the way. It continues to offer Stephen support as and when he need it.

The plant was commissioned in September 2016 and is now operating at ‘full throttle’, producing 500kW of electricity. “Running the plant is

my responsibility and it has many similarities to a dairy herd. It needs a good diet and I have to monitor its health and be sure not to overstress it.”

The plant is ‘fed’ approximately 26 to 28 cubic metres of cow slurry per day.

“We’re able to get more value from the slurry, which we would previously have had to pay to have spread,” adds Stephen.

“We use the heat and electricity that we generate within the dairy enterprise.”

The AD plant also plays a key role in ‘future proofing’ the unit. ”Our investment in AD offers further security for future generations.”

Ketosis prevention supplements launched Two highly concentrated and fast available energy supplements, designed to prevent ketosis and improve milk yield in freshly calved cows, have been launched by Brenntag.

Neubalac Dry comprises 67% glycol content in the form of propylene glycol on a highly absorptive carrier, while Neubalac G Dry comprises 67% glycerine and is recommended for high yielding cows.

Independent trials involving cows in

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their first four weeks of lactation featuring two groups – a control and a group fed 500g/day Neubalac Dry – concluded that those animals offered the supplement were not only free of ketosis incidences compared with those monitored in the control group, but they also recorded improved performance.

Milk yield increased by 6%, fat by 7%, and protein by 14%. In addition, body weight loss was reduced by more than 40%.

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“During the pre/post calving period cows are prone to metabolic diseases, such as ketosis, as they adapt to the sudden changes connected with calving and the onset of lactation,” says the company’s Amy Sisson.

“These supplements can bridge that gap.

Both are sources of highly concentrated and easily absorbable energy, which have been proven to minimise the risk of ketosis, improve yield performance and maintain body condition.”

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Making maize decisions in 2017 Maize is proving to be a popular cropping choice for UK farmers, with recent figures suggesting that more than 170,000 hectares were grown in the UK in 2016 – a 6% increase since 2012.

The crop has become an important component of dairy rations and producers are seeing the benefits from the high starch and fermentable energy content, with improved animal performance on both dairy and beef enterprises, according to Wynnstay’s Simon Pope.

“The 2016 harvest was a success for many, thanks to the near perfect weather conditions helping to produce bumper yields, with high ME and starch contents as a result. No doubt this is influencing the high volume of seed already being purchased.”

Ahead of the 2017 season, Dr Pope highlights the fundamentals to consider before confirming any variety choice.

“There are many factors to consider, but the single biggest influence for a successful maize crop is the weather. Of course we have no control over this whatsoever but, by concentrating on the factors under our control, we can improve the likelihood of a successful outcome at harvest.”

Dr Pope explains that field selection is always the first step. “Knowing the field history will help determine potential challenges. Has compaction been a problem? Is the field well drained? Are there any known fertility issues which need to be corrected?

“Are there any problem weeds which require specific control measures? By considering such questions well ahead of time it is easier to draw up an effective plan of attack.”

He also explains that it’s worth considering the soil type and nutrient status of each field, as this is very

Simon Pope: “Careful field selection is the first step towards growing maize successfully”

influential in determining variety choice and the nutritional needs of the crop.

“For example, important questions to address are: what’s the field’s pH status and are you aware of the phosphate and potash indices? These all play a pivotal role in nutrient availability and crop nutrition. If you have not done a soil analysis recently, then get the field tested.”

On-farm forage and feed analysis Forage, in all its forms, is one of the most variable feeds on-farm, so the introduction of portable NIR (near infrared) spectroscopy technology, NIR4 Farm unit: allows real-time forage analysis

which allows real-time forage analysis, is having a major impact on units where it’s being used.

So says KW nutritionist Matt Witt, who’s been using the technology extensively for the past 12 months. He adds that being able to analyse silages on-farm, in less than five minutes, is proving to be a major step forwards.

“Rather than taking samples, posting them off and the results coming back when you’ve mentally moved on, you can have the conversation about what the results mean – and adjust rations if necessary – on-farm,” he says.

Dr Witt has used the portable NIR4 Farm unit on Michael George’s farm. He manages 1,500 Holsteins across two units near Haverfordwest, in partnership with his brother Roland and two sons, James and Charles. With close to 1,300 cows in milk and housed all year round, conserved forages make up a large part of the diet that currently sees Brynhyfryd Holsteins averaging around 36 litres per cow per day at 4% butterfat.

“Due to the way we feed the cows, forage quality is really important,” explains Mr George.

“What the portable NIR has highlighted is just how big the variation in forage feed value can be – not just between

clamps, but also within the same clamp.”

When milk yields dropped in early 2016, the NIR enabled quick diagnosis of the problem – a difference in energy content of around 1MJ ME/kg DM between the top and bottom of the grass silage clamp being fed.

“We could see the dividing line on the clamp face, but we had no idea the difference in feed value was so great,” Mr George adds. “Once we knew, we could make sure equal amounts of silage were taken from both areas to keep an even mix.”

And because the technology also works for fresh grass and moist feeds, it’s also enabled Dr Witt to explain to other customers why certain fields produce better quality silage when cut, or higher yields when grazed. And it’s also proven invaluable for checking the dry matter and protein content of moist feeds and working out the potential value of bought-in forages.

“For me, it’s become a vital tool onfarm,” he says. “I’m working with up-to-date facts about forage quality, not estimates or past data, and the result is greater feeding precision, better feed efficiency and, ultimately, increased margins and profitability for the customer.”

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Diversification should comple men

Extra money -m Dairy directions – what are your options?

The articles in this timely five-part series set out to examine the possible routes for producers who are looking to build and manage a dairy business that’s better equipped to survive – and thrive – in an increasingly volatile economic environment.

Introduction: Take stock/assess Part 1: Improving efficiency Part 2: Economies of scale Part 3: Diversification Part 4: Exit strategies

Mitigating volatility on some dairy units could involve diversification. We asked a leading UK business consultant to outline some viable options and to point out any potential benefits and pitfalls. text Rachael Porter

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iversification can create a much-needed second stream of income for dairy businesses. But it’s vital that any time spent on a ‘side’ enterprise generates a profit and doesn’t detract from the core business.

So says the Farm Consultancy Group’s Charles Holt, who knows only too well that sometimes ‘projects’ that producers believe will generate addition income often fail and simply become a drain on their already struggling dairy business. “It’s about being honest and realistic. And good research and planning too. And run your ideas past someone you trust – be that a partner or someone outside the business, like a consultant or a bank manager. Someone who will make sure you’re not looking through rose-tinted glasses and simply pursuing something because it will be a distraction or a welcome change from the day-to-day running of the herd.”

No ‘hobby’ enterprise Mr Holt says that it’s human nature, to an extent, to spend more time doing something new and different rather than focusing on what will make money but is less interesting.

“If something’s different or fun, producers will be ‘diverted’. So it’s vital that any diversification is not just a diversion – it needs to be a strong business idea that will generate an income that justifies the investment. It needs to ‘add’ to the dairy business and not ‘detract’ from it.”

He stresses that any capital or time invested in a new venture – be that setting up bed-and-breakfast in your farmhouse or opening a farm shop – has to be well spent.

“The figures have to stack up if your bottom line is to increase and not suffer.”

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mple ment – not detract – from dairying

ey -making options Sounds simple, but Mr Holt still sees producers who pour hours of time and thousands of pounds into what he called ‘hobby’ enterprises – or business off-shoots that either break even or lose money.

“Many producers are already time poor when it comes to managing their dairy herds and businesses. So the most attractive diversifications are those that require minimal effort and investment and, ultimately, risk. Setting up a bed-and-breakfast business, for example, is relatively low cost – perhaps only requiring a quick spruce up of a couple of bedrooms and a bathroom.

“Setting up a farm shop, on the other hand, could potentially cost much more and then there’s the issue of staffing,” he says, adding that many producers start with a table of farm produce and an honesty box. “This kind of enterprise typically starts small and grows organically, with demand. It very much depends on the unit’s location and access, and customer potential. This requires research and careful thought.”

Good reputation Producers are certainly innovative and creative when it comes to money-making schemes outside the core business of dairying. Mr Holt has seen everything, from contract heifer rearing and beef from the dairy herd (which are relatively close to the core business, but help to generate additional income), through to providing caravan parking and general storage facilities on farm.

“What may work on one unit may not work on another.

Some producers already enjoy an additional stream of income from surplus heifer sales, but the challenge is to ensure that you have enough replacements to meet your own herd’s requirements and some years you may have fewer heifers to sell than others.

“So this isn’t a guaranteed recipe for success. And producers have to take care when selecting stock to sell. Buyers may assume that you’re only selling your bottom-end stock.

So a degree of marketing may be required and ideally all heifers reared should be top quality to attract buyers and build a good reputation. Not easy to do.

“So, ideally, producers should be looking for another enterprise that will complement the dairy herd and help to bolster the coffers when milk price isn’t so great.”

Bed and breakfast and caravan storage are tried and tested ‘diversifications’, with many producers also having considerable financial success. Good access and clean and dry driveways are essential, particularly for caravan storage. And ideally caravans need to be stored away from the dairy unit.

“Security is the big issue here. Customers need to know that their caravans are safe, so investing in CCTV or some other 24-hour security system is important. And producers will also need to take out insurance too. But if you have a large, empty shed that it fit for purpose, this could be

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Redundant buildings could be used for alternative money-making enterprises

‘Barn Store’ containers, in their red livery, in a converted barn

The farm-gate milk-vending machine at Fen Farm Dairy

a viable business opportunity,” says Mr Holt.

Innovative thinking and the ability to spot and supply niche markets could also open a door to diversification.

have an outlying shed that could be used for a similar set up?”

Mr Bazeley adds that customers like the idea of storing possessions in a secure barn, but they don’t want a mess. “So no big bales stacked up outside or muck.

They have a very idealised view of farms and farming.”

And, to have potential, producers’ units need to be in a location that has a large local population and/or plenty of passing trade.

Raw milk from the 200-litre DF Italia vending machine costs consumers £1 per litre, at the farm gate. Mr Crickmore says that the appeal for many customers is that it’s unpasteurised and it’s local.

“They want to reconnect with where their food is produced and their priority is to spend their money on good food.

They’re not interested in buying cheap milk from the supermarkets. Some are also buying our raw milk for health and dietary reasons.

“One thing that all our customers have in common is their loyalty – sales are steady throughout the year. And we have people travelling as far as 30 miles on a regular basis to buy our milk. They’ll bring several plastic bottles to fill up for the freezer – the milk freezes well,” he adds.

Self-storage facilities Providing more general secure storage facilities saw one Hampshire-based producer not only generate additional income to complement his dairying income, but he’s now franchising his business out to other producers. In fact, what was a diversification has now become a business in its own right, for Portsmouth-based producer Martin Bazeley.

Back in 2003, he decided to set up a selfstorage operation at his unit. He bought in some containers, which were all then painted the same colour by a local contractor and then set up in an existing cow shed. Customers then had the option to rent a full, half or even quarter of a container. This business – Barn Store – has been so successful that he now has 10 other franchised storage facilities across the UK, including on the Isle of Wight. And two are on dairy units.

“We spent 12 months doing our research – to make sure there would be a demand for our facilities and that it would be time and money well spent,” says Mr Bazeley. “We converted an existing cubicle shed and every customer has their electronic fob key, so they can come and go as they please. We also have full coverage of the site with high definition CCTV and there are office staff for customers to ring too, should they require any assistance.”

Such an operation requires easy and clean access: “Ideally a clean, concrete drive way. People don’t want to be traipsing through cow muck to get to their possessions,” stresses Mr Holt.

“Separate access is ideal. Perhaps you

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Farm-gate sales Not quite so involved, but also requiring good, clean access and safe parking is selling milk from the farm gate, via a vending machine. “I’ve a couple of producers who are keen to take a closer look at this,” says Mr Holt, adding that it’s a diversification that he thinks could be a viable – and realistic – option for many producers across the UK. “I think it’s a great idea.”

Suffolk-based Fen Farm Dairy, owned and managed by Jonny and Dulcie Crickmore who farm in partnership with Jonny’s parents Graham and Frances, has a raw milk vending machine. The couple sell the majority of the milk produced by their 300-cow herd – about two million litres a year – to a milk buyer. But today around 20% of production is either sold direct to local customers from the farm gate, via a vending machine, as ‘raw’ unpasteurised milk, or processed into cream, butter or their very own cheese – called Baron Bigod. Some of this is also sold through another vending machine at the farm gate.

The couple are also the UK distributors for the vending machines and, to date, they have sold 36 to UK-based producers, who have successfully tapped into a local market for raw milk ‘straight from the farm’.

“Again, to justify the time and investment, a robust business plan must be drawn up and market research is vital,” says Mr Holt. “Producers have to know that the demand for raw milk from a vending machine is there.”

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Mitigating volatility Farms with machines typically sell between 100 and 200 litres each day from the farm gate, according to Mr Holt.

“At £1 per litre that soon adds up to a considerable amount each month and will certainly help to mitigate milk price volatility.”

Vending machines are around £10,000 and then there’s the cost of providing hard standing and a shed to house the machine, plus ensuring that there’s good access and parking.

“The investment required will vary from unit to unit. There’s a lot to consider, but it’s certainly something to give some serious thought.” l If you’d like to know more about purchasing and installing a DF Italia vending machine, email: vendingmachines@fenfarmdairy.co.uk To find out more about BarnStore, visit: www.barn-store.co.uk

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O V E R A L L S

Name: Location: Herd size: Hobby:

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Andy Bevan Herefordshire 130 cows Football coach

Andy Bevan: “Football wins when it comes to dividing up my spare time”

Team trainer text Darcie Victor-Trott

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e started with just three young footballers but, today, dairy producer and UEFA licensed football coach Andy Bevan runs the regional talent centre for the Junior Premier League – one of only six in the UK – for 106 junior players. He also coaches a local headline-making team.

Westfield Football Club’s first team was the lowest-ranked team to get through to the first round of this year’s FA Cup competition. “That was a phenomenal success for the club. It was a goal that we’d set, as part of a three-year plan, and we achieved it in the first year,” says Andy.

It was a great achievement for the team and for Andy who, after a harrowing experience at the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, had been out of the game for more than 15 years. He quit his semi-profession career with local football leagues, including the club he now coaches, to focus on his family.

It was only in 2005 that Andy put his football boots back on and decided to start training a team – this time much closer to home and on a small area of unused farmland, which has now grown into a full pitch, complete with lights and changing rooms and offices. This is where his juniors train throughout the season.

Extra-early starts, to milk his 130-cow herd, free up time in the evening for Andy to coach. Training takes up four nights each week: “But it’s worth it. The end product is a smile on my face and a great sense of respect between myself and the players.”

The juniors are aged between six and 16 years and, during the past decade, Andy has seen players move up into the premier league and play bigger games.

“But the results don’t matter, it’s the players’ individual performances and their enjoyment of the sport that’s important. To watch them grow and develop into outstanding young players is very rewarding.”

Less rewarding are the injuries. But they’re not all down to the sport. “On the morning of my FA cup television interview, I got my arm stuck under a cow. When I finally got to the interview, that’s all the journalist wanted to talk about – the cows and not the football. Injuries are part of farming and football – they’re both very physical activities.”

Andy admits to spending more physical and emotional energy on ‘the beautiful game’. “Cows or coaching – football usually wins when it comes to dividing up my extra time. And there’s a lot more to come from the RTC and the team in 2017.”

Andy is expecting great things during the next 12 months. “I think our team’s performance is going to be magnificent – we just keep on getting better. And there are a few other exciting opportunities on the horizon. Certainly plenty to keep me – and the players – motivated.”

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H E R D

R E P O RT

Scottish dairy herd’s stamina and ‘staying power’ sees it move back up to take the top spot

Harvey family Brothers John and Stuart head up their family-run business.

And steering a steady course has seen the herd rise back up to the top of the APR ranking.

Herd size: Average yield: Somatic cell count: Calving index:

Beeswing

Consistent and persistent A tight grip on meticulous herd management has seen one of the UK’s top dairy herds reclaim the number-one position in this

340 cows 13,079kg <100,000 cells/ml 397 days

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here have been many awards and accolades for the Harvey family during the past five years. And already 2017 is shaping up to be a good year for their 340-cow herd, based at Beeswing in Dumfriesshire.

The herd is top of the NMR Annual

year’s NMR Annual Production Report rankings. We spoke to the family behind its success to find out more text Rachael Porter

Production Report ranking for the year ending September 2016, with an impressive yield of 946kg of fat and protein and 13,079kg of milk at 4.01% butterfat and 3.22% protein.

“The cows are not performing better than they were in 2015 or 2014, but

they’re performing consistently – that’s what’s put the herd in the top slot. We’ve maintained yields and the others close to the top of the rankings have fallen away a little,” says John, modestly.

The herd is owned and run by John, brother Stuart and his wife Charlotte,

High yielders: the milking herd is split into three groups and managed to optimise performance

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and their mother Margaret. This is the second time they topped the list – the first time was in 2015 – and they have made it into the NMR/RABDF Gold Cup twice. In 2012 they were also crowned AgriScot Scottish Dairy Farm of the Year.

The team at Drum Farm, which also comprises five staff, pulls together and in the same direction and that’s key to their success, according to John. “It’s all about the cows. If we look after the cows then they will look after us – it really is as simple as that.”

It’s this ‘winning’ philosophy that has given the herd ‘staying power’ or stamina, particularly during the past couple of tough years. “And it’s very much down to paying attention to detail and identifying obstacles and removing them,” says John.

Heifer accommodation Three years ago, young stock housing was improved because calf and heifer rearing was identified as a limiting factor. A suspended slatted floor cubicle shed was built to house 120 young stock, aged between four months and a year old. “Previously this age range of heifers were out wintered. But we can now house them in one building.”

Consistent ration: Stuart works closely with the herd’s nutritionist to feed a balanced diet

A renewed focus on heifer rearing during the past four years now sees them calving down at 24 months, rather than 26 months, and that’s, in part, down to the new facilities. “We’ve made heifers a priority – and that’s easy to do when they’re close by and not away in the field somewhere. We now get them bulling and served earlier and have reduced the average age at first calving.”

Heifers join the NMR-recorded herd, which is milked three times a day. “We didn’t sell any surplus stock in 2016. The sale price of heifers was too low, so it made sense to cull our lower end cows and bring in the new higher genetic merit heifers,” explains John. “Heifer prices are picking up now, so I think surplus heifer sales will resume in 2017.”

During the past five years, the herd has made considerable genetic progress.

“We’ve been milk recording for the past 10 years and in 2016 we saw, for the first time, some of our cows pass the 100-tonnes-of-milk milestone. And there’s a 11-year-old cow that’s set to pass the 130-tonne mark in 2017.

“Milk recording offers a wealth of health, fertility and management data.

But highlighting cows with exceptional lifetime daily yields is one particularly rewarding aspect.

“It tells us that we’re breeding good cows and that we’re managing them well and they’re not only persisting in their lactations, but they’re lasting in the herd.”

Transition group The herd is split into two groups – high yielders and mid-to-low yielders. The former group is housed all year round and the latter go out to graze after firstcut silage has been taken in mid-May and stay out until October. And the Harveys have recently added a third ‘transition’ group of fresh calvers.

“We think that this will help to increase peak yield. We have no problem with persistency, so this is the next step to improving lactation yield for our herd,” explains Stuart, adding that this group

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Cosy calves: the Harveys have renewed their focus on heifer rearing and the result is a reduced age at first calving

never comprises more than 36 cows or heifers at one time. “As one joins, the cow or heifer that’s been calved the longest moves into the high yielding group.”

Cow health The cows are fed a TMR that provides maintenance plus 36 litres, with individual cows topped up in the parlour with a 16% protein concentrate. The midto-low group is fed a slightly different TMR that gives them maintenance plus 34 litres.

Stuart takes charge of feeding with help from Premier Nutrition’s Donald Lawson.

Health is John’s responsibility, under the guidance of vet Roddy Dunse. He visits every 10 days and helps John to carry out Johne’s disease blood screening and deliver a comprehensive vaccination programme, which protects the herd from BVD, IBR, Leptospirosis and husk.

Margaret and Charlotte manage calf rearing, as well as lending a hand at milking time.

The herd’s SCC stands at less than 100,000 cells/ml and John says that the incidence of mastitis is currently in single figures – it was at around 20 cases per 100 cows per year in 2015. Another

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new development at the unit is a switch to using selective dry cow therapy and he believes that this has helped to reduce the number of cases of mastitis by improving the population of flora and fauna in the udder.

“We had tried it prior to 2016, but had problems with cows that were still giving a lot of milk at drying off. Excessive milk in the udder was pushing the sealant out of the teats.

“Then, in 2016, we decided to try again and also used Velactis at drying off, which is a treatment to reduce, if not stop, milk production,” says John. “I find that a cow needs to be giving fewer than 15 litres if I want to dry her off using teat sealant only, so this product was a huge help.

“But after just three months it was withdrawn from the market. So I’m back down to being able to only dry off about 5% of the herd without using dry cow therapy. I guess it’s a start. But I’d like to reduce the proportion of cows getting antibiotic at drying off. John has very strict criteria that a cow or heifer has to meet for teat-sealant only. “She must have a SCC of less than 150,000 cells/ml at every recording and have had no mastitis infection during her

JANUARY/FEB R U ARY

lactation. And she has to be giving fewer than 15 litres at drying off.”

Water troughs Other recent changes include installing some new water troughs to help increase water intakes. “The ones we had we’re OK, but we’ve swapped them for large ones with a faster re-fill rate. And it has made a difference – I’m sure we’re seeing an extra litre or two per cow per day,” says Stuart.

It’s level of attention to detail that sees the herd where it is today – after one of the toughest financial years in dairying on record. “We kept our nerve when the milk prices dropped, but then our price bottomed out at 16ppl, which was a lot more than many other producers were getting.

“We didn’t want to pull the cows back too much – it was very much about balance.

We set out to keep them steady – we let them run down a little when they were out at grass, but we were able to push them again so they were producing strongly on the shoulders of the season.”

It’s a strategy that’s paid off and, with an accolade so early in the year, it will be interesting to see how the herd performs during the remainder of 2017. l

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COW MAN AG E ME N T

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B R E E D I N G

Decide what sort of cow suits your system and stick to your guns

on Profitable Lifetime Index (PLI). Much of this success is down

Although he knows most of his cows – and their breeding, Eric admits that there’s no preferential treatment. “We haven’t got time for that,” he says.

“There’s no in-parlour feeding or feeding to yield and there’s not a lot of spare time to pander to problem cows.”

Three units make up the 290 hectares farmed by the family and provide grass and wholecrop triticale forages for the herd’s TMR ration. These are balanced with locally-sourced bread and dough, rape and soya meal, maize meal, a protected fat and a vitamin and miner al package. This diet is fed on a flat rate to the whole milking herd, maintaining a feed conversion efficiency of around 1.43.

to well-defined breeding plans, designed to achieve uniform

Milking rota

Clear breeding goals reap benefits Consistency is key on one Derbyshire-based unit that, for the past four years, has been in NMR’s top three herds ranked

cows with nothing too extreme. text Karen Wright

E

ric Easom is very clear on the sort of cow needed for the 350-cow pedigree Broomhouse Holstein herd. One of four of the late David Easom’s sons, Eric runs Broom House Farm with brothers Mark, John and David, four of their sons, and their sister Helen.

“We want medium-sized, functional cows – nothing too big or high maintenance,” says Eric. “Like everyone else, I like to see show cows. But that’s only part of the jigsaw. They must also have good health and production traits and be durable.”

Each brother has specific responsibilities but all team members share the weekend and evening milking, on a four-weekly rota, of this 10,151kg yielding herd, which averages 3.92% fat and 3.21% protein on twice-a-day milking.

“We do our own AI and have between six and eight bulls on the go at any one time. The herd has been closed for more than 30 years and we breed all the cows and heifers to dairy sires.”

Breeding their own replacements is the main focus, but surplus cows and heifers

Dairy heifers: the next generation

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fifth lactation and has given more than 60 tonnes of milk to date, generating a lifetime daily yield of 22.75kg.

Lifetime success

Eric Easom: “The bar is set high in sire selection”

are sold either privately or through Leek market. “It is purely down to numbers – we sell about 70 or 80 head a year, depending on housing and on the numbers in each group.”

Eric illustrates this consistency with a group of O Man daughters, now in their fifth lactation, who averaged 82 points as heifers and are now all classified excellent. Fertility is good, with a group average calving interval of 384 days, with all heifers achieving at least 50 tonnes of good quality, low-cell-count milk.

Equally, a group of Leif daughters have performed well and are in the running in this year’s Derbyshire herd competition. One is an EX93 cow in her

“Lifetime yield is a good reflection of performance. It represents everything we breed and manage our herd for. Cows need good yields, fertility and health in consecutive lactations to score well.

There’s little difference between our cows here and it’s the sort of consistency we want throughout the herd,” Eric says, adding that they have achieved this over many years with clear and defined criteria when it comes to sire selection.

“PLI is the starting point and I set the bar high, screening potential bulls for milk quality as well as management traits like health and production,” he says, admitting that he never ignores new indices.

“We’re reaping the benefit of these now, after many years of selecting bulls with good fertility and a low-cell-count index.

Conception rates are improving and the latest calving to conception rate is 70 days. Our rolling annual average SCC is now 108,000 cells/ml.”

Eric’s next sire screening step is based on type, starting with size and avoiding anything too big that won’t be comfortable in their cubicles. “Also, I

question the lifetime feed efficiency of large cows. They eat more and cost more to keep, so they must produce a lot more milk just to cover their maintenance costs.”

Teat length is important at Broom Farm too. “I make sure teat length isn’t too short because this can be problem in the parlour with units falling off. You can have all the potential in the world in an animal, but she’s no good if you can’t keep the milking unit on.”

Good legs, feet and udders also come under scrutiny in selecting from the sire list and so does rump angle. “High pins are a personal dislike. I am not sure that this is justified in terms of a management problem, but it’s just something I don’t like. And, of course, price plays a part.

Some young and new bulls have overinflated prices that I can’t justify.”

Best match Eric’s chosen list of sires is used in a computerised corrective mating program to give the best match for each cow and to avoid any potential inbreeding. The final line up will be a team of young genomic bulls and proven sires – enough to spread the risk, but all meeting high criteria. “The selected bulls are of a high calibre, so if any one sire does fall away there’s enough cushioning to avoid problems.”

Bulls currently in the flask, which meet Eric’s rigorous criteria for PLI, type and good value for money, include: Cayman, Charley, Blackjack and Gatedancer. And promising young stock coming into the herd, from sires he used 18 months ago, include: Nadal, Cabriolet and Supershot daughters.

As the rate of genetic progress increases in UK dairy herds, more use will be made of genomic testing among heifers in the family’s herd. About 25% of heifers have been tested during the past four years and, compared with their parent average, some are 100 points higher in PLI, while others are 100 points lower.

“The difference is that genomic testing tells us which heifers are higher and we can target these – so it helps us develop our breeding plans. It’s all about using the most up-to-date tools that help us make progress yet maintain a consistent herd of cows. Our latest average herd PLI is 210 and 237 for heifers, with little difference between the top and bottom cows, and the plan is to stick to our goals and keep making good progress.” l

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F R O M

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E VA N S

Shropshire-based producer and award-winning columnist Roger Evans says that, despite on-going struggles, there are some reasons for producers to be cheerful as we move into 2017.

Good humour I

used to be a regular after-dinner speaker, I used to speak a lot down the pub. I can’t do the former anymore and I struggle with the latter I’ve got this condition that is slowly removing my ability to speak.

Most people think that this is admirable in a woman and is ok in me, but I don’t find it very handy.

But I remember, at the most recent few dinners I spoke at, the people who introduced me all said that they had looked forward to reading my articles over many years because, in a dairy farming world that was full of challenges, I had always made them laugh and cheered them up.

It occurred to me early on, when I first started writing, that most articles in the farming press are about people who do a job well and are designed to help you to do things better. Mine have always been the opposite. They’ve been ‘you won’t believe what happened’ sort of articles. People have always identified with that, but I do have serious side and I’ve used humour as a vehicle to carry important messages.

Like most producers, I’ve had two years of terrible milk prices and, on top of that, there’s been six months of TB restrictions to deal with. I’m worried that the two factors have ground me down and I might be turning into a miserable old beggar. (The editor used to work for a similar magazine, which I also write for. Back then she used to let me write ‘bugger’). So enough of being down, let’s all be upbeat.

We’ve had rough times before and we’ve come out the other side. Just as traumatic were quotas. When they came in I had 90 cows on 33 hectares producing 650,000 litres. I was given a quota less than half that. I was advised that I had a good quota for my unit size and if I appealed I would easily end up with less.

It was a struggle and one day my bank manager called me in and said, in so many words, ‘dairy farms the size of yours are finished so I think you should sell up and go relief milking’. The cheeky sod had even compiled a list of his clients who were looking for relief milkers!

Three years later he was made redundant. I don’t wish that on anyone, but it was what he had in mind for me. And I’m still here 30-odd years later, still hanging on. Just.

We don’t have to worry about quotas anymore. They came, they caused multiple problems and terrible cost, and they went. So where do we look for optimism? We look to our cows. I have clear memories of the dry summer of 1976. My consultant had about 30 clients at that time and we were the last to get rain.

But every morning, after milking, I opened the gates and the cows would rush off down the track in a cloud of dust, hoping there would be some grass at the end of it. Yes, I had tracks in 1976 before they were ‘invented’!

It’s true that the cows were all back on the yard an hour later looking for silage, but their optimism is a lesson to us all. Spring will come as will the grass, it always does, and once again the cows will rush down the track on turnout day. We’ve been in the shit before – and often.

The only variable is how deep it is.

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M A I Z E

S P E C I A L

Selecting varieties: focusing on forage quality pays dividends. Page 22 Managing risk: maize can help to mitigate weather and market volatility. Page 24 Maize update: we round up some of the latest news and information. Page 26

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M A I Z E

S P E C I A L

Maize quality is key to maximising returns

Focus on feed quality

Selecting maize varieties with an emphasis on the quality of feed produced, as well as the return on investment, has helped to control feed costs on one Cornwall-based unit. text Phil Eades

Q

uality forage has always been at the heart of Paul and Tracey Fletcher’s dairy management system and it remained one of their top priorities when they moved from Pontypridd, in South Wales, to Trevissick farm, near Bodmin in Cornwall.

Farming 122 hectares, comprising two county council tenancies and a share farming agreement, 106 metres above sea level on the edge of Bodmin Moor, they run a herd of 200 pedigree cows, which are averaging 8,500 litres at 4.1% fat and 3.2% protein.

The all-year-round calving herd is

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TMR fed in the winter. Cows graze by day in the summer, but are housed and buffer fed at night.

“Key to our system is producing plenty of high quality forage,” says Paul. “Since we moved here we have reseeded the whole farm to improve the quality of the swards and now target four cuts of grass silage.

The diet also includes maize and fermented wholecrop, because we want to feed a higher starch forage throughout the year.

“Wholecrop was initially introduced three years ago to eke out the maize, but we like it and it suits our feeding and management system well, allowing an

JANUARY/FEB R U ARY

early grass reseed. So we will continue to grow a relatively small area every year.

Maize, however, is the principal forage used in the TMR alongside grass silage.”

Best return Paul says that when they select a maize variety they want to maximise the amount of quality forage produced, because it is the quality that drives intakes and milk production. “We always look to grow an early maize variety because we want to make sure it is harvested as soon as possible and in the best possible conditions.

“A quality crop, which is in the ground in good time and in good order, gives us the best return on investment on the crop.”

Mole Valley Farmers’ Graham Ragg has been advising on maize varieties. He says the selection criteria have been based around choosing early maturing varieties that produce high quality forage. Having grown the Limagrain variety Yukon for several years, he suggested Paul

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Maize harvest: variety selection should focus on maximise the amount of good quality forage produced

End goal: look at total energy yield, rather than just starch content

between varieties, this extra production potential can have a significant impact on margins.

Cell-wall digestibility

should try Wizard in 2016. This is the latest variety to gain Limagrain Animal Nutrition (LGAN) accreditation.

“Wizard is a variety that fits the bill,” says Graham. “It is early maturing with good early vigour, so it will get away quickly.”

The variety also delivers excellent dry matter yields and superb energy yields thanks, in part, to extremely good cell-wall digestibility (CWD).

“LGAN varieties are evaluated for all the key parameters affecting nutritional value, namely starch content and yield, ME content and yield, CWD, dry matter yield, dry matter percentage at harvest, and early vigour.”

Limagrain UK’s Tim Richmond believes developments in maize breeding are opening up the real potential of the crop.

He says that during the past 24 years, the milk production potential of maize varieties has risen from 30,900 litres/ha to 44,800 litres – an increase of 45%.

With growing costs reasonably consistent

When looking for varieties that deliver the best overall return, he explains that it is important to look at total energy yield rather than just starch content.

“Up to 50% of the total energy available is in the leaf, stover and other vegetative material,” he says, adding that the Limagrain breeding programme is the only commercial programme that places particular emphasis on cell wall digestibility.

“The cob is between 92% and 100% digestible so there is little opportunity to influence energy yield here. However, the rest of the plant is between 40% and 70% digestible, meaning if CWD can be improved then the energy available will increase.”

The only way to significantly increase energy production per hectare is by improving CWD. Increasing this improves more than just energy content and yield. “Research shows that each 1% increase in fibre digestibility will increase dry matter intakes by 0.12kg per day, giving another benefit from selecting varieties with higher cell wall digestibility.”

By selecting varieties with a good balance of starch and CWD, he says that producers will optimise production from forage and reduce purchased feed requirements.

“Producers should look closely at starch content, CWD and energy yield when refining their initial variety shortlist, because there is a significant difference in milk yield per hectare between average and top varieties ranked on energy yield.”

The 16 hectares of Wizard grown by Paul Fletcher were sown on May 6, about 10 days later than usual due to the season.

However, the crop was soon wellestablished. “It looked even throughout the season and was around 2.5 metres tall at harvest,” says Paul. “The crop was harvested on October 15 at 30% dry matter when the cob was mature, which was three weeks earlier than in 2015.

And, because the plant was still quite green, it consolidated well in the clamp.

Yield was 42 tonnes per hectare at 37% dry matter and when analysed it came out at 12MJ ME and 38% starch.

“The high starch actually caused a few problems when we introduced maize into the diet.”

Top quality Paul explains that initially the diet, which provides for maintenance plus 27 litres, comprised 10kg maize, 6kg wholecrop, 32kg grass silage, 6.5kg of blend, 2kg Regumaize 40 plus minerals, bicarbonate and a yeast binder. Big-bale silage is also provided to give the cows ‘something to pick over’ and concentrate is fed to yield in the parlour.

“We started to see a few signs of acidosis and so have switched to 8kg maize and 8kg of wholecrop and the cows have settled down now. I can’t complain.

Having to fine tune the diet due to having top quality forage is a nice problem to have.

“Selecting varieties that deliver high quality feeds, which are harvested and available to include in the diet earlier in the winter having had a reasonable time in the clamp, is helping us to keep control of feed costs. Looking forward it should allow us to increase yields costeffectively should prices continue to improve.” l

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M A I Z E

S P E C I A L

Increase area grown to help mitigate feed and forage risks

Let maize take the strain Maize usage in the UK is on the up with an increasing number of producers growing it to even out variable silage quality and protect their businesses against rising bought-in feed prices. text Phil Hainey

T

he amount of maize grown per unit has almost doubled during the past 10 years, with little sign of a slowdown.

And a survey carried out in 2016,

by Grainseed, the Maize Growers Association and the British Grassland Society – revealed that producers regard maize as having significant advantages compared to other forages, according to Grainseed’s Neil Groom.

“While the survey revealed average herd size has increased by 40% – from 173 cows in 2007 to 242 cows in 2016 – the maize area per farm has grown from 24 hectares to 26.75 hectares. That’s an increase of 78%.

“In previous years, producers would cite their main reasons for growing maize as improving yields and milk quality, but the key objective for growing maize in the latest survey was to improve the reliability of forage stocks and reduce risk.”

Much of this is to do with varietal improvements, which make modern ‘bred for Britain’ maize crops better able to mature with the reduced number of heat units available in the UK. “There have been a lot of developments with maize varieties during the past decade, particularly with regard to the introduction of ultra-early varieties such as Ardent, Remington, Picker, and the new variety Lovely,” says Mr Groom.

“These are able to finish ‘properly’ and lay down their full starch potential with much lower heat units than were required previously. And they can achieve this with yields that are similar to later maturing, high-output varieties.

“They’ve not only made maize a more viable option in marginal areas, but they have also improved the consistency of yield and quality for mainstream growers.”

Difficult conditions The development of these ‘new generation’ varieties has also occurred at the same time as some very difficult years for grass silage production, according to Mr Groom.

“During the past five years we’ve seen some very cold and wet springs and early summer periods that have not only affected grass growth, but have

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also made silaging difficult. Many climate specialists believe that these more variable growing conditions will become the norm in the UK. “While these conditions are less than ideal for maize establishment, the effect on the crop is reduced and it has time to ‘catch up’ and recover. The fact that the new varieties need fewer heat units to mature also works in their favour.”

The survey also showed a significant increase in producers adding maize silage to rations all year round, as a supplementary feed. Only one in five herds are housed inside all year round with around 80% of respondents in the survey saying that their herds have access to grazing at some point of the year. And three out of every four growers – around 75% – feed maize all

Top tips for ‘reliable’ maize

Neil Groom: “Many producers grow more maize than they need for winter feeding”

year round and as a winter and summer buffer.

Added security “Many producers grow more maize than they actually need for winter feeding

Growing confidence in maize crop Producer Bill Blake, who runs his herd near Crediton in Devon, says that the new earlier varieties have been the main reason behind his steadily growing confidence in maize during the past few years.

“We used to go for the group 6 and 7 varieties, with the promise of huge yields.

But we have found much more consistency, and to be honest similar yields, from earlier varieties such as the group 8 variety Dominator and even group 9s and 10s such as Picker and Ardent.

“All have delivered high starch yields and even in poor conditions have performed well.”

Wiltshire College’s farm manager Philip Steans says that earlier varieties now suit their unit and system better than the later ones.

Philip Steans: “Earlier varieties are better suited to our system and unit”

1. Take extra care with seedbed preparations 2. Consider growing earlier varieties than you may have previously 3. Revisit plastic if you’re in a marginal area or have a need for early harvest 4. Frontload nutrition to ensure optimum crop establishment 5. Pay more attention to harvesting and clamp best practice

“Stand-out varieties for us in recent years have definitely been the from groups 8, 9 and 10. They suit our growing conditions the best. We’ve got land rising to 152 metres above sea level, with soils ranging from rough Cotswold brash through to clay, and although we tend to grow the maize on the better land, getting a variety that will ‘finish’ fully is important to us. We’ve had good results with Remington and Picker.

We also tried the new ultra-early variety called Lovely with good yields, despite it being quite a bit earlier to mature than varieties that we would more typically grow.”

For Dorset-based producer Joe Foot, strategic use of plastic film with the variety Marco has allowed him to harvest his maize three weeks earlier than normal. He has also seen improved feeding quality and avoided potential environmental issues.

“In effect, it allows us to produce the best quality maize from probably the most marginal pieces of land on our unit. And we’re able to do this in a reliable and consistent manner,” he says.

“If you’re in an area with variable growing conditions, or with fields where growing mature maize is not guaranteed every season, establishing the crop under plastic – or at least a proportion of it – using modern films and varieties that are particularly suited to the practice, is well worth considering.”

and then use this, throughout the year, to supplement grass and to help even out any variability. There is also evidence that producers aim to grow more maize and keep it in reserve for added security,” says Mr Groom.

Improvements in the practice of growing maize under plastic have also added to its rise in popularity. “For growers in really marginal areas, or those that want to bring harvest date as far forward as possible to avoid potential soil damage or fit the crop into rotations better, plastic offers real potential.

“Modern films and establishment methods, largely pioneered by Samco, combined with varieties that are specifically suited to growing under plastic, can result in the extra costs of the system being largely outweighed by improved yields and feeding quality.”

While the production benefits behind the increase in maize area suggest the trend will continue, there is another factor that could drive its growth much more quickly.

Price volatility “Rising production costs and on-going political instability mean price volatility, particularly for feed, will be something all producers will have to wrestle with in the future,” says Mr Groom.

“There are already indications of some bought-in feeds increasing in cost following the weakening of sterling. So growing crops that can offset this will become increasingly important in the future. With maize’s ability to thrive in a range of different growing years, developments in breeding and a growing store of technical knowledge on how to get the most out of the crop, it’s difficult to see any slowdown in its popularity.” l

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M A I Z E

S P E C I A L

Latest news and information on growing and managing maize silage

More maize, less waste Maize is finding more favour, as producers recognise its reliability and role in ensuring sufficient and good-quality forage stocks. But care is also needed to protect your investment. text Rachael Porter

Maize’s growing popularity is fuelled by greater reliability Maize use is increasing rapidly with the reliability of forage production cited as the main reason behind it, according to a recent survey.

An analysis, carried out by the Maize Growers’ Association, British Grassland Society and Grainseed, shows that the maize area grown by the survey group has increased by more than 14% during the past five years.

“We have roughly the same number of animals – around 66,000 cows – as the previous survey, which was carried out in 2011,” explains Grainseed’s

Matt Pickard. “But while herd size has increased during that period by 13% – from 214 to 242 cows – the rate of maize expansion has almost doubled.”

And it’s not just to support year-round housing, with the survey showing only one in five herds are kept in 365 days a year. “Around 80% of herds still have access to grazing with much of the maize growth coming from complementary and buffer feeding while cows are at grass.

“While 28% of respondents say they have increased the amount of maize

fed compared to five years ago, 75% say they now use maize as a winter and summer buffer feed,” says Mr Pickard.

The survey shows that the average area of maize grown per unit is 43 hectares, compared to 31 hectares in 2011.

The most important advantage identified is security of forage stocks.

“Ensuring there is enough forage for the year is the main reason why producers grow maize. And reliability was, according to 62% of producers surveyed, the single biggest reason why they now grow maize.”

Don’t underestimate the cost of waste silage It’s easy to ignore waste silage, but it can have a significant impact on profitability. And neglecting clamp management will prove costly. So says Silostop’s Jennifer Hitchman.

“When we consider the two million tonnes of maize silage dry matter grown in the UK each year and assume a 12% waste figure, at a cost of £100/t DM, it equates to a staggering £24 million,” she says. “Even with conservative expectations, this could easily be halved by simply reviewing the method of sheeting used.”

Ms Hitchman adds that producers invest huge amounts of time and energy each year into producing nutritious maize forage for their herds. “And this investment needs protecting when it comes to clamp management,” she says. “Often a small change in sealing the clamp can result in huge differences in silage quality and therefore nutritional value. All too often, producers focus on reducing costs to maximise returns, and accept the costs of dry matter losses.

“But, with some small adjustments in

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Clamp management: careful sheeting and a tidy face can help to reduce silage waste

clamp management, that cost can be greatly reduced. This has the added financial benefit of reducing any health and performance issues that arise from feeding poorer quality forage – a cost that’s not factored in to the £24 million already highlighted.”

She adds that feeding waste silage compromises herd health and fertility.

“There’s also the labour and machinery costs of handling waste silage that’s not consumed by animals. I really cannot emphasise enough how these costs should not be ignored, particularly

JANUARY/FEB R U ARY

when a large proportion of them can be avoided with improved attention to detail.

“We all know the basic need to avoid oxygen entering the silage. So to protect the ensiled clamp, which is a large financial asset to the business, producers should consider the most effective barrier available to them.”

Silostop’s oxygen barrier films have been scientifically proven to protect forage and grains from oxygen – recent data has found it to be 100 times more effective than traditional plastic covers.

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20-10-16 10:43 16:32 19-01-17

B R E E D I N G T H E

P L A N

Mark Hodgkinson Breeding cows that can exploit grass and forage is key to the success of this family-run farm. A surplus of young stock is also vital.

Herd size: Average yield: Butterfat: Protein:

O F. . .

Ashbourne

150 cows 9,500 litres 4.10% 3.30%

Cows that can graze – and put milk in the tank

Spoilt for choice Breeding has focused on reducing stature and improving feet and legs on one Derbyshire-based unit. And the result is a robust herd that’s equipped to utilise grassland and forage – with good quality surplus heifers to sell. text Rachael Porter

A

t 300 metres above sea level – rising to almost 400 metres, it’s little wonder that much of Mark Hodgkinson’s Derbyshire-based unit is unfit for dairy grazing.

There’s not much he can do about the topography of the unit, but there’s plenty he can do to ensure that he breeds cows that can graze on the land that is

28

suitable for dairy grazing and are able to utilise the grass – and the grass silage – that’s grown on the 170-hectare farm.

The remaining ‘rough’ ground is grazed by 200 Texel cross ewes and a small suckler beef herd.

“It’s very much about making the best of the resources we have – it’s always been the same since my grandfather, Harry,

C V CO EOEW W TM EMEA ALN N TA AJG GAEENM MUEEAN NRTTI SJ1 A E/ PN 2 TU2 EAM 0 R0BY9E/ RF E2B0R0U9 A R Y

CM01_Avoncroft feature.indd 28

began farming here in the mid-1930s. He founded an Ayrshire herd here in the late 1940s and my father, Stuart, began introducing Friesian bloodlines in the 1960s.”

Insight: Holstein bloodlines Mark joined the family partnership, with his father and mother Barbara in 1988 and they then had a herd sale and sold all the milking cows: “We retained all our in-calf heifers and we started again.

These had Holstein bloodlines and were more like the robust, strong and dairylike cattle that I wanted to milk and breed from,” explains Mark, whose wife Lynne and son James have also since joined the family-run business.

“And we’re limited as far as land is concerned, so it was key to get a little more milk from the 150-cow herd that we did have the capacity for.”

The Holstein bloodlines certainly added more milk and more stature – perhaps a little too much. Today it’s more about balance and extremes are to be avoided – both for Mark’s herd and for producers

2 0 1 7

19-01-17 17:03

Mark, Lynne and James Hodgkinson

buying surplus heifers. With around 160 followers at any one time, there is a good genetic pool to select from – and from which to sell any surplus stock.

“We’ve always sold heifers and young stock and that was another reason to move towards the Holstein. We had to ensure that we breeding the kind of cows and heifers that other commercial producers want to buy and milk,” explains Mark, adding that they’ve sold surplus dairy heifers for the past 40 years through Crewe and Beeston markets and, more recently, at Leek.

The herd calves all year round, with a slight bias towards autumn. Milk is sold to Arla on a basic contract and the herd is currently averaging 9,500 litres at 4.1% butterfat and 3.3% protein.

The stature of the cows in today herd is small and more compact – ideally suited to grazing. “They’re a more manageable size. We did get to the point, about eight years ago, where cows were too big for

our system – particularly the cubicles.”

So Mark began to select more for lower stature and today he avoids any Holstein sires that are more than +1 for this trait.

Plan: stature “I’m happy with our milk yield now. I have let it ease back a little, but I’m still pushing for more from grass and forage.

The target is 4,000 litres and we’re just about there. But we’re not pushing the cows with concentrates and they’re still milking well.”

Fertility did take a slight dip when Mark began breeding for yield in the 1990s, but now he selects for fertility, as well as good feet and legs. “The milkers have to walk half a mile to grazing land, so tip top feet and legs are essential. Again, that’s must be at least +1 on the bull proof.”

He’s also looking for chest width: “I also like to see a good plus on that trait in a sire’s proof. Body depth and capacity are

Heifer investment: tomorrow’s milkers for the Hodgkinson’s herd

also important if I’m going to breed cows that can consume large quantities of forage.”

Sexed semen is used on heifers – they have two ‘attempts’ to get in calve before Mark switches to using conventional semen. Sexed sires in use at the moment include Delta Norbert and Newhouse Jorben. He will also use sexed semen from time to time, and with considerable success, on first-calved heifers. “It’s a sure-fire way to get a daughter from my best heifers and helps to speed up the rate of genetic gain.”

Daughters milking in the herd include Classic, Paramount and Alexander.

Heifers about to calve include Fidelity and Atlantic.

Mark says he prefers the Dutch bloodlines because the resulting daughters are milky but not too big. “They’re good, strong cows with just the correct amount of stature.” And he should know – he travelled to the Netherlands four years ago to see, for himself, just what CRV Avoncroft’s stud had to offer. “I visited 18 herds in three days and saw many balanced and trouble-free cows. Most notable, at the time, were the Newhouse and Roach daughters.

Improve: uniformity He’s still trying to emulate what he saw there, focusing on stature and making sure that any cows that are, in his eyes, still too tall are served with ‘smaller’ sires. “I’m aiming for a uniform herd of cows and that’s more difficult to achieve than it sounds. But the sires are available to help me achieve that, so I know it’s possible.”

He’s also breeding heifers that other producers are eager to milk, if sales of upwards of 40 head a year are anything to go by. “We sell them freshly calved – mainly through the market but also to a few private buyers. It can be difficult to choose which ones to sell and which ones to keep. There’s always an argument between us when it comes to selection day.

“Selling is our ‘shop window’ and we make a significant income from surplus heifer sales – we wouldn’t want to jeopardise that by selling anything other than good heifers.

“Thanks to our breeding policy – the success we’ve had with it during the past few years and the gains still to come – we should always have plenty of impressive heifers to sell and to fill our own replacement requirement. I can be sure of that.” l

C O W M A N CA O GW E M MEANNTA G J AE N MUE AN RT Y S/ EF PE T B ER M U A B ER R Y 22 00 01 97

CM01_Avoncroft feature.indd 29

29

19-01-17 17:03

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V C EOEW T EMEAL N T AJ GA ENMU EANR TI

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J1 A/ N 2 U2A0 R0 Y9 / F E B R U A R Y

•A

Cosy Calf Ltd

2 0 1 7

19-01-17 12:01

DAIRY MANAGEMENT NEWS

Drop in cell counts in main breeds NMR’s latest Annual Production Report for the year ending September 2016 shows that all the main dairy breeds, with more than 1% of total recorded lactations, have reduced

their average somatic cell counts (SCC) while reporting small increases in milk yield and milk constituents.

The Holstein breed, which represents 72.8% of total NMR recordings, shows a reduction of 8,000 cells/ml in SCC to 177,000 cells/ml against an increase of 9kg in fat and protein and 82kg in milk to record highs of 639kg and 8,953kg respectively. Calving interval dropped by four days to 410 days.

Average SCC in the Ayrshire breed has seen a drop of 17,000 cells/ml to 158,000 cells/ml with the Jersey breed reducing its average to 180,000 cells/ ml and the British Friesian to 162,000 cells/ml.

The top Holstein herd, ranked on production, is Messrs Harvey from Beeswing in Dumfries with an average of 946kg of fat and protein and a milk yield of 13,079kg. This is on threetimes-a-day milking and based on 325 qualifying cow lactations.

National and regional rankings by breed are on the NMR website: http:// apr.nmr.co.uk and can be accessed by NMR customers using an individual password available from Customer Services

Heatime from NMR NMR has increased its range of cow monitoring systems offered to UK producers by teaming up with Allflex to provide its SCR Heatime alongside Afimilk Silent Herdsman, which it has been marketing for the past six years.

“Both systems will monitor cow activity and rumination, and also offer unique benefits to our customers. This dual approach from NMR means that

Andrew Thomas, from Leighton, Welshpool, won the NMR show competition prize draw and was presented with a new iPad from NMR manager Sam Hargreaves.

Andrew runs a 240-cow dairy unit alongside his contracting business. Cows are housed all year round and average 10,500kg of milk at 4.1% fat and 3.3% protein.

Andrew looks to maintain good herd health and fertility. Armed with his new iPad, he will keep an even tighter rein on herd performance, with his NMR records firmly at his fingertips.

Andrew Thomas receives his iPad from NMR’s Sam Hargreaves

100 tonne cows

producers can select the system most suited to their dairy unit,” says NMR product manager Andy Paine.

In tandem with announcing the new partnership, NMR is also offering 0% finance for 12 months on Heatime system upgrades to the latest Heatime HR until March 31, 2017. Further information is available from NMR Customer Services, 03330 043043.

Testing kit update Committed to achieving the most reliable milk quality data possible, NMR has invested in three new Foss instruments. “This is a significant investment that will be spread across three years,” says operations manager

iPad winner

Tony Craven. “However, it is vital that we keep up to speed with the latest testing technology to ensure that our producer customers and milk buyers have highly accurate and consistent data.”

The top three NMR recorded cows ranked by lifetime daily yield and reaching the 100-tonnes-of-milk milestone in November 2016 is led by cow 22 from Quick and Sons’ herd in Taunton. She has given 101,046kg of milk in seven lactations and has an LDY of 28.73kg/day.

In second place, with an LDY of 28.13kg/day and a yield of 104,976kg, is eighth lactation cow 313 from Shutt and Mansell’s herd, based in Newport.

And in third place is Mansfield Horatio Olive, with an LDY of 28.09kg/day and 100,499kg of milk produced in seven lactations.

She is from the Stranger’s herd, based in Shaftesbury.

A full list of NMR recorded cows achieving 100 tonnes of milk to date is on the NMR website.

For more information on NMR products and services contact customer services, 03330 043 043, NMR web address: www.nmr.co.uk, NMR email address: customerservices@nmr.co.uk COW MAN AG E ME N T

CM01_NMR news.indd 31

J AN U ARY /F E B R U A RY

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31

19-01-17 17:00

B U L L

P R O O F S

Gap between proven and young sires grows wider

Genomic bulls storm ahead Lancashire-based Holstein breeder James Tomlinson is, by his own admission, like a kid in a sweet shop when it comes to the latest bull-proof run. It’s difficult to choose between the top sires. text Rachael Porter

T

he first thing James Tomlinson says about December’s genomic sire list is that the top 20 are all so good, he could use them all.

Quite a statement from someone who’s renown for delving deep into pedigrees and picking through sire stacks. But the latest list, compiled by AHDB Dairy, offers clear and compelling evidence of the speed of genetic progress within the Holstein breed. With six new entries in the top 10 since the August index run and every one of the top 20 exceeding a Profitable Lifetime Index of £700, it is no wonder that more than 60% of the UK’s black-and-white inseminations are now to genomic young sires. And it’s hardly surprising that Lancashire-based producer James is so excited. “There’s nothing between any of them really – they’re all just so good. This list is shooting ahead of the daughter-proven list and making some colossal leaps forward.”

James Tomlinson: “The genomic sires are shooting ahead of those on the proven list”

The brand new headline bull is Westcoast Perseus, an early son of Penmanship who, as a young sire, held the numberone position from December 2014 for 16 months. And he’s certainly captured James’ imagination. “I’ve already made enquiries about his price, as I’d really like to have some straws in my AI flask – who wouldn’t?”

Perseus is out of a Doorman dam, and

DG Charley

32

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CM01_bull proofs.indd 32

features high percentages of fat and protein (+0.12% and +0.10% respectively), combined with a good Lifespan Index (+0.6) and a high daughter Fertility Index (+10.5). With a PLI of £779 and a Type Merit (TM) of +2.37, this all-rounder is aged just 12 months, while his sire – who still features in the top 30 young sires of the breed – is not yet three years old.

In second place is a sire who is also new to the £PLI list, and the highest ranking of no less than nine top-20 sons of Cogent Supershot – a bull which came to the UK with a fanfare in 2013. This numbertwo £PLI bull is Bomaz Alta Topshot, a transmitter of high production with an impressive +41.8kg fat. Out of an Alta Embassy dam, he has a PLI of £762.

James says he’ll do his best to get hold of some straws – and possibly also some from fourth-place sire De-Su 13181 Quantum, another Supershot son. This one transmits the highest weight of protein in the top 20 at +33.9kg. His dam is by Mogul and his PLI is £753.

“When Supershot first hit the scene, he was hailed as one of the best bulls ever and everyone wanted him. His semen was about £700 per straw – way out of our price range. But these two sons give us a chance to see what his genetics can do in our herd. And I’ll definitely be using either sire – or hopefully both – if I can get hold of some semen at a reasonable price.”

Supershot sons The high type and production transmitter Endco Argo debuts in third place with a PLI of £761, a TM of +3.04 and long daughter lifespans (Lifespan Index +0.7). His breeder’s prefix features three times among the top 12 bulls. “And

Gen-I-Beq Lavaman

2 0 1 7

20-01-17 10:34

conformation

fat kg

£PLI

maint.

SCC

lifespan

dCE

F&L

udder

TM

Penmanship Supershot Silver Supershot Supershot Spring Tailor Supershot 1stClass Spring

Doorman Embassy Supersire Mogul Numero Uno Jacey Balisto Mogul Supersire Tango

Semex Alta/Global Genetics Cogent Genus Cogent Alta/Global Genetics Genus Genus WWS Semex

67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67

+635 +849 +811 +899 +848 +668 +552 +968 +840 +583

+35.3 +41.8 +39.2 +35.0 +33.1 +25.2 +33.4 +34.3 +39.6 +28.2

+28.8 +32.4 +29.2 +33.9 +27.8 +25.4 +25.6 +28.8 +25.7 +20.1

+0.12 +0.10 +0.10 +0.06 +0.08 +0.03 +0.00 +0.05 +0.00 +0.00 -0.01 +0.04 +0.14 +0.09 –0.04 –0.03 +0.07 –0.02 +0.06 +0.01

779 762 761 753 737 734 729 723 723 720

17 6 12 15 14 5 12 5 9 6

–24 –14 –21 –16 –17 –13 –25 –20 –19 –24

0.6 0.6 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.6 0.6

10.5 1.0 8.6 0.8 5.7 0.3 7.5 0.5 10.9 0.1 12.9 0.1 7.4 –0.2 8.8 0.9 9.1 0.5 14.8 –0.1

2.37 1.36 3.04 2.60 2.86 2.95 2.96 2.38 3.11 2.77

2.30 1.18 2.79 2.49 2.73 2.63 2.89 2.09 2.89 2.44

1.38 1.24 2.49 1.90 2.04 2.66 1.32 2.02 2.17 2.03

Ramos Planet Bronco O Man Ramos Goldwyn Planet Shottle Ramos Shottle

Bullsemen.com/AIS Bullsemen.com/AIS WWS Alta/Global Genetics Genus Semex WWS WWS Bullsemen.com/AIS WWS

85 +505 +24.5 85 +463 +34.1 81 +652 +38.2 82 +477 +20.0 82 +538 +16.2 99 +251 +21.2 95 +1049 +41.1 85 +675 +25.9 83 +137 +21.0 82 +551 +24.4

+15.3 +19.4 +22.3 +18.6 +17.8 +20.4 +33.1 +22.6 +9.7 +19.3

+0.06 –0.01 +0.19 +0.05 +0.15 +0.01 +0.01 +0.04 –0.06 +0.00 +0.14 +0.15 +0.00 –0.01 –0.01 +0.01 +0.20 +0.07 +0.03 +0.02

659 638 625 623 621 618 615 598 589 587

–23 –17 9 –2 –20 –5 18 7 –7 1

–21 –5 –22 –13 –6 –1 –13 –14 –13 –19

0.9 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.2 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.5

12.5 0.8 8.9 1.7 7.8 0.3 17.8 1.3 17.0 2.6 14.2 1.1 1.8 0.7 11.2 –1.4 16.7 2.2 12.8 –0.7

0.38 1.03 1.74 0.55 0.29 1.30 1.48 1.89 1.39 0.94

0.42 1.02 1.70 0.13 –0.07 1.09 1.38 1.80 1.21 1.04

0.18 0.99 1.54 1.00 1.12 1.49 1.19 1.19 1.05 0.51

proven sires Kings-Ransom Erdman Planet Co-Op Robust Cabriolet Robust De-Su Rookie 11057 Bookem Tollenaars Alta Micro Plan Teemar Shamrock Alphabet Shamrock Gen-I-Beq Lavaman Man-O-Man Seagull-Bay Supersire Robust S-S-I Bookem Morgan Bookem Co-Op Robust Jitterbug Robust S-S-I Shamrock Mystic Shamrock

fertility

milk

genomic sires Westcoast Perseus Bomaz Alta Topshot Endco Argo RC De-Su 13181 Quantum Endco Superhero Peak Alta Recoil ABS Mayday DG Charley S-S-I 1stClass Flagship Progenesis Unicorn

protein

mat. grandsire supplier

fat%

sire

prot. kg

name

rel.

ind.

functional traits %

production

Table 1: Top 10 daughter-proven and top 10 genomic sires available in the UK ranked on PLI (source: AHDB Dairy and Holstein UK)

he’s a great sire too – there’s absolutely nothing wrong with him. He has the second highest type score in the list and I’ll be doing a little more digging on him.

I may even use him.”

The third Supershot son in the top-20 ranking is Endco Superhero. He gives yet another chance for James to tap into this exceptional sire’s bloodline. In fifth place Superhero has a good Lifespan Index (+0.7), which contributes to a PLI of £737. Out of a daughter of Numero Uno, this bull is another high type transmitter (TM +2.86). Eighth position (PLI £723) is shared by the highest type Seagull-Bay Supersire

transmitter in the top 20 (TM +3.11) in the shape of S-S-I 1stClass Flagship (Alta 1stClass x Supersire), and the highest milk transmitter, DG Charley (Supershot x Mogul). Charley combines 968kg milk with good daughter longevity (Lifespan Index +0.7) and he’s also caught James’ eye, not least because he’s the fourth Supershot son in the list. “His high milk is a factor, but he’s also from the Wildcrest Crimson cow family. I’m keen to get my hands on some straws.”

Daughter-proven list Tempting as the genomic offering are, James also scours the daughter-proven list. This run sees father and son taking the two top slots in the rankings for the first time in recent memory.

Ranked on Profitable Lifetime Index (£PLI), the bulls are the long-standing leader, Kings-Ransom Erdman (PLI £659), and his son, United-Pride Erdman Evan (PLI £647).

Erdman himself is noted for transmitting outstanding fitness, while his breedleading Lifespan Index of +0.9, indicates his daughters produce milk for almost a full lactation longer than those of an average sire. He combines this with good daughter fertility (Fertility Index +12.5) and a superb Maintenance Index of –23, indicating his daughters will cost less to feed for maintenance than those by

other Holstein bulls. “Ordinarily, he’s just a little too low on type for me. But his lifespan score has made me notice him and I may consider using him now.

He’s certainly got staying power.”

Moving into third position is Co-op Robust Cabriolet with a PLI of £638. This calving ease specialist (+1.7 direct CE%) also transmits high percentages of fat and protein (+0.19 and +0.05 respectively) and low maintenance costs (–17).

James is excited about the Bookem son, De-Su Rookie 11057, who maintains his fourth position with a PLI of £625, good transmission of low cell counts and one of the higher Type Merits in the top 10 at +1.74. “His figures, particularly his type score, are impressive – he’s a good allrounder and I may have to dabble.”

The next sire on the list to interest James is the well know production bull, Seagull-Bay Supersire. Transmitting a phenomenal 1,049kg milk and 74kg fat plus protein – by far the highest in the top 100 and earning him a PLI of £615 – James said he can’t be ignored. “His milk yield is colossal and I have used him in the past. He’s been around for a while now and, on the back of these figures and the daughters that I already have on the ground, I will use him again. I’m extremely pleased with my Supersire heifers and there’s still space for him in my AI flask.” l

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NUTRITIONAL NEWS

Compensate for the cold Cold weather poses a significant challenge to calves and will negatively impact on growth rates and calf health, if not managed correctly.

When calves are exposed to lower critical temperatures (LCT) of 10°C and below, they will start to suffer from cold stress and divert energy away from growth to help maintain a comfortable body temperature.

If calves are exposed to low temperatures for long periods of time, the risk of straying into negative energy balance, when the amount of energy that a calf is expending to keep warm is greater than that they are obtaining from Table 1: Additional calf milk replacer required (g/day)

ambient calf aged < 3 temperature weeks (50kg) 20°C 10°C 5°C 0°C –10°C

0 107 161 201 322

calf aged >3 weeks (65kg) 0 0 66 131 262

feed, increases. While dry, well bedded housing and calf jackets will help to keep a calf’s core body temperature elevated, the most effective way to ensure that calves have enough energy reserves to keep warm and maintain strong growth rates, is to provide them with more feed.

Additional calf milk replacer (CMR) should be given to calves during prolonged spells of cold weather. As a general rule of thumb, it is advised that an extra 10 grammes of CMR should be fed for every one degree drop below a calf’s LCT. It is important to remember that younger animals will have less tolerance to the cold – calves younger than three weeks of age have an LCT of 20°C. To efficiently increase CMR intakes, producers should use higher concentrations of CMR, such as an increase from 15% to 17%, rather than just increasing litres fed per day.

By providing additional feed during cold weather, calves will achieve good growth rates, maintain condition and support fragile immune systems.

Managing young stock this winter The importance of extra feed to maintain calf performance is essential during spells of cold weather and a similar approach should be taken with pre-bulling and pre-calving heifers.

If pre-bulling heifers are not fed adequate levels of concentrates during winter, they will experience slower growth rates, delaying when they are in optimal condition for serving. If underweight heifers are served at the target age of 13.5 months, then conception rates will be low and those that do conceive are likely to produce calves that are too small or light.

Any pre-calving heifer that is light or in poor condition will struggle to calve down easily and the quantity of quality colostrum they produce will be low.

As a result, the calves they produce will miss the opportunity to make good growth gains in the early stages of life and suffer from a compromised immune system.

By failing to feed heifers properly during the winter months, producers will store up problems for the future, with poorly performing calves that

lack the vitality and milk-producing vigour to compete with the rest of the herd. To help ensure that heifers are in the best condition for calving, they should be provided with a good, energy rich, pre-calving diet six weeks prior to expected calving, and given continued nutritional support up to weaning.

ForFarmer’s VITA young stock nutrition programme ensures that calves and heifers get the correct nutrients required to achieve targets to calve at 24 months. VITA is range of products, from calf milk replacer to calf starter and heifer rearing feeds.

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Feed material volatility continues We saw price volatility for UK feed materials in 2016, due to the effect of ‘Brexit’ on currency exchange rates and increased Fund activity. While the final UK exit package is being resolved and other European countries look to elections, this increased volatility is expected to continue well into 2017, says ForFarmers’ Phil Watkins.

When considering the soya market the focus is mainly on South American weather. Having been too wet during the planting period, it’s now slightly too dry for perfect conditions, so to keep the Funds from driving this market higher, more rain is required during the next few weeks.

Rapemeal has firmed slightly, but still represents good value.

The forward premium has eased and it’s now probably worth increasing forward cover even into the new crop positions.

Although wheat distillers’ are currently expensive it is anticipated that they should ease when bioethanol plants look to sell forward.

Global grain stocks are high, but the majority is in the Americas or Russia and the Baltic region.

Northern Europe’s more recent harvest was probably at least 10 million tonnes light with most of this being in the EU’s major exporter, France.

The UK’s harvest was average, at best, and due to sterling’s devaluation the UK has been more competitive in the export market. Along with this, UK demand looks strong as bioethanol plants with potential to use two million tonnes annually are expected to continue. While this is good news for arable producers, it may lead to a shortfall that could spike the market as we move closer to the 2017 harvest.

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BUSINESS UPDATE ENERGY

Room for improvement?

Audit will identify and assess your key energy ‘users’ A fresh pair of eyes could be all your business needs to help increase energy efficiency and cut costs. FEC Energy certainly thinks that most – if not all – producers could benefit from a farm energy audit. We spoke to them to find out more.

text Rachael Porter

I

t still surprises energy consultant Jon Swain when he visits a dairy unit without a heat recovery unit – even more so if there’s not a plate milk cooler. Yet it’s not uncommon for him to come across herds without either, when he’s on farm carrying out energy audits.

Not great news for producers from an energy efficiency perspective, but it makes for a quick and easy recommendation – and a guaranteed significant improvement. The three keys areas on any dairy unit in terms of energy consumption are: milk cooling and water heating systems, and parlour vacuum pumps. All three – and more – will be assessed during a farm energy audit, which can cost as little as £500 and includes an on-farm visit, a report and a follow-up telephone consultation.

Vacuum pumps “Producers with rotary vane vacuum pumps can save money by investing in a ‘roots blower’ pump with a variable speed drive,” says Mr Swain. “Oil-ring rotary vane pumps rely on a certain speed to maintain their effective operation so their output cannot be effectively reduced by slowing the speed of the motor. But ‘roots blowers’ or lobe pumps are still effective at lower speeds and output can be modulated using a variable speed inverter drive.” He says that this is an important feature because full vacuum is often only required during parlour cleaning. “During milking, the vacuum requirement is less. Vacuum levels in fixed-speed oil-ring pumps cannot be controlled by the pump directly and are reduced using a vacuum release valve, which lowers the pressure by allowing air

to enter the system. “This is wasteful because it counteracts the work done by the pump. A variable speed drive on a lobe pump will deliver exactly the vacuum required with a lower energy input. Savings of more than 60% have been reported.”

Cooling milk Milk cooling also has one of the largest energy requirements. It’s seldom worth taking a tank out of commission just to improve energy efficiency, but low energy consumption needs to be high on your list of ‘must-haves’ when buying new, according to Mr Swain.

“The ultimate milk cooling system is a DX tank, fitted with a two stage precooler,” he says. “Milk is first pre-cooled with mains water. Then water is taken from a separate ice builder, which operates during the night, to provide secondary pre-cooling. When the milk finally enters the tank, the DX system only has to remove a small amount of heat to reach the required temperature.

This system offers cooling costs as low as 8p per 100 litres of milk cooled – compared with 36p per 100 litres by relying just on a conventional ice bank tank. That’s a huge saving.”

Mr Swains adds that reducing energy consumption with existing cooling systems can cost very little: “And involve no more than implementing good management practices – like cleaning outside condenser coils and making sure they have a good supply of cool fresh air.”

To find out more about FEC Energy’s farm energy audits and energy saving systems visit www.fec-energy.co.uk

COW MAN AG E ME N T

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F E E D I N G

Focus on forage quality drives business growth

Maximising silage – and milk from forage – potential Seeing, first hand, what a ‘little and often’ approach to silage making can achieve has led one Welsh dairying business to review its forage policy and adopt an autumn-calving system. text Emily Ball

T

wo trips to the Netherlands changed the Evans family’s thinking about the role of high quality forage production at their South Wales-based dairy unit. The levels of performance they saw and the ideas they came back with have helped to

change the direction of their business as they plan for the future.

Pembrokeshire-based producers Nigel, Susan and Stephen Evans currently milk 335 spring block-calving Jersey x Friesian cows at Spittal Cross Farm, near

Haverfordwest. Since 2000 the system has focussed on grazing, supplemented with around one tonne of concentrate fed through the parlour. With grazed grass playing such a large role, conserved forages tended to slip down on the list of priorities.

“We made silage primarily for young stock and dry cows, and to feed in the shoulders of the season, and it wasn’t a top priority,’ says Stephen. “So when I was invited by ForFarmers to visit the Netherlands to look at conserved forage production in late September 2015, I wasn’t absolutely sure what relevance it would have to my

Feeding forage: visiting Dutch units changed Stephen’s approach to silage making.

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dry matter (%) crude protein (%) D value pH AD lignin lactic

UK

Netherlands

difference

32.1 13.4 68.3 4.2 25 79

45.4 17.2 79.3 5.0 18 32

+13.3 +3.8 +11 +0.8 –7 –47

Table 1: First-cut silage results, 2016

Stephen Evans: “What I saw really opened my eyes”

business. But I’m always open to new suggestions and, in fact, what I saw really opened my eyes to the possibilities of high quality forages in a dairy business.”

Stephen visited units where producers focused on providing the cow with the best possible forage and system to utilise it in. High yields followed as a result. “We had been taking two or three cuts of grass silage, but in Holland they take five, six or even seven cuts of high quality silage, every five weeks or so, from smaller areas.”

He says that the way the Dutch producers approach grass harvesting is similar to the way he uses grazed grass in an extensive system. “We use a rotation to ensure that the grass is available to the cows at the best possible quality, high energy, good protein and the right dry matter.

“We saw producers cutting when the grass is ready, not when the contractor is booked. This ensures that only the highest quality grass is ensiled. It really made me think about what could be possible here in South Wales.”

In October 2016 Stephen went back to the Netherlands with his father Nigel, accompanied by ForFarmers’ James Wilyman. Again the pair were impressed with the focus on high quality silage and cost control.

“The producers we spoke to and spent time with knew every single cost on farm, down to the eurocent. The attention to detail across the board, but specifically to silage making, was second to none,” says Stephen. “They cut at the right time and the wilting, clamp management and feeding out were exceptionally well managed. They didn’t used tyres on the silage clamps, only sheets and sand bags.

And many put a layer of sand across the top of the clamp.

Future opportunities “None of the cows we saw were fed more than two tonnes of concentrate per lactation and they had excellent milk solids and fertility. The right genetics were important, but the high quality forage was crucial to achieving these results.”

After Stephen’s first trip to the Netherlands the Evans family spent time reviewing the business and future opportunities, and they developed a plan to move to an autumn block-calving system.

“As the business continues to grow we have found ourselves restricted by the area that we have available to graze,” explains Stephen. “Stocking rates have risen in recent years and our land is quite fragmented, making meeting the cows’ needs with grazing increasingly difficult.

Instead we will look to utilise the good quality grass that we can grow here in Pembrokeshire through quality silage and use it to drive the business forward, and enable us to increase herd size.

“This summer we’re buying in about 200 autumn-calving cows and delaying mating for our spring block, with the plan to be totally autumn calving by 2018.

“We did make some of own silage already and have invested in some more machinery. From this April we’ll be looking to take multiple smaller cuts of silage, when the grass is at the right quality, and will follow the Dutch lead on clamp management and feeding out. The Dutch are absolutely streets ahead of us when it comes to ensiled forages and I think we’ve got a lot to learn from them.”

Silage quality An analysis of first-cut silage taken from the UK and the Netherlands in 2016 highlighted the disparity in silage quality, which is holding back some UK herds from producing more milk from forage, says ForFarmers’ Nick Berni.

“Our analysis results found that first-cut silage in the Netherlands was much higher quality,” says Mr Berni. “Dry matter values were 13.3% points higher, crude protein was 3.8% points higher, and most importantly D value stood at 79, as opposed to UK levels of 68.”

“High forage quality results in higher milk from forage,” adds Mr Berni. Figures from the Kingshay costing service in October 2016 show average yield per cow in the UK stands at 8,078 litres, with milk from forage at 2,633 litres (32%).

The equivalent average milk yield per cow in the Netherlands stood at 8,697 litres. Of this, 4,088 litres were produced from forage (47%), with the top 25% of producers achieving 54%.

“Dutch herds are producing between 1,400 and 2,400 litres more milk from forage compared to their UK counterparts,” continues Mr Berni. “And, on average, they are feeding 750kg less concentrates per cow. There is also potential to improve rumen health and milk quality.” l

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AGRiPROM

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BREEDING INFORMATION

O

DU

CT

ION

LO NG E

Insight

TY VI

in performance and genetic capacity

Plan

by applying solutions

HE

CY

progress in performance and genetic capacity

H

E F FICIE N

HERD

MANAGEMENT Improve

A LT

PR

Beckham ‘peaks’ in CRV sire list

FER

TILIT Y

DAIRY GUIDE SPRING 2017

FREEPHONE

0800 7831880

Skyfall daughter Willy 522

Topping the CRV Avoncroft list with a PLI of £644, Peak Beckham, by Seagull Bay Silver from a Bookem daughter, is the perfect example of how good cow families continue to deliver impressive bulls. Beckham is from the Juror Faith cow family, also known from bulls like Cricket, Rocky and more recently Bouw Finder. This cow family is proven to deliver bulls that represent what CRV wants to provide for producers all over the world: an easy to manage and efficient herd.

With 6% Better Life Health and 11% Better Life Efficiency, Beckham is a complete bull with +885kg of milk, +66kg of combined fat and protein, good fertility, udder and hoof health, and he is an easy calving bull (104).

Delta Magister Delta Magister, PLI £637, is from the combination Whatsapp RC and a Delta Direct red daughter Hedra Delta Magic.

The chance was that this bull would be a red bull, but the ‘genes fell in a Delta Rosebud

different way’ and he turned out not even to be a red carrier. As for the rest of his genes, they are favourably divided because he will breed efficient and easy to manage cows.

Magister boasts very efficient production with a +550kg of milk, +51kg of combined fat and protein combined and positive components, particularly +0.10% for protein. With this in combination with his high longevity and moderate size, it is no wonder he scores 14% for Better Life Efficiency. Also on the health side Magister has no weak spots, offering udder and hoof health, easy calving traits (107) and a Fertility Index of +8.1. He has it all, resulting in a Better Life Health of +7%. Magister is also BB Kappa Casein, A2A2 and has got a unique aAa code (156234), which makes him a particularly interesting bull for many breeders.

Delta Rosebud Red-and-white sire Delta Rosebud, PLI £535, has an outcross pedigree for reds

and is a Filou (Fanatic x Elburn) from an Atlantic daughter, with the maternal line behind Rosebud representing long lasting cows. Rosebud is easy calving (105) and is one of the highest bulls for Better Life Health. His daughters will have fewer problems at and around calving and they will be more fertile, have a lower incidence of lameness and fewer cases of mastitis. This red-andwhite son of Filou will be suitable for use on many cows.

Newhouse Skyfall Daughter-proven bull Newhouse Skyfall, PLI £465, has more than 270 daughters in production and more than 100 daughters classified. Skyfall is a good bull choice for maiden heifers (108 CE) and his resulting daughters’ production levels and proportions make for efficient cows (+9 Better Life Efficiency).

All these bulls and more can be found in the new CRV Avoncroft Dairy Guide, which is now available. For your free copy telephone 0800 7831880.

Delta Magister

COW MAN AG E ME N T

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C O N TA C T S

SHOWS AND EVENTS 2017 February 23: March 11: May 10-13: May 24-25: May 31-June 3: June 8-10: June 28: July 11-13: July 24-27: September 6: September 13:

Maize conference 2017, Peterborough Arena, East of England Showground, Peterborough Borderway UK Dairy Expo, Carlisle, Cumbria Balmoral Show, Balmoral Park, Lisburn Grassland & Muck, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire Royal Bath & West Show, Shepton Mallet, Somerset Royal Cornwall Show, Royal Cornwall Showground, Wadebridge, Cornwall NMR/RABDF Gold Cup Open Day, Simon Bugler, Pilsdon, Dorset Great Yorkshire Show, Harrogate, North Yorkshire Royal Welsh Show, Builth Wells, Powys National Dairy Event, NEC, Birmingham UK Dairy Day, Telford International Centre, Shropshire

Early start: dairy duo share a winter sunrise Picture: Harrie van Leeuwen

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX C O N TA C T S CowManagement is published eight times per year by CRV Holding BV

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Illustrations/pictures

Photographs by Veeteelt Photography, Drew Geddes (12-14), Caz Holbrook (11), Ruth Downing (28-29) and Anna Joosse (41).

G r a s slan d an d f o r ag e sp ecial March (March 17) – This issue comprises our annual focus on grass and forage, as well as a feature on automatic calf feeders and our regular columns, including Roger Evans and Overalls Off.

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 Holding 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.

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