milk yield

Written by CPM Magazine from CPM Magazine Download PDF With many crop production input costs at historical highs, seeking the best deals is more important than ever. CPM finds out how independent agronomy linked to an independent buying group is helping growers. By Adam Clarke Whether it’s...

Written by Stella Meehan from Agriland Mileutis, an Israeli-based biopharmaceutical animal and human health company has completed a rigorous, randomised, case-controlled, clinical field trial. The results of the trial provide further evidence of the ability of its Imilac therapy to substitute...

Kingshay’s Dairy Costings Focus Report for 2023 includes analyses of herd performance, health costs and margin over purchased feed data ranked by a variety of different factors, such as production system and region, along with milk yield and herd size bands. The twelfth annual report also...

I've only sheep, they seem fed up. On lovely looking grass but licking salt as if it was November also pushing walls down (licking the dusty centre of the wall), but not happy when moved to another field. I had some waste cabbage & fed them some not interested. They do however go crazy for...

Dairy cow diets contain nitrogen, mostly in the form of protein. Background The percentage of nitrogen consumed by the cow, and which subsequently ends up in milk protein, is defined as nitrogen-use-efficiency. However, nitrogen-use-efficiency by dairy cows is low, with only approximately 30%...

Improving the quality of grass silage offered to dairy cows can improve profitability by increasing cow performance and enabling lower concentrate inputs. Given that silage digestibility (D-value) declines by an average of 3.3% for each one-week delay in harvest date, silage quality can be...

I’ve a bit of stalky rye grass. Dried off ewes on it which worked well for them and they learnt to eat the seed heads. We’ve now had 46mm of rain in last 11 days which is a bit of a shock to the system for us in a dry bit of Devon. It’s flushing up green in the base of the crop now and...

Written by Colm Ryan from Agriland New figures show that there was a modest increase in the total number of cattle in Northern Ireland during 2022. According to latest figures from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs the cattle herd in Northern Ireland increased by...

How are others lighting their sheds? Just had a quote through for proper 200lux lights. Dad disagrees with it being worth it as this isn’t our bottle neck. I tend to agree but want decent level of lighting. Ignoring milk production increases has anyone seem a fertility improvement from better...

Written by Eva Osborne-Sherlock from Agriland The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) has analysed the benefits experienced by a Cornish farmer while grazing herbal leys. Dairy farmer Andrew Brewer reported maintaining cow milking performance while eliminating the need for...

I'm needing some help, with the cows. I just can't do it on my own, my relief has been off for the past 2 weeks with stress and has messaged this morning to say she's not coming back. I took on a full time worker about 2 weeks ago and thought he was going to be good. He's had a really troubled...

The Map of Ag GHG ‘what if’ tool models and quantifies the effect of changes in herd performance on farm GHG emissions intensity. By tweaking the variables on the online tool, farmers and their advisors can see how different changes would impact their farm’s GHG emissions intensity. As part of...

Maintaining cow milking performance while eliminating the need for artificial fertiliser over four years and promoting healthy autumn forage wedges are just some of the benefits Cornish dairy farmer Andrew Brewer has experienced while grazing herbal leys. We spoke to Andrew about his work as...

None of the apps are showing any rain for the next fortnight, I’m already worried!

We are thinking about using some Irish Holstein on our British Friesian type herd. We are on a grazing system and are heading towards spring block calving. Main reason we are considering is to increase milk yield per cow. What are they like? Are they good robust cows with good temperament?

Rearing heifers is a significant cost to dairy businesses with that investment often not recouped until their second lactation; and yet, on average, 17% of milking heifers exit the herd before this point. A previous AHDB study found that only 24% of farms reached a profit during the first...

Written by Eva Osborne-Sherlock from Agriland A new UK-based research project which will focus on the issue of dairy cow heat stress has received a £1.24 million funding boost. The project, which seeks to understand and address the causes of dairy cow heat stress within farm buildings, will...

Regardless of size, best herds of Holstein cows for milk yield, longevity and management!

Lambing easycares, outside, all going well despite very wet weather, apart from a higher than expected number of lambs born dead or dying within minutes of birth. Fully formed, good size, eyes clear, nothing apparently wrong. Often one of a pair. Ewes have done well over winter and are quite...

Many of my holsteins are fussy grazers, don't hit good residuals. So think I need to change the cow type, for a grazing system. Autumn block. So do I start crossing my holsteins, or sell and buy? If I cross, what with? TIA