Join us for the next meeting of our Scottish all-year-round calving (AYR) strategic dairy farm where we will focus on feed costs and how we can reduce them without compromising productivity.
Feed is widely regarded as the single biggest variable cost on farm and the most under-utilized resource. On an average UK dairy farm, 60% of variable costs are spent on feed and as much as 45% of feed potential is lost from field to cow, equating to a wastage of almost £1 of every £3 spent.
Ian Leach, retail programmes manager for Alltech, will discuss results of an on-farm assessment carried out at Hillhead looking at helping to reduce feed waste and optimise input utilisation to drive profit margins.
Research suggests that feed waste could be costing as much as £216.00 per cow per year. Alltech launched their Navigate programme at the UK Dairy Day in September 2019 with the aim to raise dairy herd profit margins by at least 1.2 pence per litre.
In the meeting we will discuss:
• Farm update since last meeting
• Current business performance at Hillhead of Covington against key performance indicators (KPIs) for AYR calving herds
• The complete feed process at Hillhead
• Reducing feed waste in the field, during storage, at feed-out, and inside the cow
• Data collected during the assessment – actual losses (visual & hidden) and monetary values to illustrate the financial pinch-points
Who should attend?
Dairy farmers wishing to learn more about feed efficiency and learning from others to lower costs and increase efficiency.
Date: Tuesday 05 May 2020.
Time: 10:45 prompt – 14:00 (lunch provided so booking essential)
Venue: Hillhead of Covington Farm, Thankerton, Biggar, Lanarkshire, ML12 6NE
By kind permission of William Baillie
To book your place contact the AHDB KE Events Hub on 01904 771216 or ke.events@ahdb.org.uk or for more information contact Chris Stockwell on 07775 884831.
