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Know How / Dairy / Assessing performance

Dairying is a demanding business and it’s important to know the technical and economic key performance indicators (KPIs) to assess whether you are realising a good enough margin for the labour units, land, and working capital used by the business.

We look at a range of criteria suggested by advisers and working for progressive farmers to evaluate herd fertility, health, milk production and profit.

Key parameters are explored, from pregnancy rate to milk solids yield and cost per litre, providing relevant insights no matter what system you run.

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DAIRY

How three dairy farmers maintain high-yielding herds

What is the secret to achieving high yields of more than 10,000 litres a cow a year? Asked how they maintain high levels of production in their dairy enterprises, three…

GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT

How a dairy is using data to identify paddocks for reseeding

Analysing data from grass growth measurements to select the poorest yielding paddocks for reseeding in August will help Lydney Park Farm improve output across the whole grazing platform. The goal…

LIVESTOCK

New rotary parlour improves milking efficiency

Investing in a new rotary parlour has almost halved milking times and improved milk quality at a Staffordshire dairy. Third-generation farmer Dave Eardley, who milks 520 cows at Upper House…

ASSESSING PERFORMANCE

How a new entrant got backing to set up in dairy

A simple, once-a-day system, relying on grazed grass and spring-block calving, was the step into dairy farming for new entrant Nick Cavill. The first cups went on in 2018 and…

DAIRY

Video: How a new parlour improved herd efficiency and health

Investment in a rotary parlour has helped a Devon dairy maximise efficiencies during milking of its 350-head Holstein Friesian herd, with milking time slashed by more than 50%, labour burdens…

DAIRY

4 ways a high-output dairy farm cut vet costs to 0.72p/litre

A data-driven approach to herd health has seen a high-output dairy cut its vet and medicine cost in the past six years by nearly 0.5p/litre to 0.72p/litre. Phil Halhead, of…

Practical advice

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DAIRY

Advice on calculating cull cow costs accurately

Fluctuating cull cow prices across the year can result in an average cull value for a herd that may be below expectation. The result can give a false impression of…

BREEDING AND FERTILITY

Why refreshing cattle insemination technique matters

All-year-round calving herds carrying out their own inseminations need to ensure operators attend a refresher course at least every two years. For block-calving herds, it should be an annual event,…

LIVESTOCK

Why it is important to do a staff learning review

Treating staff training as a tick-box exercise will still cost a farm money and time, but will not necessarily make a difference to the business. Seeing it as a priority…

DAIRY

Advice for managing a split-block calving herd

Historically, savings made from efficient block-calving outweighed seasonality penalties. Yet many contracts have tempted farms into going split block.  Herds that move to split-block calving to satisfy milk buyer requirements…

ASSESSING PERFORMANCE

Ultra-high or low frequency EID tags: Which is best?

A debate is raging about what tag technology should be used in the UK’s national cattle traceability scheme when it eventually arrives. The stand-off is between the low frequency (LF)…

LIVESTOCK

Valuable business skills courses for dairy farmers

Many dairy farmers tend not to be driven by profit: satisfaction comes from a herd of fine cows, full clamps or milk in the tank. But being good at milking…

Insights

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DAIRY

Revised methane method pegs dairy emissions 20% lower

Net carbon emissions from a sample of livestock farms fell significantly when analysed by a carbon methodology that accounts for biogenic methane. Distinguishing between biogenic (methane from ruminants) and fossil…

LIVESTOCK

6 livestock tech developments to look out for

From driverless tractors to cameras for identifying diseases, several high-tech innovations are coming down the track. Farmers Weekly looks at six highlights. See also: NI farm transforms slurry and food…

DAIRY

Wearable device for cattle aims to improve dairy health

A new device, which is claimed to be the first integrated health microchip and activity monitor for livestock, could enable early detection of pre-clinical conditions and disease prediction in real…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Why health gains cut ruminant methane emissions by 10%

Three classic livestock benchmarking targets can help sheep and cattle farms raise technical performance and meet obligatory methane goals to battle climate change. Livestock policy leaders are urging farmers to…

GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT

How remote sensing tech can help fine-tune grass management

A farm-level study in Wales has shown remote sensors can provide valuable information on how grass responds to inputs. Furthermore, they can do this in greater detail and more rapidly…

DAIRY

Dairy fertility research reveals potential for further gains

The use of novel traits could be a way to accelerate genetic gain, according to the findings of a research project from New Zealand. In New Zealand, the Breeding Worth…

ASSESSING PERFORMANCE

5 new livestock gadgets for farming in 2020

From innovation to slightly improved design, engineers and inventors are constantly striving to produce the next big gadget in livestock farming.  Farmers Weekly has looked at the top products that…

LIVESTOCK

6 key factors influencing dairy herd profitability

The importance of maintaining a long-lived herd by keeping cows healthy and reducing deaths are key to profitability during periods of milk price volatility. Referencing benchmarking data from 65 US…

DAIRY

How top dairy herds cut operating costs in 2016

The best-performing dairy business that made a profit in the low payout year of 2016 managed to reduce their operating expenses by 4p/litre on average, with feed costs being hammered…

DAIRY

How to increase grazed grass without incurring extra costs

As we approach turnout and grazing opportunities for more profit, it is essential we all understand why there is so much value and profit in planning and using grazed grass. News…

LIVESTOCK

Areas to focus on to improve dairy efficiency

Focusing on efficiency measures rather than cost-cutting should be the objective to establish what is eating away at your profits. The last thing dairy farmers will want to be told…

LIVESTOCK

The costs to consider before increasing milk output

Dairy farmers considering pushing for output just because the milk price is starting to rise are being warned to beware of the additional costs involved.  According to independent dairy consultant…

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