Dairy Chitchat 4, an udder new thread.

K.G.

But we have a grass based system with indoor costs and investment capital requirements plus the labour required to run.saw a new 700 cow farm development up the country in the spring and what really struck me was how efficient it was .it was basically silage pits one side which faced the cubicle house directly with a rotary down the side and a huge lagoon the other end it was basically one way traffic with milk extracted out the side.the developers were from your typical low cost jersey back ground but this place is milking 365 .it just struck me how efficient it was.the last time this type of simplicity and efficiency struck me like that was 20 years ago in nz when I visited a farm there which was had a milking parlour in the middle of a 600 acre block.there was a road from the public road to the parlour and then there was 2 farm tracks for the cows either way from the parlour.it was so simple and efficient.in our yard we are under pressure to get the collecting yard back before calving after extending the dairy washings tank and sometimes I wonder are neither here nor there. We have the hassle and expense of indoor systems and we don't have the turnover to justify the investment

Birdnuts

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121651241#Comment_121651241

Thats fine in theory but what actually happened in many cases was that the Kiwi system was copied and pasted word for word over here via Teagasc and DAFM without any thought for the consequences in terms of water quality, calf welfare issues etc. I wouldn't characterize is as "low" input either as their industry has been suffering from inflationary pressures in a big way too in terms of heavy Chem fert, Herbicide etc. usage

GrasstoMilk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121651241#Comment_121651241

most go to experience the country too. Fantastic country with unbelievable scenery. Every young person should go for a stint to milk cows, for the travel benefit.

you will experience far more animal health issues in nz too due to herd size that you won’t get in smaller herds in Holland etc

Gawddawggonnit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652484#Comment_121652484

Why not send the next generation to a country that respects the environment and follow enviro best practice?

I’m putting forward for students to go onto the big progressive organic farms in the EU. There’s plenty of them about.

GrasstoMilk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652512#Comment_121652512

You can hop on a plane and go to Europe any time and go visit those farms or go work there easily enough

heading off to nz or Australia requires a visa and some planning. You’re not going to go for a week or 2 when it takes over a day to get there

If you don’t go in your youth you’re probably not going to get there till you’ve the kids reared.

i know one person who is just back after travelling nz with his girlfriend after being there 6 years ago working. He reckoned it’s not as relevant to Ireland any more but getting to see the country is a great opportunity to get alongside having work alongside it

straight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652484#Comment_121652484

I travelled NZ and I had no intention of milking cows over there. From what I hear from the teagasc fan boys it's the scale they are impressed with over there and come over here trying to replicate it. Numbers at all costs.....

K.G.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652512#Comment_121652512

But what about the craic.thats what most go for

ginger22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652512#Comment_121652512

Must be 10 or 12 years ago we had some French students on "work placement" from a French agricultural college. They were worse than useless. Spoiled, with a sense of entitlement, they would expect you to tend to them all day long. Gave up on it after the first year.

K.G.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652605#Comment_121652605

Family near us used take a continental students for summer.french absolutely useless.the best were Austrians ,every one of them could work and teach you how to live and were great to make their way.i often used to say I'd send the lads over there cause if they fell in love with one of them they were made for life.

mahoney_j

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652484#Comment_121652484

Fact your experiencing far more health ….and enviro issues tells its own story about dairying there ……you’d learn more about good ainmal health and husbandry so those issues can be minimised etc in places like Holland ….plus how there adapting to an envirnoment where they are loosing there derogation.

stanflt

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121652538#Comment_121652538

Totally wrong- my brother moved to New Zealand when he was 37- had never been there before- has 600 cows- animal welfare is a huge issue - actually feeding rates are twice as high as we are lead to believe- most farmers buffer with maize and he’s in the north island

he got a good education as he did his work placement in France for 2 years

Mooooo

There is no carbon copy for any place, the biggest similarities between nz and ire is the grass based systems after that plenty differences. People may stop over there at 50 fair enough if they are tired but there is also the way farms change ownership and how they are run, much more movement there. In holland from the few places I've been too the farm ownership is really tied into family as the previous gen rely on that "purchase" by next gen as the pension in a lot of cases and I think it can then be written off by the current gen.

Have been on farms on the continent and there are plenty of them do as much skirting of regs as there are in other countries. Certainly encourage lads to travel and see other systems but at the end of the day it's putting it in where you are to see what works for you.

On labour side, We are competing not only with building sites or tertiary business for labour but such is the shortage of workers in the country we are competing against multinationals as well, something we can't do financially in alot of cases so it would need to be in the flexibility stakes we would compete. Facilities make a big difference but the cost with possibility of numbers forced down is a bit risk now

GrasstoMilk

You’re missing the point. Majority go for the travel and the craic with friends and learn a bit too about large numbers while getting paid to work at something they’re interested in

You come across animal health issues there that you might only see here in smaller herds only once every 5 years

Gawddawggonnit

French students/workers are useless, I should know! But what’s that to do with work experience..afraid the laziness would rub off onto Johnny and Mary??

There’s some serious organic dairy farms in Germany that are very well run and sustainable. The ‘organic’ side to livestock is just pure bullsh1t, but there’s a lot to be learned about growing grass/crops without the BAG etc. I was on one a few weeks back and I was impressed.

Sending youngsters to Holland should be banned..a poisoned countryside and false declarations being made wholesale, what’s positive to learn there?

For me, Germany or Austria on a large organic farm.

Siamsa Sessions

The language must be a factor when Teagasc are sending students to NZ, as in there's no language barrier. I'm sure plenty farmers in Holland and Germany speak good English but it's not a given.

I'd be with @Gawddawggonnit on this and would like to visit someplace in Germany, or maybe even the north of France. But then I don't speak German or French! So maybe someplace in the south of England.

I guess, as long as any operation was well run and loosely relevant to your own set-up, then you'd learn plenty in any country.

Re craic in NZ: It must be when you finish the placement and travel for a bit that the craic starts. I was talking to a cousin at Christmas who's not long back from a placement in NZ and she said it was very isolated where she was. And most of her class were in similar isolated places. They managed to meet up every few weeks but that was it.

stanflt

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121653310#Comment_121653310

Waz hast du gesaft

mine deutsch it sehr gut

ich verstahe

kevthegaff

Worked in Germany on two occasions, once with a horticulture company, second with a software development company. Played soccer with a local team for 6 months. The fact I was on my own, I integrated more.

Mooooo

Any of ye sell the bulls/ beef calves off milk replacer as opposed to whole milk?. Down on labour this spring so thinking of putting all calves on feeder, may keep a pen for any waste milk

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121653472#Comment_121653472

I had two cousins that went to Germany in the 1970s with not even a pound or a leaving cert between them, they've done really well with their own businesses...... better off than I am now

Jack98

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121653903#Comment_121653903

Have no feeder here, rear everything. Feed whatever waste milk is there to however many beef calves that will cover but the vast majority of calves will be fed milk replacer. Calves do just as well if not better on milk replacer and much more straight forward when everything is being fed milk replacer simplifies the job. With the price of milk replacer down this year you’re as well off to feed it to all calves and not be holding cows for calves bar they have an issue.

Mooooo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654004#Comment_121654004

Always found there to be more of a shine when on whole milk, calves will be sold prob between the 4 to 6 weeks, heifers were fully reared on milk replacer and did fine last year

Jack98

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654037#Comment_121654037

A friend of mine next door rears dairy beef calves every year on milk replacer when he buys them from two weeks old from an uncle, moved them with him in the autumn last year they were absolute smashers so it definitely did them no harm.

Once you have the mixing rates, water temperature and intakes right calves should do the finest on it.

straight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654037#Comment_121654037

You're not going to get paid for the effort you put into calves I'm afraid.

straight

Are those Ai nights worth going to?

CHFC have one in cork tonight....

Mooooo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654179#Comment_121654179

I understand they'll be do fine on the replacer, it's the selling at 4 weeks old and not having the shine whole milk gives em in the mart, that's the question I'm wondering about

awaywithyou

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654200#Comment_121654200

david irwin speaking in tralee wednesday night.. hopefully cows take an evening off from calving and i mite make it...

mahoney_j

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654506#Comment_121654506

At 4 weeks I’d say buyer would prefer tgem on powder as that’s what they’ll be going on ….rear all calves on powder here and wouldn’t go back to whole milk …everything is consistent in powder whereas whole milk changes with cows in/out etc …find calves do just as well on it

ginger22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654562#Comment_121654562

You are not going to listen to Pat Murphy Kerry boss so, on the same night in the Meadowlands.

awaywithyou

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121654757#Comment_121654757

why the fcuk would anyone waste their time listening to what he has to say.....

ginger22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121655194#Comment_121655194

Thought you might be a fan LOL