‘Cows that utilise feed well, keep the cost price low’

On Hans Janssen's farm in Groesbeek, 2021 was also an extremely fertile year with good crop growth that compensated for the shortages in recent years. ‘With production totalling around 18,000 kilos of milk per hectare, our farm normally has no problems in providing its own supplies of forage. But three years of drought in a row literally ate up all our stock and last winter we had to buy brewer's grain and grass seed hay from elsewhere’, he says. Hans has a farm located in the gentle hills of the province of Gelderland with around 115 cows and 70 heads of young stock, and works in a partnership with his father Harrie and brother Jeroen. Two robots milk the herd that produces a rolling annual average of around 10,900 kilos of milk with 4.25% fat and 3.65% protein.

His experiences in recent years have served to confirm that good feed utilisation is a key success factor for sound financial returns. But he already knew that a long time ago. ‘Before I joined the family farm for good, I worked at an agricultural consultancy. That is where I learned a lot about the value of feed efficiency. Cows that utilise feed well, keep the cost price of milk low’, he is convinced. Janssen regularly calculates how efficiently his herd converts feed into milk during the winter season. ‘When things all run smoothly, the cows produce on average more than 1.5 kilos of milk from a kilo of dry matter feed intake’, he says. ‘To maintain feed efficiency, we aim for a calving interval shorter than 400 days and a uniform calving pattern so the average number of lactation days is kept between 170 and 180. This approach also helps us maximise the milking capacity of the robots’ he explains.

Janssen has learned that the main factors that determine feed efficiency are the quality of the forage, the health of the cows and the fertility of the herd. But he also notices differences between individual cows. According to him, this suggests that breeding offers the potential to increase feed efficiency. ‘The SireMatch mating program helps us make the best mating propositions. And now that feed efficiency can also be factored in, it's a tool we will certainly use’ he says. ‘But you have to avoid an obsession with feed efficiency’ emphasises the dairy farmer. ‘There are no benefits to be gained from cows that are highly productive on a low feed ration if that is at the expense of their body condition and general health. SireMatch helps us to breed cows with the right balance.’

‘You can only achieve efficient feed conversion into milk provided the cows are healthy and fertile and if the ration is right for the cows’, Janssen stresses. ‘But I'm convinced that breeding can also help in boosting the feed efficiency on our farm.’