dairy farmer digital edition july 2012

DAIRY FARMERForward thinking for a profitable future July 2012

TIP OF THE MONTH: Pain relief at calving may offer hidden longer term benefits – p20

Should you and your vet choose to rethink your first-line mastitis therapy, Ubrolexin® should be uppermost in your mind. You can be confident knowing that Ubrolexin® can be used first-line without compromising efficacy1. Ubrolexin® is a 1st generation cephalosporin intramammary tube combined, synergistically, with an aminoglycoside. It’s as effective as a 4th generation intramammary cephalosporin and significantly more effective than a 3rd generation intramammary cephalosporin at treating clinical mastitis1.

With mastitis still one of the most common and costly diseases in dairy farming2,3 Ubrolexin® deserves serious thought. Talk to your vet about its place on your farm.

References: 1. Bradley A.J & Green M.J Journal Dairy Science 2009, 92:1941–1953. 2. Bradley A.J The Veterinary Journal 2002, 164, 116–128. 3. IAH - Disease Facts - Mastitis. http://www.iah.ac.uk/disease/mastitis.shtml Website Accessed 4.2.2011.

Advice on the use of Ubrolexin® or other therapies should be sought from your veterinary surgeon. Ubrolexin® contains cefalexin monohydrate and kanamycin monosulphate. Prescription only medicine. Withdraw milk from supply for human consumption for 120 hours after the last Ubrolexin® treatment. Further information available from Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Bracknell, Berkshire, RG12 8YS, UK. Email: [email protected]. Date of preparation: Nov 2011. This advertisement is brought to you from Boehringer Ingelheim, manufacturers of Ubrolexin®. Use Medicines Responsibly (www.noah.co.uk/responsible). AHD 7013

UBROLEXIN® FIRST IN MASTITIS.FOR FARMERS THAT L IVE AND BREATHE IT.

From day oneFrom day one

Inside this issue…

Merger interviewPages 6-7

Housing & slurryPages 22-29

New productsPage 32

Good EvansPage 36

Milk pricesPage 30-31

***DF July Cover _Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:44

1. Reist M et al, Vet Rec 2002, 151:377-380.Eprinex Pour-On for Beef and Dairy Cattle contains eprinomectin. EPRINEX® and the steerhead® logo are registered trademarks of Merial Ltd. ©Merial 2012. All rights reserved. Legal Category POM-VPS (UK), LM (Ireland). Advice on the use of this or alternative medicines must be sought from the medicine prescriber. Read packaging before use. For further information contact Merial Animal Health Ltd, CM19 5TG or call the Merial Customer Support Centre on 0800 592699 (UK) or 1850 783 783 (Ireland).

No wonder dairy farmers have trusted Eprinex® for over a decade, it’s a winning formula that’s proven to deliver more of what you need…

Eprinex®. Proven to Deliver You More.

PERFORMANCE Trials have shown that, by killing damaging worms, Eprinex® can increase milk yield by as much as 2 litres per cow per day1.

CONVENIENCE With zero milk withhold, you can use Eprinex® at any stage of production without the worry of lost milk sales.

EFFICACY Eprinex® contains eprinomectin, licensed to kill more species and stages of worms and for longer than any other cattle pour-on.

Eprinex® A winning formula

CONVENIENCEPERFORMANCE

EFFICACY

Merial Eprinex WP DF_Merial Eprinex WP DF 22/06/2012 12:43 Page 1

CONTENTS

1DAIRY FARMER JULY 2012

Vol 59 No 7 July 2012

News and commentNews review 2 Cowmen comment 4Interview 6On farm 10Potter’s View 12 Breeding 14Conference 16-20

Housing & slurryBuilding design 22Water resources 28

RegularsMilk prices 30Marketplace 32 Good Evans 36

NEXT MONTH

Feeder wagons& nutrition

In this issue…Clawing back….

With a whopping2ppl off yourprices, thefrighteningcommodity free

fall seems to have come to ahalt with markets hopefullypoised to claw back lost ground. The question is, though, are

they improving fast enough toremove the threat of furtherprice cuts in August? While no-one wants to talk

the price down, there are never-theless whispers of manoeuvr-ings in the industry to soften upfarmers for bad news. It may, of course, be nothing

more than froth but producerswon’t have long to wait toknow their fate as most comp-anies have now pledged to giveone month’s clear notice of pricechanges following the springdebacle.The reasoning behind the

thinking is simple – the value ofmilk has fallen because there’s

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Editor

too much about, the commoditymarkets are still low, stores arefilling up with butter andprocessor margins are keptwafer thin by their buyers.Now while the spot milk price

is not a valid yardstick to gaugethe market, it does neverthelesscurrently languish in the low20ppl range and the AMPE priceis 5.6ppl below the Defraaverage farm gate price. Bycontrast AMPE has, since January2010, been on average 4.08pabove the Defra price.So, it’s vital to see a sustained

market recovery and just asimportantly that buyers respondto it without dragging their feetor imposing any potentiallyopportunistic deeper cuts.But to ensure producers get a

fair deal, they need the balanceof power tilting their way in thisskewed relationship.Hopefully things will start to

change with the adoption of theVoluntary Code, the advent of

Producer Organisations and, inthe background, the ramificationsof the Arla amba/Milk Link dealwhere producers have ultimatelybeen promised the Europeanprice. But just at the moment it looks

like producers will need all theleverage they can muster!

***DF July p1 Contents_Layout 1 22/06/2012 14:04 Page 1

2 DAIRY FARMER JULY 2012

NEWS

Volac expansion� Farming Minister Jim Paiceofficially opened Volac’s newheadquarters at Royston,Herts, last week as part of thecompany’s expansion plans.Last year the privately-

owned company achieved anoperating profit of £12.5m,against an increased turnoverof £121m, up by 37.5% yearon year. As well as dairy feed

products, the company alsoproduces lactose food ingred-ients and whey proteins forthe sports market.

Milk Link �Milk Link delivered a solidperformance for its memberslast year, says the company. For the financial year ended

March 31, 2012, Milk Link’sturnover was up £42m to£628m, with turnover per litreup 8.5% from 38.6ppl to41.9ppl. Earnings BeforeInterest, Tax, Depreciation andAmortisation rose £4.5mmillion and £15.5% to £33.7m.Profit Before Tax was up £4.3mmillion and 42.7% to £14.3m. The Member Processing

Interest Payment rose £2m to£5.95m, equating to a 12.8%return on Members’ QualifyingLoan balances. Group borrow-ings increased marginally by£2.1m to £82m, largelybecause capital expenditureincreased by £4.5m to £10m.

First Milk� First Milk delivered a robustperformance for year endingMarch 31, 2012, according toits management. Pre-tax profits were £13.3m

compared to £7.2m last year,however £9.6m of the £13.3mrelated to the profit on sellingits Wiseman Dairies shares. Group turnover was £579m,

which is similar to last year. Netbank debt was up marginallyat £47m compared to £44m.The increase was mainly as aresult of increased stocksrequired to fuel the growthof its Lake District Cheesebrand, investments at itsmanufacturing sites (totalling£6.3m) and the acquisition ofKingdom Cheese and KingdomDairies.

NEWS IN BRIEF Commodities steadyto help ease pressure

The good news on themarkets is that creamcontinues to moveforward, and the pricehas broken through and

over the £1.00 per litre barrier. However no major quantum

leaps in prices are expected asthere is plentiful cream on themarket still. In the first quarterof 2012, average butterfats wererunning at 4.06% – the highestfor three years or so – and ongood milk volumes too. Tocompare, last year’s butterfatswere 3.94% to 3.95%. Thedifference has resulted in over20% more cream being

produced in the first quarter ofthis year compared to last year.In addition, the butter market

is strengthening on the back ofit too. There have also beensome pretty significant gains onbutter over the last few weeks.

IncreasesFor example, German butter isnow priced at €2600, withincreases of €120 in two weeks inearly June. Dutch butter increasedby €80 in a month. The last timewe saw increases for two to threeconsecutive weeks was in thesummer/autumn of 2011. The United Dairy Farmers

auction – held at the end of May– although down 0.28ppl wasnot as bad as it had been fearedgiven the price crash of April’sauction (-3.7ppl).On the international GDT

auction, the dairying worldbreathed a sigh of relief on the5th June on the outcome of thefirst of the two monthly auctionscoming after eight consecutiveweeks of steady falls forcommodities like Whole Milkand Skimmed Milk Powder. Overall the GDT index at that

auction was up 13.5%, withevery commodity showing again, and June 19 held steady.

Claiming back your 2pplHOW long before you can makea case to your processor to clawback some of your 2ppl lost thismonth? Quite a while. Cream prices

really need to increase byanother 20% to 25% probablybefore an outline of a case canstart to be made for somemoney back, and the UK is goingto need tight supplies and areally good Olympic summer forthat to happen.

IrelandAt the same time, cheese needsto maintain its stance in themarket, which it is doing at themoment. But Ireland is making a

lot of cheese and the UK is thefirst port of call for its exports. In addition less butter needs

to be sent into private storage.The current volume in storage isnow more than 90,000 tonnes,and it has been going up by5000 tonnes per week in recentweeks. The more product instore, the longer it takes for milkprices to rise again.So while increases may be a

fair while off yet, the factmarkets seem to have bothbottomed out and bounced willbe ammunition for the unions totry and fend off further anymanoeuvrings by processors tocut the milk price further.

Milk LinkroadshowspositiveALTHOUGH neither Milk Link norArla amba are taking a positivevote on the proposed merger forgranted, the feedback from MilkLink roadshows would suggest a‘Yes’ vote on June 26 is a formality. The meetings the co-op has

been having have been wellattended, and the view on themerger from its members is‘universally positive’. The proposalwill result in the full merger oftheir members and Arla Foodsamba, which is one of the largestand most successful Europeandairy co-operatives, and willcreate the largest player in the UKdairy market. The business will process more

than three billion litres of milk ayear and have a combined turnoverin excess of £2bn.On an individual level it will

mean Milk Link members willbecome part of Arla amba, andshould improve returns becausethey will receive, after three years,the same level of return as enjoyedby existing Arla owners. The proposed merger also has

to be approved by the Arla FoodsAmba board of representatives onthe same day.

Arla reassures AFMP members THE Milk Link/Arla amba mergerdoes not include members of theArla Foods Milk Partnership asthey do not have enoughinvestment or assets to bring tothe new business. Such a move would be rejected

as the milk price for Arla’s Danish,Swedish and German memberswould be diluted. The difference between Milk

Link’s and AFMP’s contribution isthat Milk Link members have 5pof equity per member, assets of£70m, profit of £32m last year and

the opportunity for £multi-millionworth of synergies. In contrast,AFMP farmers have just 1ppl ofequity per member, which willbuild up to 5ppl and a total of£75m in eight years time.Despite the disparity it is known

Arla Foods amba does want AFMPmembers to join the co-operativeat some date in the future, and haspledged, once the integration ofMilk Link and Arla amba is doneand dusted, to begin to outline away forward for members inter-ested in joining the co-op.

***DF July p2-3 News_Layout 1 22/06/2012 11:48 Page 1

Speaking at the World BuiatricsCongress in Portugal, he said thedataset consisted of blood samplestaken from more than 40,000individual cows from more than1200 commercial UK herdsbetween 2006 and 2011, and wasused to investigate the prevalenceand extent of negative energybalance in cows before calvingand in lactation. “In fact, across the first 50 days of

lactation, subclinical ketosis waspresent in nearly 30% of cowssampled. When you add in thenumbers of clinical cases, then almosta third of cows were suffering fromketosis at some level,” he said. During the critical period of 10-

20 days into lactation, whennegative energy balance may haveharmful long-lasting effects oncow health and future fertility,27.1% of cows had blood levels

indicative of subclinical ketosis,and 3.2% had levels indicatingclinical ketosis. “Studies from North America

have shown cows with anexcessive degree of negativeenergy balance will produce lessmilk – 358 kg per lactation – andthey have an increased risk ofdeveloping LDAs (Left DisplacedAbomasums), metritis andretained cleansings.”

NEWS


DC looks to improverelationship HAVING received a May milk pricecut at less than a week’s notice,Dairy Crest liquid suppliers havereceived confirmation there is tobe no change in milk price foreither June or July. According to milkprices.com,

the company has also agreed withDCD that four weeks noticeshould apply to all milk pricereductions in future.Both parties are now looking

to push their working relation-ship forward, stressing thedecision has been taken inadvance of any outcome thatmight result from the industry’sDairy Supply Chain Forum MilkContract Voluntary Code ofPractice talks, chaired by DefraMinister Jim Paice. After agreeing the four week

notice period the company hasalso committed to review howmilk prices are determined as wellas provide greater transparencythrough the process.

High flying ‘Professor Splash’ achieved a death defying world record bydiving from a 30ft tower into just 12 inches of milk – admittedly freshTrewithen milk. To celebrate the launch of its latest brand, the TrewithenDairy brought Professor Splash (American Darren Taylor) from the US tomake sure no-one here missed his first ever jump into a bath of milk.Watch the dive on YouTube and see more pictures at www.trewith-endairy.co.uk and on the dairy’s Facebook page.

MAKING A SPLASH AT CORNWALL SHOW

Impact of ketosis on dairy herds

One in three UK dairycows are sufferingclinical or subclinicalketosis in the first 50days of lactation,

according to records of metabolicprofiles taken over five years. Dr Alastair Macrae from the

Royal (Dick) School of VeterinaryStudies says this puts them at riskfrom reduced fertility and poorperformance.

Code of practice falls behind schedule

Arla signs upto China dealARLA has signed agreements tosubstantially build exports toChina. It will become an indirectshareholder of China MengniuDairy Company, coming along-side Mengniu's single largestshareholder the COFCOCorporation (China's leading foodand beverages company). Theplan is to establish the China-Denmark Milk Technology andCo-operation Centre to provideexpertise on milk quality,traceability and controlled milkproduction on farms. These agreements are expected

to increase Arla’s turnover in Chinato DKK 3500m (£380m) by 2016 . Milk Link members will benefit

from these partnerships throughtheir Arla amba membership.

AT the Dairy UK dinner (June 14)Farming Minister Jim Paice hadhoped to announce that agree-ment on the Voluntary Code ofPractice between milk buyers and

farmers had been reached, butthere is still an impasse on noticeperiods. Farmers want a shortnotice period which can be actedupon in the event of price falls

and will improve their negotiatingpositions, while processors wantlonger ones. Negotiations on whatthe most suitable notice periodwould be continues.

***DF July p2-3 News_Layout 1 22/06/2012 11:48 Page 2


COWMEN COMMENT

John CameronJohn Cameron is farm manager of WoodPark Farm on the Wirral, which is part ofthe University of Liverpool Vet School, andis currently involved with animalhusbandry trials in association with Tesco.

We’re just getting to gripswith our new plate meter

YIELD: 185 cows selling 11,100litres/cowHERD: Closed herd with all replace-ments bred and reared on farmLAND: 200 acres plus 100 rented.

Farm facts

K-Line is a flexible hose line sprinkler system

originally designed for irrigation. However, the low

application rate makes the K-Line system well

suited to effluent distribution. At the heart of the

system is a series of tough plastic pods protecting

a sprinkler, firmly attached to special K-Line low

density polyethylene pipe. Sprinkler head selected

dependent on each individual system

K-Line irrigation

www.wrootwater.com • Tel: 01302 771881

• Clean & dirty water systems • Low application rate system • Easy to install, use and move • Low capital cost • Designed to suit individual needs • Will suit any paddock shape, size or terrain • Designed to operate at low pressure • Best possible use of the nutrients in farm dairy effluent• Provides a more uniform application compared to travelling irrigators

As I write the sun isbeating down, themaize is just comingthrough, and first cutsilage is in the clamp.

It may seem like a normal springbut in reality it has been oneheck of a rollercoaster.

Sunny weather in late Marchand early April promised anearly start to the season – maizedrills were greased and ready togo, the grass was growing welland we had even turned thecows out a fortnight early. Weknew it couldn’t last, and itdidn’t. Trouble was once therain started there was no let upand it was cold too.

As a result the cows cameback in on full winter rations asthe fields were waterlogged,our maize was not drilled untilMay 20 (about a month late),

and we only managed to snatchour first cut on May 3 becauseof our light sandy soil (or ladsland as one of our older visitorscalls it).

Fingers crossedThere were only four days of norain at the beginning of May inour part of the world, and sowe were stuck between a rockand a hard place. The grass wasfalling over ready and first cutneeds to be early enough toguarantee a second cut in goodtime. So we got it cut, wilted itas much as we could with noreal power in the sun, and sofingers are crossed it will begood stuff.

Whatever the milk price weare always looking for greaterefficiency in our business. Theherd is TMR fed but split into

two groups, the first group stayin all the time being fed for 44litres, which is what theyaverage, and they needconsistent good quality feedingto milk and breed. The secondgroup is where we are lookingto improve milk from grazedgrass, and this group is out tograss from early April until theend of October.

Lower yielding cows areharder to feed as it is easy tofollow yields down and neverquite achievethe desiredefficiency. As ateam we thinkdifferentlyabout howmuch grass is ina field andwhen to pullcows out, so toresolve this wehave justacquired a plate meter. Weeagerly read the instructions,then re-read them to makebetter sense of the availableformulas.

The booklet suggests usingthe Taranaki district as acomparison base, but does thegrass on the Wirral grow as wellas in New Zealand? I have evenbooked us a day’s training andwas feeling quite enthusiastic,but so far it’s been so wet thecows have only just gone backout again. So not much milkfrom grass this month. At leastwe were able to keep the yieldup to expectations with somedecent forage.

As part of the work we dowith Tesco we have schoolchildren to visit the farm. It has

taken a while to get things offthe ground, with riskassessments and the like, butthis week we had the first lot ofprimary school children.

As 40 jumped off the coachall you could hear was acrescendo of ‘moo’ followedvery closely by ‘poo’. Of all thevisitors we have none havebeen as scary as this bunch.Most have never seen a cow intheir life and seemed fascinatedby the whole farming process.

Yes they are all girlcows and yes theydo poo a lot. Thesechildren are goodfun but morestressful thantalking to a bunchof hardnosedfarmers.

Recently, we havebeen filling in ourwelfare code

standards which measure loco-motion, condition score andcleanliness as part of our milkcontract. Despite often feelinglike there are as many peoplewatching us as there areactually doing things, stoppingand looking at the cows in anobjective manner does give youa different perspective. I haveto say it is not always the one Iwanted, which may be the bestreason for actually doing it!

The booklet suggestsusing the Taranakidistrict as a comparisonbase, but does thegrass on the Wirralgrow as well as in NewZealand?

***DF July p4 Cameron_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:49 Page 1

Use Medicines Responsibly. For more information visit www.noah.uk/responsibleMastiplan, Cepravin and Cobactan are only available via your veterinary surgeon from whom advice should be sought.Mastiplan LC contains 300mg/20mg Cefapirin/Prednisolone. Cepravin Dry Cow contains cefalonium. Cobactan contains cefquinome. Legal categories: POM-VMastiplan, Cepravin and Cobactan are the property of Intervet International B.V. or affiliated companies or licensors and is protected by copyrights, trademark and other intellectual property laws.Copyright © 2009 Intervet International B.V. All rights reserved. Further information is available from: MSD Animal Health, Walton Manor, Walton, Milton Keynes MK7 7AJ

[email protected] www.msd-animal-health.co.uk

MSD Animal Health is working with mastitis experts, vets and dairy farmers to encourage more effective and appropriate use of mastitis treatments, now and in the future, through the adoption of Early Lactation Therapy (ELT).

ELT is a pragmatic way forward for proactive dairy farmers aiming to successfully balance the demands of herd performance, best practice in mastitis management and the responsible use of antibiotics.

Ask your veterinary surgeon now for more information on ELT and look out for more information in dairy publications throughout the year.

MSD WP DF_MSD WP DF 22/06/2012 12:46 Page 1


INTERVIEW

While we all try to get to grips with the ramifications of the proposed Arla/Milk Link merger, Chris Walklandteases out some of the finer points with Arla UK’s chief executive Peter Lauritzen and Milk Link’s Neil Kennedy.

Arla UK CEO Peter Lauritzen and Milk Link CEO Neil Kennedy announcing the proposed merger.

What will the merger mea

WHY Arla Foods amba, whynow?NK: This merger hasn't beenthought of overnight but insteadits origins can be traced back overa number of years. In particular,the proposed merger builds uponthe strong working relationshipboth parties have developedthrough such activities as our jointventure at Westbury Dairies, ourrespective cheese and fresh milkprocessing operations locatedalongside each other at ourLockerbie site, and our raw milksupply and associated jointlogistics arrangements. In particular, though, it was the

Westbury Dairies deal that wasthe most important. It was acomplicated agreement but itworked well for all parties andthe more we worked with Arlathe more we realised they wereour sort of people, that they werea good team to deal with, theyhad a collaborative and cruciallyco-operatively minded approach,and they thought like we did.When we completed the

Westbury deal we both wonderedwhat we could do next andrealised joint ventures would besecond best to a full mergeroption between Milk Link andArla Foods amba.As for why now? Well we've

had two very profitable years, aredoing well as a business and aremerging at the top of our game.As for why? Well, the merger

we believe will see the bringingtogether of two highlycomplementary businesses andwill be very value enhancing forboth parties. From a Milk Linkmember perspective, the deal willdeliver (among other benefits) fullmembership of Arla Foods amba –one of Europe’s strongest andmost successful dairy co-operatives– and will give them equalstanding with Arla’s currentDanish, Swedish and Germanowners. Crucially Milk Linkmembers will receive improvedreturns and, after a transitionalperiod, will receive the samelevels of return as enjoyed by Arlaowners in other parts of Europe.

At the same time, Milk LinkMembers’ interests will berepresented on the Arla Foodsamba governing bodies by havingtwo directors on the main ArlaFoods amba Board and a further10 representatives on the ArlaFoods amba Board ofRepresentatives.

Why Milk Link, why now?PL: Milk Link is attractive to Arlabecause, like us, it's a co-operativeand because it has a large cheesebusiness which would enhance ourproduct portfolio. The more welooked at Milk Link's progress andresults, and what it could bring tothe table, the more it becameobvious it was the right partnerfor us in the UK. One of the benefits of a merger

with Milk Link is the two co-operatives could merge withouthaving any dilution effects on ourother 8000 members acrossEurope.

What do you say to those peoplewho believe Milk Link is beingsubsumed into Arla?NK: I’d say this is clearly not thecase. This is a value-enhancingmerger in the fullest sense. It is an

excellent merger from bothparties' point of view, and it willsee the best of both businessescoming together. Our members become Arla

Foods amba members, with all ofthe advantages that brings. OurDNA is maintained in the mergedbusinesses, our seniormanagement will have an input,our members will be fullyrepresented on the Arla ambaBoard, and the Milk Link co-opwill become Arla Milk Link. All ofthat is important because ourmembers – especially our foundermembers – are quite rightly veryproud of what they haveachieved, and they don't want togive it up lightly.

What do you say about themerger just being about fillingAylesbury which you couldn't dowithout Milk Link?PL: This merger will bring togethertwo successful and growth-orientated farmer-owned dairybusinesses with complementarypositions in key markets. It fulfilsour growth ambition and wouldrealise our strategic ambition ofbecoming the UK’s number onedairy company. It would also

position Arla Foods amba as oneof the world’s leading dairygroups.

Why can't Milk Link stay as it is,after all it has been doing prettywell in recent years?NK: As the strength of our latestannual results demonstrate, MilkLink is definitely not mergingbecause we are a burning deck, soto speak. We have been growingorganically and now have aturnover of over £600 million. Butsome of our domestic competitorsare three times our size, and ArlaFoods amba is 10 times the size.Scale does matter and in truth

we realise that we are ‘too smallto be big and too big to be small’.Three to four years ago we movedaway from being known as ‘thatplucky little West Country Co-op’into being a major national dairyprocessor, but even so we realisedwe needed to grow further if wewere to compete effectively withboth domestic and internationalrivals. The question was how, and

although we have shown thecapability to grow organically wecame to the conclusion thatgrowth through corporate

***DF July p6 7 Interview_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:16 Page 1

INTERVIEW


ean for UK dairy farmers?development activity such as themerger being proposed was themost effective way of achieving it.The proposed merger with ArlaFoods amba is not the only optionwe could have taken, but wecertainly think it is the best.

Why is it the best option? What'sin it for your members?NK: There are a number ofbenefits on a macro level. First,through our corporate member-ship our members will be part of alarge European co-operativewhose objective is to maximisesupply chain efficiencies acrossEurope in order to get farmersthe very best milk price it can.They will also be part of abusiness which trades globally, sothey can maximise the growthopportunities in new developingcountries which Milk Link couldnot do as a much smaller UK-based co-operative. The moremarkets a company can trade inthe less reliant it is on the vagariesand volatility in any one market.Closer to home, and closer to

their hearts, they will, over time,also have parity of price with theirEuropean dairy farmer colleagues,and will receive significantlyhigher returns.

Arla Foods Milk Partnershipmembers are not involved in themerger. Why haven't they beenincluded as part of the deal?What do Milk Link members bringto the Arla amba party that AFMPmembers don't?PL: We had planned to includeAFMP members in the mergerbut, unfortunately, includingthem at this point in time wouldhave diluted the milk price to theexisting owners and that is a steptoo far at this point in time. MilkLink members have consolidatedsignificantly more equity, havedairies, brands and profits tobring into the merged business.

It is seen by some that this dealwould be a pathway for AFMPmembers into Arla amba. Is thattrue, and, if so what timescale arethey on, and what will AFMPmembers have to do to qualify?PL:We are committed to AFMPmembers becoming full membersof Arla Foods amba and we areworking together to make this

happen. Ake Hantoft, the ArlaFoods amba chairman, has agreedwork will commence with theMPL board on defining andagreeing the criteria for achievingfull membership once the MilkLink/Arla merger has achievedregulatory clearance.

And there's no entry ticket forMilk Link directs either, andyou're closed for new members.Can't they (or AFMP members forthat matter) just hand over acheque for the equivalentamount of money that Milk Linkmembers have paid over theyears (5ppl), and becomemembers on equal terms?NK: At present we are notrecruiting any further Milk LinkMembers and, indeed, if we were,I think there would be a queuefrom Penzance to Inverness to joinus. We are still, however, recruit-ing direct suppliers and have hada strong level of enquiries for thissince the merger was announced.It should be made clear at thisstage there are no plans to offerdirect suppliers Membershipstatus, however we remaincommitted to offering thesefarmers a regionally competitivemarket price for their milk. PL:We are continuing ourrecruitment drive into AFMP andthis will continue in the mergedbusiness.

What if a farmer likes the look ofwhat is happening with the twocompanies, and wants to be asupplier – what are the optionsthere?NK/PL: As already said the optionof Arla Milk Link membership iscurrently closed but thoseinterested in supplying us caneither do so through joining theAFMP or by becoming a Milk Linkdirect supplier.

The deal has been described as‘game changing’. Is it really thatbig a deal, or is this just a cliche?NK: Only time will tell on this oneand it will take three to five yearsfor us to judge. But it certainlydoes have the capacity to begame changing. For the first timesince deregulation farmerownership is at the top of theagenda again. Our move, and theMuller-Wiseman merger too, are

taking the industry down adifferent road.Milk Link members will be

better off, and have betterreturns, and there is no doubtother companies in the UK willhave to up their game to matchus, so there will be an advantagefor them as well I think.PL: It certainly is. For the first timeUK dairy farmers will have accessto the European dairy market,with a milk price associated withthose markets.

So what happens now? What arethe deal breakers and timescales?NK:Well the first hurdle is to getour members to vote for the deal,which they will do on June 26. Atthe moment the feedback we aregetting is very positive and themembers we are seeing at ourmeetings are enthusiastic, butwe're not counting our chickens. Ihope when it comes to the votethey will support it. We need66.6% of our members to agree.PL: The Arla Foods amba boardhas approved the merger and the

next stage is the Board ofRepresentatives will vote on themerger at a meeting on June 26.Currently, the members of theBoard of Representatives aremeeting in their home countriesto discuss the merger prior to themeeting on June 26.NK: After the votes, the mergerwill be subject to approval by theregulatory authority, somethingwhich could take a number ofmonths. Again we hope they aresupportive. If they are happy, andwe are optimistic they will be,then we will begin the process ofintegration of the two businesses.

OK, so we know what the futurefor Milk Link will be, all beingwell. Where now for Arla in theUK?PL: The merger would mean ArlaFoods UK plc would become thenumber one dairy company in theUK and that in itself is going tokeep us very busy. Our focus nowwill be on integrating the twobusinesses and realising thesynergies.

***DF July p6 7 Interview_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:16 Page 2

Cogent WP DF_Cogent WP DF 22/06/2012 12:49 Page 1

SPONSORED SERIES


Step 3: Treat early andappropriatelyFollowing the first two steps of the ELTprinciples should naturally lead to earlydetection of clinical mastitis cases. Thisallows the prompt and appropriatetreatment of such cases, leading tomany likely benefits:� Reduce the severity of the infection.� Improve cure rates and reducerecurrence rates. � Reduce milk yield loss.� Improve chances of a quick return togood health and acceptable SCC.� Assist overall management of bulkmilk SCC.

Treat appropriatelyTreating each case in the most approp-riate way is the starting point to worktowards a good cow response and,therefore, cure. Ideally, every herdshould have a farm-specific mastitistreatment protocol designed to targetthe most common types of mastitisorganism identified in that herd. Bacteriology and the vet’s knowledge

of risk factors on farm should be usedto formulate the protocols. The type ofbacteria present on farm will dictatesome of the other managementstrategies, as well as treatment choiceand length of therapy required. We know those farms which have

invested time in working with their vetto understand which group of bacteria

Last month we learnt how the newly introduced ELT principle could change mastitis management on farm. ELT is anew protocol developed with the help of leading UK vets to assist with the day-to-day management of mastitis. HereTom Clarke, of Synergy Farm Health in Dorset, spends some time discussing Step 3. Early Lactation TherapyEarly Lactation Therapy – a word from the vet

ELT sponsored

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1. Cows in early lactation are at greater risk ofdeveloping mastitis2. To manage mastitis on farm, all peoplemilking cows need to be following the sameprotocol, which has to be simple3. Regular protocol updating and staff trainingare key to deliver a more consistent approachto mastitis management4. The ELT campaign gives vets the opportuni-ty to start the discussion on mastitis manage-ment in less proactive dairies5. Assessing treatment protocols and promot-ing responsible use of antimicrobials on farms.

Why Early Lactation Therapy?

1. Farm specific mastitis treatment protocolbased on: Bacteriology and the vet’s knowl-edge of the risk factors on the farm2. Clear instructions on how to administerintrammamary treatments3. Training of parlour workers to identify andgrade mastitis and taking rectal temperatures4. Record every clinical case, high cell count aswell as treatment given5. Analyse cure rates to assess treatment pro-tocols.

Top tips

importance, but without recordingthere is no measurement of success (orfailure). Analysing records with your vetwill help pinpoint areas or times of theyear when mastitis occurs and get closerto solving the problem. Analysis of cure rates is important to

assess treatment protocols. Targetsshould be set depending on farmhistory and predominant type ofmastitis in the herd. Cure rate analysisalso needs to take into account whethercows are being treated for clinicalmastitis or high cell counts. By treating carefully and approp-

riately at all times, setting targetsand reviewing performance alongsideyour vet, the herd’s response to therapyand management protocols can bereviewed and monitored.

are the predominant problem in theirherd arrive at more tailored treatmentand management regimes; both factorswhich improve mastitis management.

Treat carefullyIt is a constant surprise how common itis for an udder infection to be linked topoor operator hygiene or infusiontechniques. Dairy cows are valuableanimals and paying attention to detailwhen milking and treating cows iscommon sense. It is important to ensureanyone who may need to administertreatments for mastitis is trained andfollows guidance:� Milkers should have sufficient time tobe hygienic eg wearing new gloves.� Often overlooked but very importantis to thoroughly disinfect the teat endwith teat spray followed by alcoholwipes or soaked cotton wool prior toinserting the tube. � Intramammary product should alwaysbe infused using the ‘partial insertion’technique to minimise the risk oftrauma to the teat canal. Theintramammary tube is only partiallyinserted 2-3mm into the teat canal. Teatcanal damage can render the teat moresusceptible to future mastitis infections.If there is any question of systemic

involvement, parlour workers shouldalso be trained to take the cow’stemperature with a view toadministering additional antibiotics orNSAIDs, again according to a veterinarydeveloped protocol.Repeat infections are an all-too-

common challenge for producers, but itmay not necessarily be the choice ofantibiotic so much as other cow factors,high environmental challenge, inadeq-uate parlour routine or milking machineissues. Simply reaching for a differenttube is unlikely to solve the issue.

Records & target settingIdentifying cases in need of treatmentand acting accordingly is of great

ELT is a simple three-step process:1. Identify animals at high risk of developingmastitis2. Monitor high risk animals and theirrecords3. Early identification of clinical cases andearly appropriate treatment.Overall, ELT aims to help maximise curerates, minimise mastitis recurrence rates anddeliver a rapid return to acceptable cellcounts and, hence, saleable milk.

ELT process

***DF July p9 ELT_Layout 1 22/06/2012 14:43 Page 1


ON FARM

Feeling your way into world of direct selling Fed up with poor wholesale milk returns, one Leicestershire couple has taken the first tentative steps intodirect selling by marketing some of their own milk. Jonathan Wheeler reports.

Many dairy farmersstruggling to show aprofit are lookingfor ways around theproblem, and

Leicestershire couple Robert andLouise Betteridge are pinningtheir hopes on their new milksales business.After a lot of careful thought,

the couple recently began directselling a proportion of the milkfrom their 125 pedigree Holstein-Friesian cows. The herd is kept on180 acres at Valley Farm, Ibstock,Leicestershire, and the approachis already starting to show somebenefits. Robert comes from several

generations of farmers andgained experience on his father’sfarm in Moira, where their heifersare now reared. After attendingBrooksby Agricultural College, heworked on a local dairy farm andthen with Express Dairies wherehe organised a team of 50workers and 24 lorries to collectmilk in the region.They got their first chance to

farm in their own right in 2001,when a county council tenancycame available at Tilton-on-the-Hill, Leicestershire, although fatealmost immediately put the firstof several obstacles in their path.They had intended to start

milking in their own name inFebruary 2001, but the outbreakof foot-and-mouth meant theycould not start until August thatyear. But the major problem

occurred when Louise – as well ashaving their daughters Jorja andAbbie – suffered a succession ofillnesses which culminated in herhaving a heart transplant in 2007.But she had barely started

recovering from the operationwhen they got the chance tomove to Valley Farm – then veryrun down and in need ofrenovation. It is a measure of theirdetermination to stay in dairyingthat they were not daunted bythe task. Restoration work,completed with the support oftheir landlords, has includederecting a new cubicle shed,concreting the whole farmyard,and installing a completely newdrainage system which directsclean water into the brook thatruns right down the length of thefarmyard and slurry and dirtywater to dedicated storage.Milkers are approaching a 8000

litres/head/year average and oftenstay at pasture into Novemberand go out again from mid-February. Robert is aiming toachieve technical improvementsto help the business, with a majoreffort being made to maximisethe amount of home-producedforage in the diet, with lucerneadded for the first time this year.When they arrived, Robert took

an early decision to take on a full-time worker and between themhave done all restoration workwithout further help. The trigger to launching the

business came from a small article

� Robert says: “Poor milk priceshave damaged the industry.People feel they cannot affordto employ staff to do the jobproperly. But if they don’t haveenough staff the businesssuffers, so that decision coststhem in the end.”

MILK PRICES

� “We have done guidedtours for several groups, but ifany of the customers comingto the farm wants to lookaround we’ll show themeverything and answerabsolutely any question theyask,” says Robert.

MEET THE PUBLIC

Louise and Robert with milk from their 125-strong herd.

in Dairy Farmer on the subjectquoting Russell Spencer fromDairy Exchange. Russell explains: “At the time I

felt the milk market wasn’t givingfarmers a fair return. We don’twant the earth, but we should beable to cover all costs in poortimes and make profit whenthings are better. That wasn’thappening, and I think that makesit a dysfunctional market.”After several meetings with

Russell, Robert and Louise decidedto give it a go, although the factthat so much of their money wasalready tied up in farm develop-ment meant they had to takethings in stages.Russell played a key part in

linking them up with anotherMidlands-based farmer processorwho currently does theirprocessing for them and now – by

agreement with their milk buyer –they retain some 1000 litres amonth for their business.Their only capital commitment

so far has been for a van fromwhich to sell and a set of displayfridges for on-farm sales.Robert has visions of being able

to process all their milk in thefuture, but further farm demandssuch as replacing the ageingmilking parlour take precedence. The new business was launched

at Ashby de la Zouch ChristmasFarmers Market in December2011. “A lot of people apologisedand said they had just boughttheir milk for that week, but theycame back and bought off us atthe next market, and we haveretained some valuable customers.Some of them buy at the market,and then come to buy at the farmas well,” says Robert.

***DF July p10 11 On Farm_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:54 Page 1

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DIRECT SELLING

Part of the herd with the spotted cow, Tilton Grace, featuring on the labels.

Valley Farm showing the dirty water storage on the left, cubicle house centre, and on the right the delivery van outside the farmhouse.

Sales now split into three parts– with Ashby and Market Bos-worth Farmers Markets beingboth valuable for sales andadvertising. Farm gate sales, makeup a valuable second stream.A third stream is emerging

among local shops and postoffices, although Robert has aclear picture of the clientele theyneed to attract. “We need to get into the kind

of shops that value what we aredoing rather than those where wehave to compete on price to getshelf space. The people we needto interest are those who can usethe fact we are local to help thempromote and develop their ownbusinesses.“We will have to be priced

competitively, but that must be ata level which ensures we receiveenough to make the capital andtime invested worthwhile.“Direct selling is not a quick fix

or the proverbial Golden Bullet,”he says. “It’s actually a lot morework... as if we need any more ofthat on a dairy farm.”But it is work Robert and Louise

expect to earn them just rewardsin the future.

***DF July p10 11 On Farm_Layout 1 22/06/2012 13:59 Page 2


POTTER’S VIEW

This month Ian Potter tells us about the need for a unified response to industrycritics and about the need to get on with setting up Producer Organisations.

Ian PotterIan is a specialist milk quotaand entitlement broker.Comments please to [email protected]

Time to push on with our own POs

Istart this month’s article byreferring to another one – anarticle by Dragon’s Den guruDeborah Meaden in a farmingpublication.

I won’t waste valuable columninches analysing her comments,but really can’t ignore the article.

Meaden openly admits shesupports The World Society forthe Protection of AnimalsCampaign ‘Not in My Cuppa’, andis anti large dairy farms.

I was particularly disappointedthat (according to my records)there was no cohesive ‘one hit’industry response to the articlepolitely acknowledging her pointsbut telling her dairying mattersare in no way shape or form herarea of expertise.

She is undoubtedly out of herdepth commenting in tradejournals on the best dairy farmingmodel farmers should adopt.

Focusing exclusively on smallfamily farms is admirable, but itmust be in conjunction with theacceptance that globally compet-itive commercial units in the UKneed to be developed andsupported.

So come on NFU, Dairy UK,DairyCo and RABDF – you areonce again letting the industry’scommunications down!

The European dairy packagehas seen the adoption of EU wideProducer Organisations (POs)which for the UK means any POwill be subject to Europeancompetition law and not ourinternal national competition lawand bodies.

It is disappointing to learn theUK is at least a year away fromhaving the legislation in place toenable POs to be formed, whileGermany, for example, alreadyhas 190. It was clear from therecent NFU dairy farmer repres-entative meeting that farmersneed one point of contact towhich all groups of farmersinvestigating the PO facility can

learn how they function and thebenefits and pitfalls. For me, thatjob falls to EFFP.

There are calls from within theNFU Dairy Board for the union toset up a national dairy farmerdatabase to help co-ordinate POs. Well Iknow a man whoalready has such adatabase, which couldpotentially be put togood use: me. For therecord I’m happy tohelp, but state now Iwon’t run one.

I am also notconvinced the ability toform a PO (whichremember has a legalright to negotiate up to 33% ofthe entire UK milk production)will be a silver bullet. In fact atthe moment I can only really seeone PO on the radar.

That’s a PO for the 3000 (one infour) GB producers on retailer-aligned contracts, which I wouldlike to see kick-started by Tesco(TSDG) farmers. But let’s be clear,POs must be driven by farmersand that brings me back onceagain to your current producerrepresentatives. Self-interest mustnot dominate decisions. What isright for the producers theyrepresent has to be the objective.

I hope I am wrong in my beliefone or two farmers who sit on theTSDG farmer representativecommittee are likely to block theformation of a PO, perhapsfearing their position, salaries andbonuses. It’s time for our so-calledleaders to demonstrate they wantto make a difference and ensureretailer-aligned farmers are earlyadopters. They should take thelead and be a voice for those whofeel they have no voice.

Fingers crossed Tesco and otherretailers will support the PO idea.It can be argued that a PO will bea threat and an opportunity, andif one or more are formed my

plea is that they are professionallyrun with qualified negotiatorsdoing the negotiations.

Recent news highlights where aPO could have had influence. DC,Arla and Wiseman have been

knocking sevenbells out of eachother to secureextra volumefrom the retailers,and recently DClost 50 millionlitres of Tescobusiness. For DCit certainly wasnot a case of adedicated supply,as Tesco, in theend, were in no

way dedicated to its suppliers. First Tesco informed me they

intended to retain the farmers bytransferring them to Arla. Er,whoops – that was not contract-ually possible as they are DC’sfarmers not Tesco’s. Second Tescotold me they would give sixmonths contract terminationnotice to the DC Tesco farmers,and pay them compensation forany shortfall. Then someone atTesco had a look at the contractand figured out option three –that if the DC’s Tesco volumeallocation was reduced to zerofrom 16th July the farmers werestill TSDG members but, becauseno milk was going to Tesco, therewas no requirement to pay anycompensation.

The bottom line is Tesco tookthe decision to dump DC’s liquidcontract without any consider-ation for the 25 farmers. It is mybelief if a proper PO had beenoperating Tesco could havenegotiated to switch theproducers to Arla or Wiseman,and would not have had to resortto worming their way out ofpaying compensation.

At the Dairy UK dinner JimPaice did not hold back inexpressing how disappointed he

was not to be in a position toannounce more progress on thevoluntary code of practice. As itwas all he could do was to informthe audience that it needed afinal push with a long-stop targetfor an announcement at the NECDairy Event in September.

One of the hurdles appears tobe that for the code to work, allDairy UK processor members needto adopt it, hopefully followed byother non member processors.Arla are currently unwilling toconcede on anything less than a12-month notice period, andthere lies a major blockage toprogress. Time for a good negot-iator to step in and persuade Arlato join the party, I say!

Finally (and please don’t shootthe messenger), by the time youread this article I fear a number ofAugust 1 price cuts will be on thecards. Given the fact all intelli-gence points towards commodityprices having bottomed andstarting to turn up, it’s likely theprice drops will be the last of theyear and hopefully soon will befollowed by at least one priceincrease.

That’s where I am nervousbecause knowing August or Sept-ember could be the last chancefor processors to try to justifyprice cuts, the word is one or twowill seize the opportunity and cutdeeper than necessary. I do notsubscribe to the view when itcomes to farmgate milk pricingthat the market operatesnormally, but I do live in hopethat one day at least onepurchaser will take the lead andbe more open, honest andtransparent. Roll on the voluntarycode and a new way of doingbusiness!

The word isone or two will seize theopportunityand cutdeeper thannecessary

***DF July p12 Potter _Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:45 Page 1

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BREEDING

Information on crossbred animals is relatively scarce, but a growing UK database and a new certificate fromNMR add to the breeding tools producers will now have at their disposal.

Crossbreds get own records

The recent launch by NMRof crossbred ancestryand performancecertificates has givenmilk producers an

additional tool to help themwhen crossing two or moredifferent breeds. A pie chart onthe certificate showing theproportion of each breed in theanimal’s pedigree is said to beparticularly useful for farmersconsidering which breed to usenext on the crossbred animal.The launch is said by Jonathan

Davies of NMR to recognise theimportance of cross-breeding inthe UK and add value to cross-bred animals.The certificate also includes a

genetic index (Predicted Trans-

mitting Ability) for the crossbredanimal. Commenting on the cross-

breed PTA, geneticist MarcoWinters from DairyCo said thisshould always be consideredagainst the genetic base of thebreed of the sire.

Genetic baseFor example, an animal out of aHolstein cow and by an Ayrshiresire has a PTA expressed againstthe Ayrshire base.“This is extremely important

when considering futurebreeding decisions,” said MrWinters, “as comparing theanimal against the wronggenetic base could give either anover or under-estimate of its

potential performance.”Remarking that all of the UK’s

milk recording organisationswere now routinely collectingdata on crossbred animals, hesaid a growing and potentiallyuseful national database wasbeing compiled.He said this had the scope to

teach the UK industry far moreabout the performance ofdifferent breeds within a cross,rather than simply as a pure-bred animal.“At the moment, cross-

breeding is thought of as a bit ofa black art,” said Mr Winters. “No one really knows how

much of one trait will be lost oranother gained by crossing twobreeds, as the UK – like most

other countries – doesn’thave any good national statisticson it.

True value“But we hope the data theindustry is now collecting willreveal the true value of cross-breeding, including the value ofhybrid vigour,” he said. “Thisphenomenon gives the cross-bred animal better performancethan the average of its parents,although it is rarely better thanthe best parent.“Various studies with small

populations have attempted toquantify hybrid vigour, but a largepopulation milking in the UKoffers us the best opportunity yetto really pin it down,” he said.

INTERNATIONAL recognition forhis services to the livestockindustries has been given toFrank Armitage, who hasreceived the President’s Medalfrom ICAR (InternationalCommittee for AnimalRecording).The award is given to a

maximum of one person peryear in recognition of theiroutstanding expertise and theircontribution to ICAR activities.Mr Armitage is known to

many producers for his 30-yearrole with NMR, where he waslatterly a director. He has served on the ICAR

board and now acts as itstechnical adviser where he hasplayed a pivotal role in raisingthe standard in international

International recognition

animal identification, perform-ance recording and geneticevaluation systems. As such, hehas been instrumental inimproving herd managementand increasing geneticimprovement in herds across the UK.

Indexes simplified� DairyCo has produced anew video which explainsgenomic indexes in an easy tounderstand language.The guide to genomic

evaluations can be viewedthrough the DairyCo websiteby clicking on Farming InfoCentre and then through togenetics and breeding. Visit www.dairyco.org.uk

GENOMICS VIDEORed and whitebull milestoneDUTCH Holstein, Kian, hascelebrated his 15th birthday whilealso reaching the milestone ofproducing 1.4 million doses ofsemen – the highest ever for a redand white bull. This Andries x Sunny Boy has

been used extensively worldwide,although his greatest influence inthe UK is expected to comethrough his descendants such asDelta Fidelity and Apina Curtis.His bloodlines have been popularfor use on red-and-white breedssuch as Ayrshires and Shorthornsand well as black-and-whites. Still in good health, he will join

just seven bulls worldwide if hereaches the milestone of 1.5million doses.

Best long lifecow of 2012 THE hunt is on for the UK’s LongLife Cow of 2012 in the fourthyear of this Genus ABScompetition. The winning cow islikely to have high production,short calving intervals, low cellcounts and excellent fertility, aswell as overall longevity. As usual,a prize will be awarded to theoverall winner and to fourregional winners, but this yearthere will also be awards for thebest cow from each breed society. � Entry forms can bedownloaded fromwww.genusbreeding.co.uk

New milk lab to help grow business MILK records organisation, CIS, isto open a new lab in Telford thissummer which they say willposition the company well tohandle its expanding business.Having experienced a 7 per cent

year-on-year growth over the pastfive years, they say moving all oftheir testing in house will improveefficiency, increase the range of

tests available, and ultimately offerfinancial benefits to customers.Describing the facility as ‘the

first fully automated lab in theUK’, Sue Cope from CIS says: “Theequipment we are installing willgive UK farmers every testavailable that their counterpartsare using elsewhere in the world,and allow us to quickly react to

future technologies as well asnew market and animal healthrequirements.“And because our parent

company, Holstein UK, is ownedby dairy farmers and run for dairyfarmers without a shareholder insight, all of the benefits of thenew facility will be passed backto the farmer.”

Frank Armitage: pivotal role.

***DF July CORR p14 Breeding_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:15 Page 1

COX AGRI WP DF_Cogent WP DF 22/06/2012 12:51 Page 1


CONFERENCE

A VET’S VIEWWHAT do you want from your mastitis treatment? Weknow prevention is better than cure, and creating amastitis control plan with your vet is always time wellspent. We also know we could always do with havingfewer mastitis cases, but why is your neighbour seem-ingly happy with the amount of mastitis cases theytreat? Putting preventative measures aside, how do we get

the best cure rates? What does a cure look like? Theclots go and the milk looks okay? The somatic cell count(SCC) comes back down again? We get rid of the bugthat was causing it? In an ideal world, let’s have all three.� So how can we maximise cure rates? First of all identify your enemy. Not all mastitis bugs arethe same. Work with your vet to name and shame thosebugs to target your treatment.� Which cows do I sample?‘Well that depends’ is a common answer. What is yourproblem? Too many clinical cases? Cell count toohigh?� If clinical cases are your problem why not sam-ple every case? You don’t need to send them all off to the laboratory im-mediately – freeze them – if you hit a problem you cansend off the last few samples without waiting for morecases to sample.If cell counts are your problem then you need to pick

which cows to sample – not just the ones with the high-est cell count. Discuss with your vet before you decidewhich cows to sample, but generally a mix of chroniclong term high cell count cows, some fresh calvedcows calving in with a high cell count and cows whichhave just had a rise in cell count is good. California MilkTest (CMT) can be very useful to confirm the cowswhich are still high cell count once your latest milkrecording results are available and of course identifywhich quarter(s) are affected.� How else can I maximise cure rates?Not all tubes are the same. Work with your vet; discussthe pros and cons of different tubes with reference toyour bugs.� Which tubes should I use?That depends again. Work with your vet who will lookat what bugs you have, how difficult your cases are totreat, whether they recur and where your cows aremost likely to be picking up infections – during the dryperiod or lactation. If you have difficult cases your vetcan help decide whether you need to use combina-tion therapy (injections and tubes) or extended treat-ment. Remember all antibiotic treatments require a milkwithhold – make sure you are using the right one. Treatment of mastitis cases is essential for the well-

being of your cows but havea plan, talk with your vet asthese treatments are ex-pensive and you want tomake sure you safeguardyour milk quality by usingthe best one for your cowsand in the right way.

By Andy Biggs, Vale Veterinary Group

Coccidiosis can hit calves hard

Coccidiosis is a growing concern in calf rearing, as vet Dr TimPotter of the Westpoint Veterinary Group told his audience atthe recent National Youngstock Conference at Hartpury College.

Calf scour is the most commondisease in young calves,accounting for around 50% ofall calf deaths. There are a number of different

organisms that can cause scour in calves.Viruses such as rotavirus and coronavirusare widespread and commonly causewatery diarrhoea in young calves. Thesecan be controlled through vaccination ofcows prior to calving coupled withensuring calves receive sufficientcolostrum. Various bacteria can also cause scour –

E coli, Salmonella and Clostridia all causesevere diarrhoea in calves. The two othermain infectious causes of scours in calvesare cryptosporidiosis and coccidiosis.Scour pathogens can be identified by

examination of faecal samples fromaffected calves. It is important to diagnosewhat is the cause of the scours to ensurethe correct treatment is given and enablemeasures to be put in place to minimisethe chance of occurrence in the future. Coccidiosis has been causing increasing

numbers of problems over the last fewyears, both in terms of clinical disease andalso by causing reduced growth rates.The number of cases diagnosed by theVeterinary Laboratories Agency hasincreased over the last 10 years. So what is coccidiosis? Coccidiosis is a

disease caused by coccidian – these aresmall protozoan parasites which causedamage to the intestinal tract of cattlefollowing ingestion. Environmentalburdens result in nearly all farm animalspecies being exposed to coccidia over thecourse of their lifetime. High levels ofenvironmental challenge commonly occurin modern farming systems with adultsserving as carriers of disease andcontributing towards environmentalcontamination. The clinical signs will depend on the

severity of the infection. In the mostsevere form animals will pass diarrhoeacontaining blood or mucus – theseanimals will show signs of dehydrationand may be seen to strain to pass faeces.Less severely affected animals will showsigns of ill thrift and are frequentlyobserved to pass a pale pasty scour. Theseanimals will have reduced feed intakes

and will show poorer growth rates.Typically clinical signs are seen in

animals between three weeks and sixmonths of age, although cattle up to twoyears of age, and occasionally older, areincreasingly being seen with the disease.Diagnosis is based on the presence of

clinical findings in a group of calves andthrough examination of faecal samples.Producers should consult with theirveterinary surgeon if they suspectcoccidiosis on their unit. The vet will thenbe able to advise on the diagnosis andcorrect treatment of the condition.

PreventionThe most effective method of minimisingthe effect of coccidiosis is prevention, andthis can be accomplished by a combina-tion of good hygiene and the use of anin-feed coccidiostat such as decoquinate. For milk-fed calves, the intakes of

hard starter feed are often variable and sovery young animals risk not receiving afull dose of decoquinate. To address thisissue, Vetsonic has developed Vetcox PROwhich can be administered in milkpowder. Producers should speak to theirvet for more information. In data presented at the conference the

use of Vetcox Pro in milk preventedclinical coccidiosis. This resulted in anincrease in daily liveweight gain of 200gper day when compared to a controlgroup of calves which did not receive anyanti-coccidial therapy. While steps can be taken to treat the

different forms of calf diarrhoea, hygieneand cleanliness are paramount in theprevention and control of all calf scour.

In severe coccidiosis, calves can sufferdiarrhoea and pass blood or mucus.

***DF July p16 Conference _Layout 1 22/06/2012 14:16 Page 1

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CONFERENCE

Making better use of home-grown foragesProducing the best quality forage possible and then making sure the cows have the chance to realise its potentialwere the two key take home messages for delegates who attended this year’s National Forage Conference.

With milk pricesdropping andmargins underpressure, producerswho focused on

improving forage conservationand diet formulation would bebest placed to maximise returns insuch a challenging market.That was the message from this

year’s National Forage Confer-ence, arranged by Biotal, and heldat Reaseheath College, Cheshire. Dr Mary Beth Hall, research

scientist with the US Dairy ForageResearch Centre in Madison,Wisconsin, said: “Feeding a dairycow is a matter of balance. If weget the balance in the diet rightwe will see better production andbetter feed efficiency whichtogether will mean better returns.“We will not get the necessary

balance unless we feed goodquality forages. We need toexploit forages’ strengths whichare an excellent fibre sourcecombined with a supply of non-fibre carbohydrates and proteins.”Dr Hall reminded delegates of

the crucial role of physicallyeffective fibre which enhancesrumen function, increasesrumination, reduces acidosis andcontrols the rate of rumenpassage which influences howwell the total diet is utilised. “As the physical effectiveness of

fibre is influenced by such factorsas particle size and forage density,it is something all farmers caninfluence by the decisions theymake at silaging time. “Cows will give you plenty of

clues about what they thinkabout the diet you have provided.For example, if the physicalstructure of the diet is correct andpromoting good rumen function,at least 40% of cows not eating,sleeping or drinking will beruminating. If they aren’t thenlook closely at physically effectivefibre levels.

“The way the diet is fed willhave a big impact on performanceand if cows are sorting the dietthen the rumen will be comprom-ised. Cows have very few hobbiesand if they can sort the diet, theywill. A well-mixed, moist dietcomprising particles up to 50mmlong will prevent sorting,” shesaid.To assess rumen retention times,

Dr Hall advised looking at themanure. If feed is passing throughthe rumen too quickly particle sizein manure will be longer whichwould indicate poor digestion andnutrient use. According to Dr Hall, measuring

feed efficiency needs to becomemuch more commonplace on dairyfarms.“Quite often small changes can

make a big difference. Improvingthe balance in the diet, increasingdiet digestibility, reducing averagedays in milk, avoiding slug feedingof concentrates and reducingdisease incidence will all helpimprove feed efficiency. So Iwould urge all farmers to take thetime to work out the feedefficiency on their farms and setout to increase it while makingfull use of forage,” she said.Professor Limin Kung of the

University of Delaware told

delegates the declining yield fromforage figures indicate there isscope to improve the quality ofconserved forage and throughthis to boost cow performance.“In the ideal fermentation

several things happen quickly.(See Fig 1). The level of sugarsfalls as they are fermented by thebacteria. This leads to an increasein the concentrations of lactic andacetic acid and a consequent fallin pH. The pH fall is crucial as itbrings about an end to thefermentation process and weneed this to finish quickly toensure a stable feed and a highnutrient content,” he said.“A temperature increase is an

inevitable consequence offermentation. With a goodfermentation the temperatureincrease will be lower and shorterin duration as sugars areconverted to both lactic and aceticacid, dropping the pH quickly.More nutrients are preserved inthe forage and are available tothe cow.“However, if we get the

fermentation wrong and we failto exclude oxygen, we see atotally different picture. (See Fig2). When air gets into the clampwe see a slower rate of decline inpH and the eventual stable pHachieved is higher than underideal conditions. The clamp alsoheats up to a higher temperatureand remains hotter for longer andall the time this is happening weare losing energy,” he said. He believed the key was to

improve the initial rate offermentation and to make sureoxygen is excluded, not justduring the initial fermentationbut during the entire storagephase. He advised using aninoculant to encourage the rapidfermentation and fall in pH,leading to more efficientfermentation and higher energyrecovery.

Figure 1

Figure 2

***DF July p18 Biotal Conference _Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:17 Page 1

www.farmersguardian.com/DFF2012

enteronline:

DFF 2012 Cover only_DFF 1-4 22/06/2012 12:59 Page 1


CONFERENCE

Behaviour around calving and benefits of pain reliefThis year’s Boehringer forum on farm animal well being was held in Lisbon and Westpoint vet RobDrysdale went to hear the latest thinking.

Advice on the use of Metacam® or other therapies should be sought from your veterinary surgeon. Metacam® contains meloxicam. Prescription only medicine.Use Medicines Responsibly (www.noah.co.uk/responsible).

Rob Drysdale: are there benefits to using NSAIDs at calving?

As a farm vet you areoften invited to attendconferences looking atmastitis or fertility butthe recent symposium

on ‘Well-Being’ I attended inPortugal was very different. I was in Lisbon with more than

10 cattle vets from all over theworld to hear presentations ontopics directly associated withwelfare and pain and their impacton animal health. Topics coveredareas as diverse as the reasons forculling, with UK herds using datafrom DairyCo, through to a US vetwho routinely works on largedairy herds to reduce welfareproblems.Two professors from the

University of British Columbia –Dan Weary and Marina vonKeyserlingk – have spent manyyears researching cow behaviouraround calving and how thesebehaviours can be affected byillness, management and stress. They proposed areas which

could be improved for betterhealth and also showed wherebehaviour could be used toindicate clinical and subclinicaldisease around calving.In one study, the intake of feed

was shown to drop off at one daybefore through to one day aftercalving – so could the number offeeds in a day be used to timecalving? While lying time wasunaffected around calving, ProfWeary showed the number ofstanding bouts did rise dramat-ically 24 to 48 hours prior togiving birth – from 10 to 12 bouts

1. Duffield et al. Effect offlunixin meglumine treatmentfollowing parturition on cowhealth and milk production.American Dairy ScienceAssociation Annual Meeting,Montreal, Canada. J Dairy Sci,Vol 92, (E-Suppl 1), 118.2. Manteca et al. The effectof parity and time on painand discomfort associatedwith normal calving in dairycows. 3rd BoehringerIngelheim Expert Forum onFarm Animal Well Being, 37-39, Barcelona, Spain.

REFERENCES

each day to more than 20 times.Could using activity collars helppredict when to move a cow froma yard into a calving pen?Another piece of research

looked at cows pre- and post-calving with illness such as LDA.The research showed many cowswhich would become sick aftercalving actually had problemsbefore – sick cows showed a dropin the number of times they feedover the last seven days pre-calving despite not beingobviously sick in the pen. The reduction of pain in and

around calving was reviewed bytwo other speakers. Routineadministration of an epidural isfollowed by all Westpoint vets tohelp reduce pain and allow foreasier manipulation duringproblem calvings. This is aprocedure which can offer greatbenefit to the cow post-calving,but is problematic, so is not a step

farmers should be undertakingthemselves.The final speaker of the day

was Prof Todd Duffield fromGuelph, Ontario. He is arecognised specialist in populationmedicine with many studies in calfand cow health. Prof Duffieldreviewed studies from around theworld in the use of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)around calving with some startlingconclusions.Interest has been expressed by

farmers and vets on the use ofNSAIDs around calving. There areseveral NSAIDs available, includingmeloxicam (Metacam) in the UK.Although they act to reducebruising and pain each NSAIDworks in a different way withdiffering impacts on cow and calfhealth. One study (Duffield et al.2009) showed a significantincrease in both the risk ofretained placenta and the risk of

metritis when flunixin megluminewas administered within one hourand again at 24 hours aftercalving.Whilst many vets now routinely

use a NSAID at caesareans,another study (Manteca et al.2010) looked at heifers and cowspost-calving after eitherunassisted or easy manual assisteddelivery with or withoutmeloxicam treatment. The heifersshowed increased activity in thedays after calving when givenmeloxicam within 12 hours ofcalving. It was proposed by Prof

Duffield giving meloxicam tofreshly-calved cows which havehad an assisted or unassistedcalving could be useful. Withreports from around the worldshowing on average 10% of allcow and 20% of heifer calvingrequire some degree of inter-vention, could this be a propos-ition we look at again in the UK?

Don’t miss next month’s Dairy Farmer Feeder wagon & nutrition special

***DF July CORR NEW p20 Conference_Layout 1 22/06/2012 13:21 Page 1

DAIRY FARMER JULY 2012

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HOUSING & SLURRY

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Deciding whether to patch up and extend existing facilities or construct something completely new is a difficultchoice to make. Ann Hardy visited a Devon farm to learn how and why the new-build came about.

Building for the family future

When father and son,Andy and PhilipCooke, decided theway forward fortheir 500-head dairy

unit was through a completeupdate of its facilities, they knewtheir investment had to bringsubstantial improvements inperformance and set a path for

the family business for at least 25years to come.Today, the new set-up at Sutton

Barton Farm in Devon has beendescribed by the farm’s nutrit-ionist as working ‘as well as any Ihave seen’, with remarkably highcubicle occupancy, good healthand welfare, exceptional heatdetection and fertility, outstand-ing feed intakes and – above allfor the business and the return oncapital – high milk production.Having gained well over 1800

litres since the building wasoccupied over a year ago, theherd now yields more than10,500kg at 3.8% fat and 3.2%protein, has a 12-month rollingaverage cell count of 90,000cells/ml and a calving index of 395days.The catalyst for the building

project was 23-year-old Philip’sreturn from Kingston MaurwardAgricultural College and thegrowing realisation within thefamily that the 30-year-old

facilities would never provide himwith the future to which heaspired.“It was a case of get in or get

out,” reflects Andy, whose firststep was to hire agriculturalarchitect Mike Goff, whose officein Waterrow was just an hour’sdrive from the Honiton-basedfarm, enabling him to project-manage the construction all theway through.

Requirements“The Cookes specified theirrequirements for a building thatwould house around 300 head,”explains Mike. “This includedoutside feeding that would avoidhaving to drive through the cowyard in order to feed, plenty ofnatural light and the best possibleventilation, with the overallobjective of achieving the highestwelfare standards possible for thecows.“These were all absolutely

reasonable requirements and

� A designated KW CompassFarm championing best practice� 500 milking Holsteins in fatherand son business� 800 acres including 400 acresowned� Building project commencedin 2010 and first stage wascompleted in 2011

� Herd average over 10,500litres at 3.8% fat and 3.2%protein (305d, 3x)� Year-round calving and milksupplied on a level profile toPattemores � Long-term hope is to continueexpansion with high welfarefacilities .

SUTTON BARTON FARM

The stepped roof at Sutton Barton Farm was an important feature from both planning and ventilation points of view.

***DF July p22 24 26 Cooke_Layout 1 22/06/2012 11:46 Page 1

DAIRY FARMER JULY 2012 23

DF_07_P23_DF_07_P23 22/06/2012 13:38 Page 21


HOUSING & SLURRY

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exactly what I would expect from aprogressive dairy farmer,” he says.

After taking the Cookes to seesimilar units throughout thesouth-west, and fine-tuning theirrequirements, plans were drawnand submitted for approval withEast Devon District Council.

“We also worked closely withthe Environment Agency which isan important part of the planningprocess, and certain features ofthe design were particularly

important in gaining approval,”says Mike.

“Any big building has environ-mental impact issues such as wastemanagement, access, noise andlight pollution, ecology and visualimpact, and we had to prove tothe planners that these had allbeen addressed.”

Roof designThe design of the roof was a casein point, which – being both low

and stepped – not only satisfiedthe planners who do not like tosee a single large expanse of roofline, but perfectly met the cows’ventilation requirements.

“You actually want to keep theroof low to the cows,” explainsMike, who says that moisture-laden air needs to leave thebuilding quickly.

“If the roof is too high, gravitytakes over and it becomes difficultfor the air to exit the building,”he explains.

The result was an eaves heightof just 4m and a ventilated ridgeat 7.5m. There was a highquantity of roof lights made fromglass reinforced plastic (GRP),while alternate rows of the fibrecement roofing sheets were raisedusing packing timber, leaving anair gap between every row ofsheets.

With each of the three steppedsections measuring just over 30m,the entire building length wouldbe in excess of 90m.

Other features of the construct-ion included the use of galvanisedguttering, which should not twistor warp, and limited the need forhigh numbers of downspouts andreduced the amount of under-ground drainage.

LandfillThe building’s location within thesite of an old quarry had levellingimplications, and Mike says: “Weneeded to make up the groundwith landfill which came from aslurry lagoon dug above the farm,and although a licence is normallyrequired to move landfill from Ato B, this is not the case when it isused for construction on the farmfrom which it was taken.”

However, although the landfill

generated at Sutton Barton wasexempt from the need for alicence, he says the EnvironmentAgency still needed to beconsulted in the process.

Internal layoutInside the roof area (100m x 33m)of the building, a balance had tobe struck between space for lyingand loafing and access to feed.

“A key priority for us was tocreate enough space for cows toexpress natural behaviour andprovide plenty of access to feedalong a generous feed barrier,”says Philip.

“That’s why we opted for tworows of cubicles per feed facerather than three, and had 5.5mfeed passages and cubiclepassages of 3.5m,” he says. “Wefelt it was very important for thecows to have enough space andwe saw the benefits the momentthey went in.”

Nutritionist Dave Collett fromKW Alternative Feeds agrees andsays the target dry matter intake(DMI) of 24kg per cow per day,which was set when he joined theteam last year, has now beenreached, while the dailyproduction goal of 36 litres perhead has been exceeded.

And while the high qualityration clearly plays the critical rolein achieving this performance, hesays the building itself is conduc-ive to high feed consumption.

“The new shed is workingexceptionally well,” he says. “It’sthe best I have seen for cowcomfort and there’s clearly nostress in the building whatsoever.”

Other features whichcontribute to this outcomeinclude plenty of cross-overpassages and no dead ends where

Philip Cooke has recently returned from agricultural college.Occupancy rates in the cubicles are incredibly high.



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HOUSING & SLURRY

TechTalk by Rosebeck

Neil can be contacted by email: [email protected]

For further information call Rosebeck Services on 01642 718814 or visit www.rosebeckservices.co.uk

HYGIENE, HYGIENE, HYGIENE!

As I write this month many milk producers will find themselves in the midst of numerous field based tasks that can deflect their attention away from the cows. Silage making being one, either later first cuts or preparations for early second cut in some regions can prove distractions to the daily routine. Letting the daily routine slip is rarely good news for the cow; they like consistency and they love routine. Evidence constantly proves that when you invest more time in hygiene control, you spend less time dealing with the likes of mastitis and lameness, so don’t let this part of your routine slip. ‘Hygiene, hygiene, hygiene’ could refer to udder hygiene, hoof hygiene or parlour hygiene and in recent discussions with milk producers I feel it’s fair to say most producers accept that somewhere along the line at this time of year one or more of the above topics is at risk of taking a back seat. It is not often udder hygiene that is hit hardest (although there are exceptions) it is more often hoof hygiene and parlour hygiene. Perhaps the foot bath routine slips or the parlour is left another extra month between pressure washings? Looking simply at hoof hygiene, it is clear this is an area where having a regular programme of hygiene control proves difficult on many farms at any time of year so throw in a busy period and big distractions and it is easy to see why it can go out of the window altogether. However, after what appeared to be an early spring, then dissolved into a cold, late spring, lameness has raised its ugly head on many farms once more so there have been many discussions on the merits and actions of foot bath products and routines. There are two main types of foot bath products, an antibiotic foot bath or a biocidal foot bath. A third would be a cleaning product used prior to one of these. In simple terms an antibiotic foot bath will work consistently at ‘curing’ the infection; irrespective of the state of the water (clear or slurry like) it will work. They should, however, be used prudently; following consultation with a veterinary surgeon, with a final decision based not just on cost BUT also on concerns about a lack of efficacy through overuse. Generally it is better to use such measures only a few times a year in a bath or spot treat affected cows. Biocidal products cannot make claims to treat or cure infection! They are biocides NOT medicines; they kill the bacteria that cause the infection, so they require frequent use to keep killing the bugs. These bugs are always present in the environment so you must keep in control and protect the cows from them as best as possible. If you think you are ‘treating’ with any product other than an antibiotic, you have most likely already failed. A concern with biocides is their tolerance of organic matter; which rapidly deactivates them, greatly reducing their killing power. This happens when the bath becomes dirty or if the hoof to be bathed is already caked in dried on dung. Aim for around 1 litre per cow; by this I mean a standard 200 litre bath, should see a maximum of 200 cows pass through before a change of solution. Putting cows through bacterial soup rarely gives you the desired effect. Be aware of the ‘numbing’ action of some products de-sensitising the foot to feel less pain whilst failing to kill bacteria effectively does not resolve the issue of lost milk and lost fertility. Choose wisely and maintain a frequent routine - it works!

� Architect and project manager: MikeGoff (Tel: 07739 279 042)� Ground works: Dave Selway (Tel:07815 131 509) � Steel frame: Alastair HillConstruction (Tel: 07710 794 166) � Slurry system: Redlynch AgEngineering (Tel: 01749 812 628)� Parlour installation: B H White andSon (Tel: 01278 652 265)� Electrics: Daw Refrigeration (Tel:01392 851 613).

CONTRACTORS AT A GLANCE

any animal can be bullied; pattern-imprinted concrete for sure-footednessthroughout; large, comfortable, sand-bedded cubicles with plenty of lungespace; and adjustable curtained sides foroptimal airflow.

Slurry removal Slurry removal combines the simplicity oftractor scraping in the building with thecomplexity of a state-of-the-art separationsystem outside, where a polymer augerand other polymer working parts are a keypart of the design.“The slurry is scraped to a 30m channel

and then goes down to a 27 cu mreception pit where it is mixed with wastewater and from which it is pumped to aseparator,” says Peter Blackwell fromRedlynch, who installed the WAMIndustries system.

“WAM Industries in Italy are a largemanufacturer of separation systems andthey have pioneered the use of plasticpolymers for handling sand and slurrywhich reduces wear on the workingparts,” he relates.From the Sepcom screw press separator,

designed to handle waste from over 100cows an hour, separated liquids flow tothree settlement tanks (each approx 25 x3m) with weirs in alternate cornersallowing liquid to flow between them.Separated filtrate is then pumped to a

butyl-lined lagoon some 800 metres

away from the separation system, whilesolids fall into a compound and areremoved for storage.“The advantages of this system include

the high proportion of nitrogen retainedin the liquid fraction which can be easilypumped to the fields, and the stackablenature of the solids, including waste sand,which can be spread at any time of year,”says Peter.

ParlourWith the old cubicle house now redund-ant, this became the obvious site for a newparlour and a high specification 50-pointrapid exit DeLaval parlour was installed. The existing 30 x 40m building was

upgraded with around 30% of the roofarea converted to roof lights for improvedcow flow as well as worker comfort.“Well thought-out and practical

handling facilities were also installed inthis shed, designed by the farm’s vet, BenBurton,” says Mike. “This included a pairof curved treatment races and doubleholding pens, and the Cookes tell me thesystem is working well,” he maintains.“Like most farmers they were working on

a tight budget for all aspects of this project,and contractors were chosen with cost aswell as reputation in mind.”But, he believes, they have all been

pleased with the whole outcome – sopleased in fact that they may even replicatethe shed with a mirror image alongside.

Rows of roof lights make the inside of the building incredibly light and airy.

Inside the 50-point rapid exit parlour.



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Building design can help cut w More dairy farms are being encouraged to look at their buildings and infrastructure as a means of conserving and generating na

Cumbria dairy farmerDavid Martin hasrecently undertaken acarbon footprint of hisproductive, low-lying

grassland farm close to the southCumbria coast and admits tobeing very pleased with the result.Mr Martin runs a high input

dairy herd of 230 cows at LordsPlain Farm, Levens, near Kendal,with a herd average of 10,600litres. An event organised at theunit – a monitor farm in aninitiative with SAC and Rural SkillsCumbria – looked at the potentialto introduce more energy andwater saving projects andexamined the opportunities forother dairy farmers to instigatetheir own efficiencies. Mr Martin is already recycling

water on the farm through hismilk cooling system, and a wateraudit by SAC environmentconsultant Ruth Kendal has shown

there are opportunities to save upto £3000.The all-year-round calving herd

at Lords Plain Farm is stocked at3.06 livestock units per hectare.Although figures produced by SACshowed that the farm fared wellin terms of carbon emissions therewere still considerable opport-unities for further cost savingsthat could amount to just over£5500 a year.

SavingsOn most dairy farms 25% of waterused is passed through the platecooler. At Lords Plain Farm theplate cooler water use is currentlycosting £3860 a year but at least50% of it is being recycledproducing a saving on water costsof £1930. While it is a worthwhile

saving, Mr Martin believes thereis further opportunity toconserve water and reduce the

Further opportunities could involve installing a water holding tank.

amount which ends up in theslurry store.“We recycle more than 50% of

our plate cooler water and two

years ago we installed a heatrecovery unit running from thecompressors to the bulk tank.The heat recovery unit cost

***DF July p28-29 Housing _Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:58 Page 1

HOUSING & SLURRY


water bills g natural resources. Jeremy Hunt reports.

Cumbrian farmer David Martin is saving money by recycling water through his milk cooling system.

around £4000 – the big question is how muchmoney is it saving us?“Since we put it in we’ve increased cow

numbers, producing more milk taking longer tocool, so the electricity bill hasn’t been reducedthat much. But it’s heating water up to 55degrees – and without it that would be anotheradded power cost,” says Mr Martin.The layout of the buildings at Lords Plain

Farm does not make rainwater harvesting aneasy option. But water in the north-west costs£1.47 per cu m – £1.47 per 220 gallons. A dairyfarm in the region with 200 dairy cows will havean annual bill of around £12,500.Based on collecting 40-60% of rainfall, figures

produced by SAC showed there was thepotential to collect rainfall (total falling on roof)amounting to 2848cu m – worth £4186. Thatwould achieve a saving on the farm’s water billof up to £2511 – although there would be somecosts involved to achieve it.SAC’s Ruth Kendal said many farm buildings

had the potential for rainwater harvesting.“There’s the opportunity to make some big

savings on water costs simply by adopting anew routine to avoid water being wasted. “Farmers should regularly check water supplies

into buildings to make sure there are no leaks,drips or over-flowing troughs. When youconsider a fast dripping tap can waste up to £50of water a year and a leak with a 6mm stream ofwater will waste over £1800 a year, it’s worthkeeping a close eye on things,” she says.

Trigger hoseWhere buildings or floors are being washeddown regularly it is worth using a trigger hoseto avoid wasting water if the hose is left on.“We recommend meter readings are takenregularly so the reason for any unexpecteddeviation can be tracked down,” she said.The increasing herd size at Lords Plain Farm

means a new calf house is being planned whichwill measure approximately 100ft by 40ft andinclude cubicle accommodation for older calvesto reduce the use of straw. Although still in theplanning stage the possibility of installing solarpanels on the roof is being considered. “The solar panels would cost £30,000 and the

estimated payback time is 14 years – although Ithink that may be on the pessimistic side. Theroof I’ve been looking at for the calf shed wasgoing to be 22.5 degree slope – so rathersteeper than the 15 degree suggested – toenable us to get the maximum amount of airflow from the ridge vents,” says Mr Martin. “The figures say we’d get 150% better air

flow from the steeper roof than one at 15degrees. And hopefully the steeper angle wouldmean the panels would attract more sunlight,”he adds.

***DF July p28-29 Housing _Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:58 Page 2


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QUALITY DAIRY 18TYPICAL FORMULAWheat, Maize Gluten,

Wheatfeed, Palm Kernel, Rape,Molasses, Sunflower, Hipro Soya,Pro Wheat, Biscuit, Vegetable Oil,

Minerals & VitaminsOil 5.1% Protein 18%Fibre 9% Ash 7.7%

HIGH SUGAR BEET 18TYPICAL FORMULA

Sugar Beet, Corn Dist, Wheat, MaizeGluten, Rape, Palm Kernel, Sunflower,

Molasses, Maize Sugar, Wheatfeed, ProRape, Hipro Soya, Pro Wheat, Pro Fat,Vegetable Fat, Minerals & Vitamins

Oil 5.6% Protein 19%Fibre 10.7% Ash 7.6%

SUMMER HDF 16TYPICAL FORMULA

Sugar Beet, Palm Kernel,Wheatfeed, Maize Gluten,

Sunflower, Molasses, Wheat,Vegetable Fat,

Minerals & VitaminsOil 4.25% Protein 16%Fibre 13% Ash 8.5%

Milk PricesMilk price analyst StephenBradley comments on the latest milk industry developments.

Saputo decrease � SAPUTO Cheese, NewcastleEmlyn, is to decrease itsproducer milk price by 1.75pplfrom Jun’12. This brings to anend what has seemed anendless run on milk priceincreases – in fact 11 in totaldating back to Jul’09. The cut, via lower constituentpayments, takes our standardlitre price down 1.74ppl to26.47ppl and 26.17ppl on Leveland Seasonal contractsrespectively, but still keeps thecompany’s milk price 0.6pplabove its previous Dec’08 high.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Davidstow drop isless than predicted

If there can be such a thing asa pleasant surprise associatedwith milk price cuts, thenDairy Crest Davidstowsuppliers can claim to have

had a taste with the company’sdecision to cut its Davidstow milkprice by just 0.75ppl from Jul’12. Having held the price for the

eighth consecutive month, thesmaller cut comes into force amonth later than many other milkprice cuts for cheese. Thereduction, agreed with DCD, wassomewhat less than many hadbeen expecting – given the recentannouncements of cuts ofbetween 1.5ppl and 2ppl. The 0.75ppl decrease is to be

deducted from the base price andtakes our standard litre (4% b/f &3.3% prot, Bactoscans of30,000/ml and SCCs of 200,000/ml,1mltrs/yr on EODC) down to28.22ppl. The price includes our

current 12 month rolling averageprofile payment of 1.19ppl afterthe latest 0.02ppl reduction fromMar’12 based on RPA monthlyproduction figures. This smaller price cut keeps our

price 0.67ppl above previousJan’09 highs, enabling it to remainin a decreasing circle of prices ableto make such claims. In addition,to support suppliers producingmore milk, a volume incentivescheme (similar the oneintroduced on Dairy Crest liquidcontracts last summer) will also beintroduced from Jul’12. The scheme will run from

Jul’12 through to Mar’14. Usingthe 2011/12 quota year as thebase year, the incentive willreward quarterly by paying apremium of 2ppl on the litressupplied 3.5% above the volumesupplied in the same quarter inthe base year.

Caledonian’s further cutCALEDONIAN Cheese’s price is tobe reduced by a further 1.77pplfrom June 1, taking the total cutthrough May and June to 2.01ppl. Last month the company

retracted its first proposed 0.59pplprice cut from May 1 and, afterfarmer negotiations, settled on a0.24ppl cut for May’12 supplies. The June reduction through

lower constituent payments takesour price down by 1.77ppl to27.1ppl on the company’s stand-ard contract, with our price on the

profile option – based on themonthly RPA figures whichcurrently calculates a 12-monthrolling profile payment of 0.63pplto Apr’12 – down to 27.7ppl. This latest cut manages to keep

our Caledonian price just 0.07pplabove its Jan’09 highs, while ourmanufacturing standard (4.3% blfand 3.5% prot with the samehygiene, volume and collection)reduces by 1.89ppl because ofconstituent bias to 28.75ppl and29.35ppl respectively.

***DF July CORR p30 31 Milk Prices_Layout 1 22/06/2012 11:41 Page 1

MILK PRICES


Tel: 01772 785252Fax: 01772 782944

COW KENNELS

GARAGE

SHEEP CALVES

[email protected]

A talent fortimber buildings

Mar'12 Apr'12 Apr'12 12mth

4.0/3.3 4.0/3.3 4.0/3.3 Ave

Before Before 1mltr May'11

Seas'lty Seas'lty SAPP Apr'12

(i) (ii) **(iii) (iv)

D.C – M&S ∞ 32.48 32.48 29.31 31.09

RWD – Tesco Scotland 30.21 29.56 27.66 30.01

RWD – Tesco England 30.21 29.56 27.66 30.01

D.C – Sainsbury's 30.77 30.77 28.18 30.01

D.C – Waitrose ∞^ 31.07 31.07 28.05 29.87

RWD – Sainsbury's Central Scotland 30.53 30.53 28.63 29.85

RWD – Sainsbury's England 30.53 30.53 28.63 29.85

Arla Foods – Tesco •• 29.96 29.31 28.39 29.57

Arla Foods – AFMP Sainsbury's •• 30.48 30.48 29.59 29.46

Caledonian Cheese Co – Profile ‡ 29.67 29.70 29.57 28.91

Cadbury – Selkley Vale Milk 30.04 30.04 30.04 28.89

Robert Wiseman – The Co-op Dairy Group 29.78 29.78 27.88 28.76

D.C – Davidstow ∞ 28.97 28.97 26.38 28.63

Wyke Farms 29.00 29.00 27.40 28.56

Arla Foods – Asda•• 29.38 29.38 28.49 28.46

Caledonian Cheese Co 29.07 29.07 29.07 28.30

Barber A.J & R.G 28.61 28.61 27.61 28.20

Blackmore Vale Farm Cream 28.65 28.65 28.65 28.19

Parkham Farms 28.82 29.00 26.02 28.12

Wensleydale Dairy Products 28.49 28.49 28.51 27.96

Meadow Foods Lakes ± 28.96 28.96 28.48 27.92

Milk Link – London Liquid 28.50 28.50 28.62 27.83

Milk Link – West Country Liquid 28.50 28.50 28.62 27.83

D.C – Liquid Regional Premium ∞ ¶ 28.59 28.59 26.00 27.83

Arla Foods – AFMP (Non-Aligned) •• 28.88 28.88 27.99 27.82

Grahams Dairies 28.60 28.60 27.10 27.81

Meadow Foods – Level 28.88 28.88 28.88 27.79

Meadow Foods – Seasonal 28.88 28.88 28.38 27.79

Milk Link Rodda's ¢• 28.91 28.91 27.11 27.78

Robert Wiseman – Aberdeen 28.43 28.43 26.53 27.75

Robert Wiseman – Central Scotland 28.43 28.43 26.53 27.75

Robert Wiseman – England 28.43 28.43 26.53 27.75

Paynes Farms Dairies 28.45 28.45 28.45 27.68

Saputo UK – Level supply # 28.21 28.21 28.21 27.61

Arla Foods – AFMP Standard •• 28.63 28.63 27.74 27.56

United Dairy Farmers ≠ 26.81 25.36 25.39 27.55

Milk Link – Manufacturing ¢• 28.51 28.51 27.23 27.46

South Caernarfon 28.02 28.02 27.26 27.45

Joseph Heler 27.99 27.99 27.99 27.38

Belton Cheese 27.80 27.80 27.80 27.33

Glanbia – Llangefni (flat) 27.85 27.85 27.43 27.32

Saputo UK – Seasonal # 27.91 27.91 26.91 27.31

Glanbia – Llangefni (Constituent) 27.78 27.78 27.26 27.22

First Milk – Highlands & Islands § 27.97 27.97 27.79 27.09

First Milk – Liquid § 27.90 27.90 27.79 26.89

First Milk – Cheese § 27.50 27.50 27.39 26.67

First Milk Balancing § 27.50 27.50 27.39 26.67

Average Price 28.93 28.86 27.84 28.20

Notes to tablePrices paid for 1mltr producer supplying milk of average constituents 4% butterfat and 3.3% protein, SCCs of200,000/ml and Bactoscans of 30,000/ml on EODC excluding capital retentions and MDC levies. SAPP = SeasonallyAdjusted Profile Price. (i) Mar’12 prices before seasonality. (ii) Apr'12 prices before seasonality. (iii) Seasonally adjust-ed profile price for Apr’12 taking into account monthly seasonality payments and profiles of supply. ** Seasonaladjusted profile supply for 1mltr supplier (using monthly RPA figures) for Apr'12 =3,129ltrs/day, flatsupply=2,740ltrs/day. (iv) Table ranked on the seasonally adjusted price for the 12mths to Apr’12. § SAPP reflects12mth profile adjustment of -0.28pl. ¢ SAPP reflects 2,723ltrs (Aug to Dec’11 daily average) paid as ‘A’ ltrs with theremaining ‘B’ ltrs paid @ 60% of the ‘A’ price (ie constituents plus Market Related Adjustment) for Apr'12. • 407 'B'litres/day applicable for Apr'12 with daily volume of 3,129ltrs/day being above the 'A' volume of 2,723ltrs. 0.5pplproduction bonus for Milk Link & First Milk applicable in the seasonal price for Apr'12 with daily production abovethat of Apr'11 based on RPA monthly figures. •• 6.5ppl balancing charge for Apr'12 based on Oct'12 BADP calcu-lates as -0.95ppl when spread across all litres supplied. ∞ Price before seasonality includes 12mth rolling profile pay-ment of 1.19ppl to Apr'12 (unchanged from previous month). ∞^ Price before seasonality includes 12mth rollingprofile payment of 0.55ppl to Apr'12 (unchanged from previous month). ± Price before seasonality includes 12mthrolling profile payment of 0.58ppl to Apr'12 (unchanged from previous month). # Constituent payments priced byvolume. ≠ Seasonality built into monthly base price. Arla Foods–AFMP Standard reflects price before the addition of0.25ppl Non-Aligned Farm Premium. ¶ Price includes 0.4ppl Regional Premium. ‡ Non-seasonal price includes12mth average rolling profile of 0.63ppl to Apr'12 (0.03ppl up on the previous month). Tesco milk prices include the0.5ppl bonus for co-operation with Promar costings. Milkprices.com cannot take any responsibility for losses arising.Copyright: Milkprices.com

***DF July CORR p30 31 Milk Prices_Layout 1 22/06/2012 13:26 Page 2


NEW PRODUCTS

New products are now featured in each issue ofDairy Farmer. Please sendinformation and photographsto Jennifer MacKenzie [email protected] call 01768 896 150.

New products

High performance � The new high-performingmaize – Arcade – is includedin Barenbrug’s Hunters rangeof game cover and foragecrops.Including mixtures and

varieties which meet a wide-range of requirements, itfeatures a selection of cropsincluding stubble turnips,chicory and lucerne.Full details of all products

and advice on how to get thebest from them are includedin this detailed, yet freecatalogue. To aid selection there are

separate sections on gamecover, equestrian, conser-vation, green manuring andsmallholder mixtures. � Free copies on 01359 272 000or email [email protected]

Pocket guide� Limagrain UK’s free PocketGuide to Forage Crop TrialResults lets dairy farmersevaluate which forage cropsto grow, and which varietiesgive the best yields. The 12-page pocket-sized

booklet contains informationon the performance ofdifferent varieties of swedes,kales, forage rapes, fodderbeet and stubble turnips,along with information oncrop energy contents andeconomic value. � Details on 01472 371 471 orwww.limagrain.co.uk

Silicone tubing� Dairy Spares’ new SureSilanti-microbiological siliconetubing for linking milkingcluster to milk line offers a99.99% reduction in E coli andan 85% reduction in MRSA.Its biocide additive contains

silver ions which break downthe cell walls of bacteria andinhibit the growth of anymicro-organisms. It alsoprovides ongoing protectionby preventing bacteria fromcolonising its surface.A 10m length of SureSil

costs from £91.25 for 14mmbore tubing for recorder jarparlours, and £99.50 for16mm bore tubing for directmilk line parlours.� Details on 01948 667 676.

IN BRIEF Latest high sugarvariety sets pace

AberGain out-performs all varieties in its category for ME yield.

The latest Aber high sugargrass AberGain out-performs all varieties inits category for ME(Metabolisable Energy)

yield, whether under grazing orconservation management.It enters the industry’s

independent Herbage VarietiesGuide, with a grazing yield of109% – highest of allrecommended perennial rye-grasses – and a grazing D-valueof 78.6% (second highest).The late-heading tetraploid

perennial ryegrass also showsoutstanding season-longperformance, with the highestsummer and autumn grazingyield of any late-headingperennial ryegrass and thehighest spring grazing yield ofany late tetraploid.Bred at IBERS Aberystwyth

University, AberGain features in

the institute’s long-term trialsprogramme and is monitored forwater soluble carbohydrate(sugar) content as well as allother agronomic andperformance attributes.In IBERS’ own trials near

Aberystwyth, it has consistently

displayed the highest annualyields and highest sugar levelsover five harvest years comparedto other tetraploid varieties.It will be available in the Aber

HSG range of mixtures fromBritish Seed Houses.� Details on 01179 823 691.

Genomicbest bullsDAIRY farmers have access tothe best genomic bulls in thelatest Bullsemen.com Bull Bookfrom the UK’s largest supplier ofgenomic bull semen.The book includes full details

of the Holstein bull Abraham(Jeeves cross Ramos) which wasthe highest performing genomicbull in the run.Overall, no less than 32

Bullsemen Holstein bullsfeatured in the 100 in the AprilTop Daughter Proven list.� Details on 08082 023 230 orwww.bullsemen.com

Simple to use preservativeSTRATHCLYDE Nutrition’s newalkaline wholecrop and grainpreservative Maxammon, runner-up in the 2011 Agri-Scot newproducts competition, willappeal to farmers who feed theirown grain.Simple and straightforward to

use, the alkaline pH means it is aneffective rumen buffer, reducingthe risk of acidosis. Like propionicacid, it allows earlier cerealharvest at higher moisture levelsbut is safer to use than acid-basedproducts. A 30% plus increase inprotein reduces the need to buyprotein supplements.

It can also be used to treatwholecrop, up to 30% moisture.Mixing rates are fixed regardlessof the wholecrop or grainmoisture content, which meansthere is less error than withother additives. The mosteffective application method isthrough a mixer wagon or apurpose-built feedmobile.There is virtually no mould or

wastage. The product is non-corrosive, pleasant to use andvermin and mites are deterredby the odour of the treatedgrain. � Details on 01555 820 627.

Maxammon is a new alkaline wholecrop and grain preservative.

***DF July p32 New Products_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:17 Page 1

REGISTER YOUR DETAILS TOCONTINUE RECEIVING YOURCOPY OF DAIRY FARMER

Please take a couple of minutes to visitwww.subscription.co.uk/cc/df and complete the registration form

Dairy Farmer is a leading specialist farming title, providing

in-depth, technical and management advice to service the

progressive dairy farmer.

DO NOT DELAY – REGISTER TODAY TO RECEIVETHE INDUSTRY’S NO.1 DAIRY PUBLICATION

If you are unable to access our web site, but still wish to register, then please email [email protected] with your Dairy Farmer registration request, your name and your address. A registration card will then be posted to you.

DO NOT LETTHIS BE YOURLAST ISSUE!

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DF_07_P35_DF_07_P35 22/06/2012 13:27 Page 22

The big news is the Arlaand Milk Link initiative.I do know a bit aboutdairy co-ops and all I’veever wanted was more

money for dairy farmers, so Isincerely hope it all works. If it gets more money for

Milk Link farmers, it will putpressure on for more money forthe rest of us. I’m just a bit disappointed to

see so much of the UK dairyindustry move to overseascontrol, but I’m also surprisedanyone else wants it.We’ve seen the car industry

do the same thing and youhave to say the people whonow own these industries doseem to have a longer termvision of their industry – betterby far than the ‘get rich quick’philosophy of many UKcompanies. I’ve not used the word

merger deliberately. I’ve neverbeen afraid to be a lone voicein the wilderness – it’s more acoming together. It reminds me of the story of

Little Red Riding Hood, and if Iremember correctly it was thewolf who had all the teeth. Butif I were a Milk Link member,I’d vote for it.At home we’ve done our

silaging this week. We’ve hadthe best crops we’ve had forsome time thanks to timely rainin April, and we gathered thecrops in glorious sunshine. Ican’t see any reason why crops,timing and weather will notconspire together to make thebest silage we’ve had for years. Our silaging is mostly done

by contractors, at great pace,but we do provide one tractorto pull a trailer. I have a sort ofroaming role that keeps thingsrunning smoothly. Keeping things running

smoothly includes taking outbarrels of the additive we put

on the silage, and cups of teaand cans of coke. If we arelooking at late finishes, fishand chips all round workswonders. Just when we see the end in

sight with only acouple of hoursfrom finishing, themobile goes. I’mactually quite busyat the time with mymind focussed onkeeping everythingmoving to makesure we get throughand sheeted up.

“Mr Evans?” “Yes.” “I need to discuss the

fertiliser you’ve ordered.” “I know nothing about that,

my son deals with all that – youneed to speak to him.” “I just have and he’s told me

he knows nothing about iteither and I need to speak toyou. I’ll phone him again.” I’m thinking she’ll be lucky to

get him to answer the phoneto her twice. Ten minutes laterand my agronomist is on thephone and he’s a bit frosty. “You lot have just caused a

security alert.”

“How come?”“Have you had a phone call

about fertiliser this morning?” “Yes, I think it was some

woman doing one of thosesurveys,” I reply.

“Well itwasn’t. Theydo randomchecks onpeople buyingstraightnitrogen tomake sure itisn’t going toterrorists. Theywon’t send the

fertiliser until you phone herback and answer her question.”Literally chastened, I phone

the lady back. She’s a bit frostyas well, but how was I toknow? In the pub they’ve all had

these phone calls and know allabout it. Years ago I had one of

these phone calls that was asurvey. Nothing on TV and shewas a really nice lady, so Igladly gave her 10 minutesanswering questions aboutbuying intentions. Will I buy atractor… will I buy a newparlour?

Finally she asks me for a fewwords about the future of dairyfarming. This is my big chance.I tell her I see no future, thatI’m in despair, I don’t knowwhich way to turn. In fact, I tellher (warming to my task) I’vealready got a rope over abranch of a tree in the gardenand I’ve got a chair underneathand I’m just trying to pluck upcourage to use it. This really upset her and she

spent half an hour giving mecounselling, pointing out thegood things in life, and why Imust stick at it and thingswould get better. This was asnice as a woman has ever beento me and was all helped bythe fact that, by now, I haddecided she was very pretty. In the end I assured her she

had changed my mind and shewas so relieved she’d had thisbeneficial effect on my life thatshe ended the phone call reallypleased with herself. She even gave me her private

number in case I ever neededhelp again. I like a happyending. I was telling this story to a

friend of mine and by chance, aweek later, he had an identicalphone call. Same survey butdifferent lady. He too quite fancied a bit of

sweet talking, so he finished upwith the story of the rope andthe chair. The girl asked himwhere he lived as she didn’trecognise the STD code. So hetold her and she said well that’sabout three hours from here. I’ll start out now and come

to see you, she says. My friendthinks this is even better, she’sgoing to come and see me. “And when I get there,” says

the lady, “you can get up on thechair, put the rope around yourneck, and I’ll gladly kick theblinkin’ chair from underneathyou!”


GOOD EVANS

This month Roger Evans mistakes an official phone call about his seemingly unusual interest in buyingstraight nitrogen for a farm survey and very nearly gets himself in trouble – and left without any fertiliser.

I just thought call was yetanother purchasing survey

The people who nowown these industriesdo seem to have alonger term vision oftheir industry.

***DF July p36 Evans_Layout 1 22/06/2012 10:18 Page 1

CATTLE SERVICES WP DF _CATTLE SERVICES WP DF 22/06/2012 12:45 Page 1

The television show dedicated to farming and agribusiness.

The show covers industry issues vital to farmers, gives expert agronomy andveterinary advice as well as profiling commercial farmers up and down the UK.

Email: [email protected] or go to www.farmingsunday.co.uk

Every Sunday at 5pm (with repeats)Horse and Country TV, Sky Digital channel 280.

FARMING SUNDAY WP DF_FARMING SUNDAY WP DF 22/06/2012 14:44 Page 1

dairy farmer digital edition july 2012

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