Wire fences are labor intensive (e.g. strip grazing), need frequent maintenance and hinder efficient grazing with overgrazing. A virtual fence may solve these problems. The investment cost may be recovered by more efficient grazing with higher production results and the loss of labor and maintenance costs of wire fences.​
With an app, you can draw the virtual fence. A GPS collar determines the location and activity of the animal and forwards the data to the app. Within 1,5 m of the virtual fence, the cow gets a sound signal. Should the cow proceed anyway, then she reaches a virtual electric fence. This technique may be used for rotational or strip grazing and excluding cattle from riparian zones or areas prone to erosion​. Most animals learn within 24-48 hours how the virtual fence works.​ Other positive features are that you have the real-live location of the animals and you can monitor the activity of the animals (e.g. detection of heat or illness)​. It can also be used to muster by making the boundaries smaller and smaller.​ However, Sometimes the collar can be twisted whereby the animal doesn’t feel the shock when reaching the virtual fence. ​In addition, some individuals don’t approach the boundary as often and hence, so it takes longer to learn how the virtual fence work.  Animals that do not learn have to be removed for animal welfare reasons.​ Some specific advises: check if virtual fencing is allowed in your country.​ The technique is evolving very fast.​ Leasing of the product is an option to keep up with the evolution of the technology.​

• Virtual fencing

Monitoring heifer growth is a key factor in improving the overall economic efficiency of dairy farms.  The rearing of replacement heifers represents the second highest cost item in this area, while feeding cows in production is the first.  It has been shown that a first calving between 23.5 and 25 months of age maximizes the profitability of the business, but the heifer must have sufficient conformation to reach this objective without danger.  Sustained, controlled growth from birth is therefore necessary to ensure the harmonious development of the future dairy cow, without compromising her future production capacity.  Thoracic perimeter measurement is a simple and inexpensive monitoring tool.  It provides a reliable indication of the young animal's state of growth and, when compared with the French reference curve for early calving, determines whether or not to inseminate early. 

• Reduction of first calving age to 23-25 month results in increased lifetime yie…

As a dairy farmer, you make daily decisions that have an impact on the final farm result. Making the right choices is therefore hugely important.  This tool aims to support the dairy farmer in decisions regarding replacement strategy. It easily calculates the minimum production of a (reformed) cow to break even. And this is always for two possible situations: comparison with an upcoming heifer and calculation of the minimum production to break even. In this (online) management tool, all necessary farm-specific key figures are entered. Via a limited number of parameters, you get an idea of the minimum production a cow should achieve.

• Replacement strategy – when is my cow now longer profitable?

As a dairy farmer, you make daily decisions that have an impact on the final farm result. Making the right choices is therefore hugely important.  This tool aims to support the dairy farmer in making his insemination strategy. It shows in a simple way what the financial additional yield can be if a dairy farmer uses sexed semen and utility crosses. Through this tool, the optimal situation for his   farm can also be simulated. In this (online) management tool, all necessary business key figures are entered. Via simple sliders, 3 scenarios can be compared. In the scenarios, you can vary the proportion of sexed semen and the proportion of user crosses. The graphs below the scenarios visually illustrate the effect on the heifer calves balance and the economic balance.

• Insemination strategy - inseminate with the right straw
• Insemination strategy: inseminate with the right straw - NL

Youngstock can often be overlooked as the incur cosy rather than delivering an income.  Rearing quality heifers is essential to maintain dairy herds.  To achieve key targets (such as 24-month calving), a good start in life is essential.
The key elements of successful strategy are:
Biosecurity and Vaccination: Work with your vet to develop an effective vaccination strategy for your farm. Develop a biosecurity plan for your farm. Promptly isolate sick calves.  Regularly clean and disinfect, calving and calf pens. Clean and disinfect feeding equipment after every feed.
Colostrum Management: Quickly – collect and administer colostrum as soon as possible after birth.Quantity – Calves should be fed 3-4L colostrum at birth (equivalent to 10% body weight). Quality – Test the colostrum to ensure antibody concentration is at least 50g/L IgG
Housing: Good hygiene: the ability to be efficiently and effectively cleaned.  Good drainage.  Fresh air delivery: natural ventilation, with competent inlets and outlets and mechanical help if needed.  Moisture control: sloped floors, good drainage, control of leakages and good ventilation.  Air speed control: Fresh air is an essential requirement for good health, but droughts must be avoided at calf level.
Nutrition: Provide calves with sufficient milk of replacer to achieved.  An unlimited supply of clean, fresh water. Starter concentrate consumption should be encouraged from the first week of life.  Provide a high-quality fibre source such as chopped straw from early life to promote rumen development. Regularly weigh calves to ensure growth targets are being met.

• Good practices for calf rearing that leads to high productive dairy cows

By measuring young stock on a regular basis, the farmer gets a better insight in the growth of the young stock. Hence, the farmer can detect in an early stage if the growth is not optimal and can intervene quickly. 
Follow up of the growth can be done by means of 3 different methods: 1/ weighing the animal with a weighing scale, 2/ measuring the chest circumference with measuring tape or 3/ measuring the rump height with a measuring stick. 
Using the 2nd and 3rd method, weight can be estimated by means of a table. Important milestones for Holstein calves to follow up growth are:
- 2 months: 80-85kg
- 6 months: 200kg
- 13 months: 380-400kg
- Calving: 630kg (including calf)
However, working with a weighing scale is labor intensive and measuring the rump height is not that precise. When measuring the chest circumference or the rump height, pay attention that the animal stands nicely squared with the head straight forward. It is advised to link the measuring with fixed moments such as weaning, moving pen/stable,... This to make measuring as a habit.
Optimization of the growth of young stock leads to lower rearing costs, higher milk production when they become lactating cows and a more sustainable livestock as they have a higher life production. Therefore, this measure leads to a more resilient farm.​

• Measuring young stock for optimal growth
• Measuring youngstock - FR

In dairy production, the major proportion of antimicrobials is applied for the treatment of udder inflammation (68%). A significant reduction of antimicrobial usage in dairy production can be achieved by optimization of antimicrobial usage for clinical mastitis. When mastitis is suspected, MastDecide helps as a decision support tool for selective mastitis treatment. MastDecide is a rapid test for the determination of the specific mastitis pathogen with easy handling for the farmer. The tests can be performed on the dairy farm itself by the farmer and the result is available within 12 hours. Each udder quarter can be examined individually and treated quickly and correctly depending on the pathogen detection. Only the detection of gram-positive pathogens requires local antibiotic treatment. MastDecide therefore helps to guarantee pathogen-specific therapy and reduce the use of antibiotics through more targeted treatment.

• Preventive Mastisis Milk Testing (MASTdecide) to apply a better treatment strat…

Strategic hoof trimming, also knows as routine hoof trimming, is a preventative practice where the entire herd has their hooves examined (and trimmed if required). It helps to prevent future cases of lameness, improving longevity and animal welfare, and reducing economic costs. Routine hoof trimming restores the conformation of the hoof, and allows for the detection and treatment of mild lesions that are not yet causing lameness. Routine hoof trimming also reduced the number of overgrown claws, which is a risk to some lesion types. Information obtained from a routine trim allows for the most common lesions within the herd to be identified, enabling the risks associated with these lesion types to be minimized. Routine trimming should be seen as a ‘routine inspection’. Upon inspection of the hoof, trained personnel should decide if trimming is required. It is recommended that a routine inspection is carried out a minimum of once per year at drying off, however, a second routine inspection ~8 weeks post-partum may be beneficial. Hoof trimming should be carried out by trained personnel, and care must be taken not to over trim. Farmers can carry out routing trimming themselves if they have the correct equipment (trimming crate, trimming knife, grinder etc.) and have had adequate training (course or mentor). A professional hoof trimmer or vet can also be hired to carry out routine trimming. It is also important that farmers do wait until the scheduled routine trim to treat a cow identified as lame. A severely lame cows should be treated as soon as possible and a mildly lame cow within 48 hours of identification.

• Strategic hoof trimming to improve herd health status and longevity

AHDB have estimated lameness to cost between £3.30 - £6.80/ €3.80 - €8 per day per cow depending on how lame she is.  In order to minimize these losses and optimize animal welfare, lameness needs to be detected at a very early stage.  However, this is very difficult to do by eye.  Cattle eye offers a technology that mobility score dairy cows using cameras. ​ Cattle eye uses low-cost security cameras to monitor locomotion in cows and highlight any individual cows that require attention.​ The cameras are placed near the exit to the milking parlor (or robot) were cattle can be monitored walking past at least two times a day.​ The standard security camera is mounted over the exit race of a milking parlor.​ The camera captures video footage of each cow as it leaves the milking parlor. It also pulls in ID information if available from your sort gate or RFID system. Artificial intelligence algorithms in the cloud analyze the footage to uniquely identify the cows and monitor welfare and an increasing number of other behaviors.​ The system then delivers these insights right back to the farmers smartphone and/or integrated with your farm's herd management system.​ The system can also track body condition score.  The system helps automatically meet requirements for locomotion scoring​ which are a part of many farm quality assurance schemes.  The system Identifies lameness issues early this enabling prompt treatment.  Thus, minimizing discomfort to the animal and minimizing milk yield loss and treatment costs. 

• Cattle Eye as a tool to assess lameness in the dairy herd

Heat stress has become an important challenge faced by dairy farmers. It has been observed that during the warm period, the heat stress negatively affects the performance, reproduction, nutrition, health, and welfare of dairy cattle. During heat stress, milk production begins to decrease. The main means of reducing heat stress is animal housing with a built-in cooling system. Fans and water soakers or misters increase evaporative cooling effectiveness.
Heat stress in cattle is brought on by a combination of high temperature and high humidity. The optimal outside temperature for dairy cattle is between -5°C and 18°C. 
The main signs of heat stress are as follows: firstly, a decrease in dry matter (DM) consumption, reduction in milk yield with lower fat and protein levels, reduced fertility – decline in conception rate, increased water consumption, increase in lameness, behavioral changes (such as bunching in the pens). 

To reduce heat stress, one of the main solutions is cooling and ventilation. Air ventilation and water sprinklers are recommended. Farm animals need to have access to good quality and fresh water on a regular basis, as heat stressed cows consume more water than normal.

In order to be able to assess the microclimate of the housing more objectively, it is recommended to use devices to measure ambient temperature, humidity, wind speed and solar radiation. The data from the devices helps to make the right decisions faster to ensure the comfort of the animals. 

• Housing technology for heat stress management

Calves are born without antibodies in their blood and are totally dependent on antibodies in the colostrum they drink after birth. A good colostrum management is extremely important to rear healthy calves, but also productive cows. However, colostrum management is not optimal at many farms, which has of course a financial impact. A good colostrum management starts already at the dry period with 
- sufficient dry matter intake (target value (TV): 12 kg DM/day)
- sufficient crude protein intake (TV: 13-14% CP in far-off, 14-15% in close-up) -> 1500 gram CP/day in far-off, 1600 gram CP/day in close-up
- sufficient vitamins and minerals in the ration (Selenium: ≥1,5 mg/day; vitamin E: 1000 - 1200 units extra in dry period,…)
- enough acces to clean water (intake: min. 40 L/day).
It is important that the colostrum is collected quickly after birth and that colostrum from good quality is given as quick as possible to the calf. Colostrum quality can easily be measured with different devices with low investment cost. Use only colostrum with a content of >55 IgG/L (or >22 brix). Strive to give 300g IgG within 6 hours to the calf. A remainder of colostrum can be stored in the fridge (max. 2 days) or in the freezer (max. 1 year). Thawing can be done "au bain marie" or in the fridge. Never heat above 60°C as this damages the antibodies. Good colostrum management, taking these points of attention in mind, does not only lead to lower morbidity and mortality, but also to productive cows.

• Colostrum management: give your calves sufficient high quality colostrum to bec…
• Colostrum management

Good animal health is key to improving animal welfare and increasing productivity. Creating a herd health plan (HHP) with a vet helps to mitigate the risk of disease and review the current health status of the herd. The plan should outline preventative strategies as well as treatment protocols. Herd health plans are useful for putting preventative measures in place to reduce the risk of disease, improving the health of the heard. They also allow for a plan to be put in place for the effective treatment of diseases which have been identified in the herd. Sometimes the cost of having a vet visit the farm can be high, and vets have limited availability to draft and review herd health plans at some points of the year. However, a herd health plan has large benefits for both calf and cow welfare, and can help improve herd productivity. A herd health plan is not a fixed document, and should be tailored specifically to individual farms and continuously updated as the health status of the herd changes. 

• Herd health plan produced with vet

Health disorders not only negatively affect the well-being of dairy cows but are also associated with significant economic losses to the farm. With a cow monitoring system such as use of sensors and other technologies, farmers can be alerted as soon as there are changes in rumination, activity, behavioral or eating patterns.
Sensors that measure physiological, behavioral and production indicators in dairy cows (milk yield, temperature, activity, etc.) can assist farmers to improve animal health and welfare and identify sick cows earlier.
Different sensors available on the market, such as sensor systems for mastitis detection (e.g. electrical conductivity), oestrus detection for dairy cows and for youngstock (e.g. pedometers,…), and other dairy cattle related sensor systems (e.g. weighing platform, rumination time sensor, temperature sensor, milk temperature sensor, etc.).
These technologies and their adoption benefit farmers by frequently monitoring dairy cattle without disturbing the natural behavioral expression. Implementation of these tools via e.g. computer-controlled programs can become valuable instruments for gaining insights in the health status and the fertility level of the herd, increasing longevity and reducing veterinary costs. It results in less labor needed for direct treatment of animals, but more labor for checking sensor data and attention data.
 

• Early detection of diseases - combination of sensors and software integrating i…

Biosecurity is a set of structures, tools and best practices (management and behavior) that prevents the entrance of pathogens and/or prevents their circulation. Therefore, to achieve an effective prevention, a robust biosecurity plan is needed, with the side-effect of reducing the need of antimicrobials. As a general principle, biosecurity can be divided in EXTERNAL (prevention of the entrance of diseases from outside, through perimetral fencing, quarantine, filter areas for people and vehicles, internal movements) and INTERNAL (limitation of the circulation of pathogens  within the farm). Transmission of diseases  can occur through direct contact with an infected animal or through indirect contact, e.g. via ingestion or inhalation or through feaces and urine; through vectors, equipment, medical equipment. To define and maintain a rubust biosecurity plan, you must be aware of the sanitary situation of the farm and of the epidemiological situation of your geographical area. Moreover, you need to make an assessment of structures in order to define customized and proper strategies, evaluate potential innovations in terms of cost and benefit and coordinate with your vet. Remember: the simpler a plan is, the more it will be realistically applicable And the constant education and training of workers and efficacy of signs are essential! With a rubus biosecurity there is a potential reduction of antimicrobials, with positive impact on antimicrobial resistance
Besides, note that to invest in animal welfare impacts positively on animal resilience towards pathogens.

• PREVENTION: GOOD PRACTICES AND BIOSECURITY
• Increasing production efficiency

The spread of antibiotic resistance has become a major public health problem. Dryers are antibiotic-containing drugs that are used in milk production to dry off dairy cows, i.e. to switch them to the non-lactating phase. The selective drying-off of dairy cows means that not all cows are systematically dried off with antibiotics, but only cows with health problems. Selective drying off therefore makes a significant contribution to reducing the use of antimicrobials in milk production (according to estimates: 50% of cows could be dried off without antibiotics). General advice on drying off: ​Dry off dairy cows for a period of 45-60 days​. Allow first-calf cows a dry period of 60 days rather than longer​. The method is not as decisive for udder health as the milk yield of the cow on the day of drying off: a maximum milk yield of 12kg/cow/day is recommended as optimal . So adjust feeding at the end of lactation. Excessively high milk yields 2-3 weeks before drying off also prevent the formation of a good quality keratin plug, which closes the teat canal so that no bacteria can penetrate during the  dry period. ​Only cows that have healthy udders at the time of drying off are suitable for drying off without antibiotics​. Prevent poor teat conditions (bulging teat canal, hyperkeratosis), otherwise increased risk of udder inflammation in the dry period​. Extremely meticulous hygiene is required for drying off in general, but especially for selective drying off (clean, disinfected teats and hands when handling the animal, clean bedding and lying surfaces). Hygiene errors are compensated for by the effect of the antibiotic when using dryers and are therefore not directly noticeable to the farmer.
The use of an internal teat sealer is always advisable.

• Selective dry cow therapy (using milk recordings)

Nieuw Nederlands Weiden (‘Grazing New Dutch Style’) is the solution for dairy farmers who want to convert more fresh grass into milk, with a simple and easy-to-fit system. This system is convenient for both dairy farmer and cow, because it is clear to both where they stand every day. Nieuw Nederlands Weiden works with five 'standard' output situations. Each situation describes how to set up grazing in a simple and good way on the dairy farm. These baseline situations are based on the size of the farm plot and the stocking density (maximum number of cows per hectare of grassland). This initial situation forms a so-called Platform on which part is mowed (Mowing Platform) and part is grazed (Grazing Platform). These Platforms are characterised as XL, L, M, S or XS (non-grazing). After determining the platform, three steps must be followed to apply Nieuw Nederlands Weiden effectively:

1 Divide the home lot once into plots of equal size (using flexible threads)
2 Mow every 4-5-6 weeks and choose your plots based on the Grazing Platform
3. Give your cows a new plot every day by rotating based on the Grazing Platform

Subsequently an allocated home lot can be managed by adjusting grazing and mowing to available plots and condition of the grass (grass growth). Grazing is done by rotating cows on the assigned plots to be grazed 

Positive features of this solution is that it allows for optimal and specific use of own land
in a simple and practical way. It also contributes to seeing the cow in the pasture and social acceptance of raising dairy cattle. If properly implemented, this strategy contributes to animal welfare and within some dairies' programs, there are even additional premiums that can be obtained.

• Application of new grazing systems to increase market value of milk
• Grassland Management - FR

Increasing the consumption of grazed grass through better grassland and grazing management helps to improve protein self-sufficiency. The key to grazing management is synchronising the animals' daily requirements with the grass supply. Weekly measurements of grass growth using a grazing plate meter can be used to adjust either feed supplementation in a part-time grazing system or the grazing area in a full-time grazing system. Extending the grazing season into spring (early grazing) and autumn (late grazing) increases the grass intake of dairy cows. Similarly, growing and grazing other forages such as forage turnips or cover crops at the end of the season can extend the grazing season.
Different grazing systems can be used depending on the farm's objectives.  If the workload needs to be reduced, short grazing on highly productive plots is appropriate (low rotation frequency, continuous grazing on a plot).  If the dairy farmer wants to achieve high milk production per cow, a rotational system with small paddocks or a system of strip grazing is better suited.

• Improve protein self-sufficiency through improvement of grassland management
• Improve protein self-sufficiency through improvement of grassland management - …

Fibrous grass-based forages are natural feeds for ruminants and support the health of their digestive system.  Typically grass based feeds are also cheaper than concentrate feeds. All these factors support high use of grass in the diets of ruminants, but it requires production of good quality grass-based feeds. Timing of harvest and preservation are the main factors affecting silage quality. The chemical composition and digestibility change dynamically during the growth of grass. The main factors affecting the yield are grass species and variety, age of the ley, winter damage, fertilisation and irrigation. In order to minimise preservation losses note these techniques: wilting on the field and dry matter (DM) content of grass, proper machinery, storage type and the additive used. Preservation must be carried out with a high level of hygiene, good compaction, no delays, and the silo must be covered quickly and properly. Preventing aerobic microbes and air from entering the silo, rapid feed removal and even silo face contribute to preservation in the silo and during feed-out.
Substitution rate (SR) tells how much forage intake decreases (in kg DM) when 1 kg of concentrate DM is added to the diet. SR increases with increasing concentrate use and with better silage intake potential. Silage DM intake index describes silage quality with a single number. Positively correlated with intake are: digestibility, DM concentration, inclusion of legumes of whole crop cereal silages. The factors negatively correlated with intake are fermentation acids, fibre and regrowth grass material.
Important in silage: low pH related to DM, low ammonia-N/total N, low volatile fatty acids, high lactic acid/acetic acid, high energy=digestibility, suitable CP content.

• Maximizing forage performance to reduce concentrate feed – grass silage
• Dairy nutrition
• Maximizing the use of high quality grass silage - FI
• Measuring pasture to support a resilient dairy production system

The benefits of red clover include nitrogen fixation, increased biodiversity, and a favorable effect on the feed intake of cows. Red clover is usually grown in mixtures with grasses, with different requirements for fertilization and harvesting, to the detriment of both. Cultivated as a pure crop, the benefits include: optimal fertilization, harvesting time, number of mowing per growing season, possible plant protection, crop rotation. With different forage batches of known composition, a TMR recipe can be optimized to suit different situations. Red clover, which is high in calcium, can be completely omitted from the ration of dry cows. High producing fresh cows benefit from red clover in their diet and it may increase voluntary feed intake. Red clover typically has a high crude protein content. When feed batches with different characteristics are available for ration formulation, the diet can be planned so that nutrient overfeeding and  subsequently losses to the environment are minimized. The advantage from a feeding point of view is the possibility of using clover feed to adjust the rumen degradable protein in order to improve nitrogen uptake.
When preserving red clover, care must be taken when wilting the crop so that the leaves do not dry out too much and stalk. The leaves are the most nutritious part of the plant, so it is important to ensure that they remain in the feed to cows. High moisture, low sugar content and high buffering capacity make preservation more demanding compared to grasses, more acid is needed to bring the pH down low enough. Formic acid-based preservatives ensure good fermentation quality of wet crops even in poorer conditions. 

• Red clover as a pure stand for silage can bring benefits
• Handeled NIR spectrometers - FR
• Increasing grass grown to build a resilient dairy farm system
• Conduite d'un système herbager avec des robots de traite

Multispecies swards are swards that have a variety of plants including grasses, legumes, brassicas and herbs. When combined in a pasture, the species root at varying depths allowing them to access more nutrients and moisture in the soil, promoting better soil health and increasing pasture biomass. The deep rooting depth of herb species, such as chicory and plantain, increases carbon sequestration and improve the drought tolerance of multispecies swards. In addition, diverse pastures help improve biodiversity, particularly pollinators, and can help to reduce nitrate loss from pasture via a lower nitrogen fertiliser requirement.Positive features include drought resistant ​, high protein and digestible energy​, improved biodiversity , carbon sequestration​, improve soil health​, lower fertiliser requirement. For farmers, choosing the right mix is important. Choose plants suitable to the local climate, soil type, and farming system.​ Herbicide options are limited for multispecies swards. Choose a suitable site, somewhere with little/no weeds when establishing.​ Legume and herb seeds are small, don’t sow them deep in the soil. Broadcast seeding is best, followed by rolling to ensure good soil – seed contact and germination. Rotationally graze established crops every 4 – 6 weeks to allow for recovery and regrowth. Avoid over-grazing, as this will damage chicory and red clover crowns.​ Surplus production can be made into silage. Cut dry and early, as chicory stems can become woody from July onwards. 

• Multispecies Swards (MSS) - using forage herbs for enhanced forage yield, nutri…
• Resilient Grassland Management
• Benefits of multispecies swards

Understanding consumer desires may help in adding value to milk (products). Consumers are found to care about sustainability, animal welfare and grazing - however, despite seeing higher value in systems that support animal welfare the willingness to pay does not necessarily go together with consumer preferences. One of the more apparent consumer preferences is having milk from dairy cows that have a relative higher degree of movement freedom, typical for free walk systems either  with or without grazing, in line with their natural behavior and/or fitting with cultural image. As opinions, desires and needs are very different within the society, it’s important to align with different stakeholders to set an achieve goals for the sector. The dairy sector needs and wants to increase focus on sustainability. However, it needs economic viability to do that. This means providing sufficient income to dairy farmers whilst at the same time satisfy the needs and desires that exist within the sector as well as in society. Many stakeholders exist, ranging from (dairy processing) industry, consumer, farmers, banking, NGOs, and more. In some countries, chain representation approaches exist to unite the chain in cooperation and pursuing sector goals. This approach allows stakeholders to benefit from cooperation to better align their own goals, targets and programs to the sector and society goals and preferences. Ultimate contributing to the value perception of the dairy sector itself and if addressed properly, to dairy products.

• Increase grazing vs indoor feeding to meet customer desires and added milk value

Accuracy while weighing and adding the individual feed elements is essential to produce a feed mix that is optimized for the energy and nutritional needs of animals. There are several systems that, by attaching a unit on the weighing system of the mixer wagon, can provide live recording of weight to an app that is accessible on handheld terminals or smartphones. The app can provide accurate data on consumption of feedstocks, the components of the rations and the ability to monitor feed costs, dry matter intake and more, depending on the specific app. 
Each relevant employee or advisor is given access to the app where data is stored, from terminal, smartphone and/or web portal, depending on the specific system. The necessary equipment includes:
- connection unit for the weighing system;
- handheld terminals or smartphones to run the app;
- subscription to the app software and cloud access.
Positive features are: it saves time as there is no need to record on paper, fewer input errors as the weight is not entered manually into the system, live access to feeding data for employees and advisors and more precise feeding can save on feed by minimizing feed waste. However, take following points into account: s subscription is necessary as all data are saved to the cloud, employees must have sufficient training in using the app to avoid using it incorrectly and great care must be taken when feeding the pens, that each pen is marked as separate in the app, and that cows from other pens do not have access to the feed.

• System to provide live reports on feed-intake and efficiency based on weighing …

The importance of providing drinking water to calves for improved production and animal welfare is widely recognized, however surveys and animal welfare assessment schemes suggest that many dairy calves do not have sufficient access to drinking water.
Provide permanent access to fresh drinking water to calves. This has several positive features: permanent access to drinking water improves animal welfare, free access to drinking water is a prerequisite for unrestricted intake of concentrate and roughage and social housing stimulates intake of solid feed as well as water intake. However, you should take these points into account: clean water bowls and buckets daily, never restrict water intake (calves’ thirst reflects their need) and contamination with manure, minerals, toxic compounds or bacteria reduces water intake or place calves’ health at risk. Always offer water from an open surface - when calves drink from an open surface the water correctly ends up in the rumen. Offering water via milk teats is not recommended, because when calves suck this may activate the oesophageal (reticular) groove and the water may end up in the abomasum.  Metal water nipples are unsuitable for calves. 
 

• Improved water access for pre-weaned calves to improve concentrate intake, hydr…

Strategies to reduce silage storage losses are key to achieving high forage quality and farm resilience. Appropriate harvesting and packing methods, as well as optimising storage conditions, can significantly reduce losses in silage quantity and quality. These strategies are based not only on modern technologies, but also on careful monitoring and planning of silage production. This comprehensive approach improves animal performance and the environmental sustainability of agricultural production.
Key strategies to reduce DM and silage quality losses:
1) Packing to Improve Silage Density
2) Silage Additives
3) Plastic Cover
4) Feed-Out (Unloading) Rates from the Silo
Positive features
- Increase feed utilization efficiency through better digestibility and nutritional value.
- Improve animal health and productivity through a stable and high-quality diet.
- Reducing feed losses and feeding costs, through better protection of feed from spoilage.
- Ability to better manage feed stocks, enabling balanced feeding throughout the year.
Farmers should be careful:
- Don't underestimate the importance of any aspect of the process - from harvesting to fermentation to storage.
- Do not act in haste. This can have a huge impact on the quantity and quality of silage obtained.
- To avoid disrupting the natural fermentation process, choose the right fermentation additives and follow dosage recommendations. 
- Collect agricultural film and use local recycling programs to minimize environmental impact.

• Strategies to reduce silage storage losses
• Reduce silage storage losses with in-line bale wrapping - PL

Feeding influences the performance of dairy cows more than any other factor. Feeding cattle correctly requires a balanced diet to ensure that the cow receives the essential nutrients in the right quantities and ratios for the lactation period. Rations should only be formulated when the nutritional content of the feed used and other quality parameters that indicate the value of the feed are clearly known.

• Improve feed energy self-sufficiency through growing feed energy crops such as …

In today's agriculture, there is an increasing emphasis on efficiency, precision, and animal welfare. One of the aspects significantly influencing these issues is the process of automatic calf milk feeding. This innovative method not only streamlines herd management but also brings numerous benefits in terms of the health and development of young animals.

This process comprises several elements:

Calf Recognition: Vision systems and sensors identify each calf, enabling a personalized approach to feeding.
Precise Milk Portions: Advanced automatons deliver exact milk quantities to each calf, tailored to its individual nutritional needs.
Continuous Monitoring: Continuous monitoring systems allow tracking the amount of milk consumed, calf behavior, and overall health status.
This brings many advantages, especially regarding efficiency and animal welfare:

It saves considerably more time compared to traditional manual feeding.
Precise feeding translates to healthier growth and development of animals and increased milk productivity.
Reduces stress in calves due to reduced human interference in the feeding process, impacting the overall health and comfort of young animals.
Enables better herd management and adjustment of diets to individual needs, optimizing farm resources.
Continuous monitoring helps detect health issues at an early stage, leading to better treatment and reduced losses.
Reduces the need for manual feeding, resulting in reduced labor costs and expenses associated with employing workers.

• Automatic calf feeding
• Automated calf feeding to encourage calf growth and healthy cows - HU

Thanks to technologies, the process of preparation and distribution of feed can be partially or totally automated (AFS - Automated Feeding System), with positive effects on  the farm. Animal welfare increases together with the frequency of distribution of fresh and homogeneous TMR all along the day and the decrease of feed competition and consequent drop of stress. The energy consumption of AFS are reduced when compared to the traditional system with diesel mixer wagon, with consequent reduction of CO2 emissions. The production increases together with the intake of dry matter. Moreover, consider that this system can be adapted to different farms; that AFS software gives valuable data to support farm decisions thanks to the monitoring of feed intake and left over in the feeder.
Nevertheless, taking into account the considerable initial investment, before installing an AF,S real potential benefits must be assessed! Moreover, keep in mind that some technological skills are needed (even though the most common graphic interfaces are user friendly) and a maintenance program must be defined (even though it is normally offered by the AFS developer). The management costs of  ASF show positive features when compared with traditional TMR system (with diesel self-propelled mixer) with benefits that can reach 25%, most of all when considering farm of big dimension (e.g. 550 cows). This advantage can be further improved with the auto-production of electricity. 

• AUTOMATIC FEEDING SYSTEMS - AFS
• Automatic feeding system in stall - IT
• Automatic Feeding System - HU

The fertilization with manure is a biological help for crops and it allows to lower the use of chemical fertilizers, but it can be a potential perturbance of the “soil-crop” system and it can lead to negative effects on the environment (soil, water and air) when it is not properly performed.
This  practice can minimize the side effects of the agronomic interventions and maximize the benefits. What do you need to do? (1) First of all, you have to identify real needs through SOIL ANALYSIS (general characteristics, concentration of nutritional elements, metabolic profile. At least each 5 years) and LEAF TEST (each year). (2)  Then  you can define the quantity of effluents to be applied on the soil or used for fertirrigation. The precision of this  step can be further improved by analysing the  effluents of your farm, avoiding useless  inputs. (3) Then you have to chose the right moment to make your distribution:  the soil must be  in the right condition, in order to avoid structural alterations  with consequent decrease in fertility (e.g. avoid applications with wet soil!). (4) And you have to minimize the length (time) of the application of fertilizers and their drift, by
using machinery that minimize trampling, that bury fast and that implement foliar application  avoiding drifts. Be careful, because if all the previous 4  points are not fulfilled, soil fertility is damaged and the potential risk is desertification! This kind of agronomic management allo

• MANURE APPLICATION TAILORED TO PLANT NEEDS

Slurry soil injectors can be used on both grassland and arable land. When deciding on the possibility of implementing this slurry-spreading technique, it is important to consider the purpose of the injector, the tractor's power, the topography of farm and the type of soil. The most common solutions are dominated by trailing shoe injectors and disc injectors. The primary purpose of using soil applicators is to reduce nitrogen losses of up to 90%, which increases the effect of natural fertilizer application through higher crop yields. Environmental and social benefits are also undeniable advantages of using this solution. These mainly include a reduction in odor, a lower risk of surface water pollution or a decrease in chemical fertilizer use. Research results show that by using slurry injectors, grass yields can be increased by up to 30%, and yields of crops such as corn or soybeans by about 15%. An important advantage of such a slurry spreading system is the reduction in labor input. It should also be noted that many countries have a system of subsidies for the purchase of slurry injectors and slurry tankers. It's worth checking this out before deciding to change slurry management technology and purchase machinery.

• Increasing the efficiency of slurry by soil injection to reduce nitrogen losses…

Cover crops (=catch crops or intermediate crops) are usually grown between successive cash crops and are grown as green manure and ploughed in before establishment of the succeeding crop. Short lived forage species like Westerwold or Italian ryegrass, forage rape, fodder kale and vetches allow, besides all beneficial ecosystem services of traditional catch crops, additional harvesting of forage. The forage quality of catch crops is often underestimated. Many farmers in northwestern Europe have rediscovered the role of growing catch crops as strategy to make their farms more sustainable and resilient.​ Traditionally cover crops are established after whole crop or combine harvest of cereal crops. After a shallow cultivation in the autumn, fast growing species like forage rape, Westerwold ryegrass, common vetch or forage peas are established. When there is focus on using early spring growth, when a late main crop such as maize is planned, winter hardy species like kale, winter forage rape, forage rye, Italian ryegrass, crimson clover and hairy vetch should be chosen. Perennial ryegrass undersown with white and red clover in cereal crops in early May is a proven alternative to increase production of additional forage in autumn. Three weeks after harvesting the cereal crop these short-term leys can be grazed several times. Alternatively, they allow for one silage cut in autumn and another in early spring. Finally, grazing short term grass clover leys is a cheap forage, also for dairy cows. Other species can be grazed by less demanding stock. Fresh feeding (zero-grazing) in combination with a balanced diet reduces forage costs.​

• Catch crops - cheap and environmental beneficial forages
• Multispecies swards (MSS) pasture & red clover silage

Climate resilience requires effective management of carbon, which is crucial for sequestration in soils. Organic matter (OM) is key, promoting sequestration. Agricultural practices such as soil conservation agriculture (SCA) and permanent plant cover are essential for maintaining a high level of OM. The use of no-till techniques and adapted plant cover can improve sequestration. Reintegrating exported crops and maximizing residue incorporation are essential. Advantages: improved soil resilience, reduced carbon emissions. Points to watch: choice of cover, investment in direct seeding, adaptation of techniques according to region and crop rotation. In conclusion, effective management of carbon in agricultural soils is essential for building climate resilience. By adopting sustainable farming practices focused on increasing soil organic matter, farmers can make a significant contribution to mitigating climate change while improving the productivity and sustainability of their farms.

• Practices to capture carbon in the soil

Pulses, such as faba beans and peas, are annual grain legumes that can be grown and used as feed to reduce dependence on purchased fertilisers and imported feeds. Legumes fix atmospheric nitrogen in association with Rhizobium bacteria in their root nodules and leave also some N in the field for the subsequent crop. Using pulses, protein supplements can be produced on the farm with virtually no nitrogen fertilisers. Legumes diversify crop rotations, improve soil fertility and biodiversity. Grow varieties suitable for own area and soils where the pH is not too low. Do not overfertilize. 
Faba beans and peas contain more crude protein than cereals, but less than protein feeds such as soya bean meal and rapeseed meal.  Protein content of faba beans ≈300 g/kg DM (280 - 350) and peas ≈ 230 g/kg DM (190 - 290). They contain more starch than protein feeds, but less than cereals. Starch content of faba beans: ≈ 430 g/kg ka (380 - 480) and peas: ≈ 500 g/kg ka (430 - 575). The rumen degradability of protein is higher for legumes than for rapeseed meal or expeller, which means that a higher proportion of the crude protein in the feed is broken down in the rumen. This is advantageous if the ration is low in rumen degradable protein but increases nitrogen losses when the basal diet is high in crude protein. High starch content increases microbial protein synthesis compared to protein feeds. Approximate amount of nitrogen fixation per year: 50-100 kg N/ha for faba beans and 40-80 kg N/ha for peas.
Instead of harvesting pulses at full ripening stage and drying like cereals, crimping and ensiling in silo or tube is a more cost-effective method of preservation, where legumes can be harvested before they reach maturity, which gives flexibility in harvesting time and weather conditions.  

• Improve protein self-sufficiency through pulse crops

Farmers need to identify specific traits they want to improve, and these objectives should align with the farm's production system and market demands. Periodic adjustment of sire selection strategy is necessary to ensure making progress toward the objectives. Present selection criteria encompass including milk, reproduction, conformation, management and health traits. In the near future, feed efficiency, methane emission, heat tolerance, immunity, reproductive efficiency, reduced water usage, temperament, stress response, and adaptability to robotic milking into our selection process can be incorporated. The economic, technological and market environment can be different in different farms. Software tools are available for calculating customized indices using farm economic data. This information can be used to rank available sires according to the customized index. Available pedigree, genomic (SNP) and phenotypic information for  males and females with the breeding objectives and economic information can be used to allocate sires to cows with the assistance of softwares which employ built-in linear programming tools to optimize both the level of inbreeding and the genetic (economic) gain for the farm. It also allows for the specification of the number of females assigned to each bull. Genetic lines may perform better under specific conditions, so choosing animals that thrive in a specific climate and production system.

• Picking sires to suit specific traits of dairy cows on farm

The price of dairy calves is very low or even null. The innovation propose to increase the value of calves by inseminate dairy cows with semen from beef bulls breed to produce calves for meat production. The main interest in this innovation is the increasing of incomes generated by the meat potential production of the calves. Indeed the selling price of cross-bred calf would be sold till 200€ higher than dairy calf, with more meat production with higher growth rate, higher carcass weight and better feed efficiency. The environmental impact is also lower in GWP due to dairy-based system with calves fattening. An attention will be paid on the cow fertility and on the bull choice (easy calving).
The innovation consists to inseminate sexed semen on primiparous and high productive cows for the renewing of the herd. And the rest of the herd will be inseminated with sexed or no meat oriented semen (depending of the price of semen and the success of the insemination) to produce meat calves. The genetic investment will be made on dairy insemination and not on cross-breeding.
At the end, the choice to cross-breed or not will be discussed with adviser and vet to identify the opportunity (valorisation of cross-breed calves), choice the best cows for renewing and select the good semen (cost) according the farmer objectives.

• Cross breeding with beef cattle breeds to increase the value of surplus young s…
• Cross breeding with beef cattle to increase the value of surplus youngstock - HU

The tool helps to identify the most complementary match between the chosen sires and females in the herd to maximise the chance of producing high genetic merit offspring but also a more consistent herd. Both genetic (based on progeny) and genomic (based on DNA analysis) selection are important and provide complementary information. The milk heritability is 40% but environmental factors (in the broad sense) are  also important. The breeder must decide which characteristics of his herd/cows he wishes to improve (max 5 on more than 40). Each characteristic is weighted to obtain an overall score per bull and propose the best sire for insemination. He must also consider the characteristics of his females and their pedigree. Progeny must be checked for further selection. There is no guarantee of inheriting good genes but generational accumulation of selection effects would be appear with time.  The inbreeding can reinforce positive traits but the breeder need to be careful about defects and limit the inbreeding into his herd. The tools are generally interconnected between countries and organisms but the indexes are calculated in different ways according to the aim of the herd specificity and the  improvement strategy. At the end, the breeder has to know his herd and objective to definite his criteria with the advice of technician or vet. It takes time for coding and selection) and money for semen and the genomic analysis. The breeder has the choice to improve in tree topics: production characteristics, morphological characteristics and functional characteristics.

• Provide farmers with a bull selector tool to identify available sires that are …

In the past decades, the focus in dairy cattle breeding has been mainly on the production of high volumes of diluted milk. Pure - breeding is used in almost all breeds. Purebred and related breeding has led to a deterioration of animal health parameters and reproduction traits. However, heterosis through crossbreeding has a positive effect on the fitness of the animals. Continuous heterosis in crossbred herds has a positive effect on milk fat and milk protein percentage compared to purebred Holstein-Friesian herds. In addition, crossbred animals have, on average 30-40 days shorter service period and about 50-60 days shorter time between calvings, 15-20% lower insemination index, 55-65% fewer foot and feet diseases, 50-60% less mastitis. An example of crossbreeding for dairy cows is Procross breeding. This is a three breed continuous rotation crossbreeding procedure when Holstein-friesian cow crossed with Montbeliarde sire, then the F1 cow with Swedish Red and White sire, then Holstein sire again. There are side effects, or limitations such as: producing cross-breeding partners by pure-breeding, inappropriate crossing partners reduce the heterogeneity of the animals, and Procross breeding requires appropriate expertise to maintain heterosis.

• Cross breeding with dairy breeds to improve performance, health fertility and l…
• Cross breeding with dairy breeds - DN

Sexed semen is an innovative technology that allows the predetermination of calf sex with about 90% reliability. However, uptake has been hindered by lower conception rates, higher costs and limited availability of both semen and sires. Greater utilization of sexed semen can help improve the efficacy of both dairy and beef production, increase farm profitability, and help improve the environmental sustainability of cattle production. For dairy and beef herds, sexed semen can be used to breed female replacements with strong maternal traits and males with strong terminal traits, increasing the value of dairy-beef bull calves.​
In addition, it can help to;​
- Improve welfare, lowers the risk of difficult calving ( -20%)​
- Reduce the number of lower value bull calves and low genetic merit heifers​
- Increase the rate of breeding replacement heifers for herd expansion or improvement​
- Help minimize biosecurity risk as it reduces the need to buy in replacement dams.
Sexed semen is more expensive (€38) than conventional dairy or beef semen (€10 - €18). Accurate heat detection is needed when using sexed semen. Consider using fixed time AI to help ensure accurate timing of AI, and consult with your vet on synchronization protocols. In addition, successful use of sexed semen is highly dependent on straw preparation. Be sure to consult with your AI technician on correct straw preparation in advance of breeding for best results

• Use of sexed semen to increase the number of heifer calves

Herd and calf genomic evaluation is a process in which their DNA is tested to obtain valuable genetic information. Based on this information, the genetic potential of individual calves in a dairy herd can be quickly assessed. Genomic evaluation provides a set of data on, for example, fat-to-protein ratio and casein content of milk, health and reproductive or conformation indices. On this basis, calves with favorable genetic traits can be identified that are compatible with specific herd development goals. The first step in genomic evaluation is to identify specific breeding goals related to health, performance, fertility, etc. In the next steps, DNA samples are taken from selected calves and sent to the laboratory. Using advanced genetic technologies and relevant trait databases, the genetic potential of each calf is estimated. From the laboratory, results are obtained in the form of various indicators of the animals' breeding value. Analysis of the results makes it possible to identify and select for further breeding animals with traits consistent with the established breeding program. Here are some of the benefits of such evaluation: - Improved herd management - by making more informed decisions about pairing, reproduction and selection of animals; Time and cost savings - traditional evaluation methods are time-consuming and costly; Accelerated genetic progress - by selecting animals with desirable traits; Increased resistance and health - by identify animals with excellent performance.

• Genomic assessment of newborn calves
• Genotyping of calves

Breeding  indexes can help to make better breeding decisions i.e. selection of the cows and bulls. Breeding decisions have a long term effect on the future of the dairy farm  as the effect of breeding is permanent and cumulative. Breeding is one of the main ways to influence the sustainability of cattle farming. A genetically superior cow produces more, has lower costs because it is healthier, more fertile, more robust and has a better feed efficiency than its genetically inferior counterpart. Improving feed efficiency is important because feed costs are one of the biggest costs in milk production. Improving feed efficiency through animal breeding is one of the most important methods to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from dairy production. 
Know your cows and select!  Keep records of breed, age, calvings, diseases/treatments, pedigree of the cows. Keep regularly records of milk yield and  milk composition (protein, fat). Use breeding indexes of different traits and total breeding index to select lower merit cows to be inseminated with sexed semen to get bull calves or with beef semen. Use genomic testing of calves to be able to select best calves for renewing the herd. 
Select bulls! Find out the breeding indexes of the bulls available. Select the right bull for each cow according to what traits should be improved in your herd. 
In the Nordic countries, combined breeding index NTM (Nordic Total Merit index) is used. Dairy cows are selected for different traits including milk yield, growth, fertility, calving ease, udder health, general health, hoof health, leg structure, udder structure, milk-ability, temperament, durability, calf vigor and feed efficiency. In NTM each trait is weighted according to its economic weight. 

• Breeding indexes and genetic selection to improve the characteristics of the da…
• Crossbreeding to improve milk composition
• Breed indexes and genetic selection (A2 milk) - NL

A structural change is taking place in agriculture - towards ever fewer but larger farms. Growing dairy herds on farms lead to higher workloads, particularly due to regularly recurring, time-based activities such as milking. This leads to less flexibility on these farms and can also have a negative impact on private life. Growing farms go hand in hand with higher staffing levels, with trained specialist staff becoming increasingly difficult to find and more expensive. Other solutions are therefore needed. In order to meet the objectives of reducing working hours and making them more flexible, making work easier and providing herds with individual animal care, many farms are automating their work processes. In dairy farms, the main focus here is on automatic milking technology and automatic feeding.

• Automation of labour using milking and feeding robots
• Maximum automation for maximum efficiency
• Automatic feed pusher

Preventing access by fencing off water bodies is a simple solution to help reduce pollution and damage to watercourses. Heavy trampling by livestock can erode banks and increase inputs of sediment and organic matter into a watercourse. This can then reduce water quality and can lead to the contamination of drinking water supplies. Fencing off water bodies also removes risk of damage to sensitive riparian habitats from poaching and overgrazing. How does Water Body Fencing work? The site of watercourse fencing needs to be carefully chosen on a case-by-case basis, by assessing the risks to the watercourse in relation to the timing of grazing, the grazing density, the habitat and the risk of invasive weeds. It is important to locate the fence on stable ground away from the immediate bank edge as this may be vulnerable to erosion. The fence should be located at a suitable distance from the top of the bank to enable occasional mechanical control of vegetation. Adding a gate to enable bank-side access should therefore also be considered. Drinking troughs or pasture pumps should be located at least 10m from the watercourse. Specific advice: Fencing should be avoided on sites of archaeological or historic importance. Seek advice if the planned area is designated for habitat or species. Temporary fencing may be best in some areas – e.g. on floodplains. Equipment or investment involved? Contractors could be used to undertake the work. Grant funding may be available for water body fencing but if it is would require additional administration to access. Upfront costs are high to purchase materials (posts & wire) and underake the work (estimates at approximately €14Emeter of fencing). Ongoing maintenance is required to ensure the investment is worthwhile. 

• Fencing of Water Bodies

One of the problems that we will face in the near future will be water scarcity, largely due to climate change, so systems that help to optimize and improve the efficiency of water use, such as the one we are about to explain, are indispensable. The main objective of this livestock practice is to reduce the consumption of clean water and the amount of cleaning water that goes to the slurry pond, increasing both environmental and economic resilience, as it also results in savings in the bill. In addition, there is also a decrease in the consumption of clean water and a high efficiency in cleaning, due to the hot temperature and the presence of detergent. The investment is around 3,000 € and the necessary equipment includes a 1,000L tank with pump, where to store the water to be reused and the hose to use the collected water; control set, to control the water to be recirculated; and a three-way valve, which sends the water to the previous tank and removes the water that is not to be recirculated.

• EFFICIENT USE OF WATER FOR CLEANING FLOORS
• Efficient use of water for cleaning waiting areas - ES

One of the problems faced by many dairy farmers in northern Spain is the disposal of the slurry generated. The lack of land and the rainfall in the area mean that the ponds fill up in a short period of time, so it is essential to think of solutions for its elimination from the farm and, if possible, to use it efficiently. This sheet summarizes a strategy to reduce this problem of livestock waste in the geographical area of the Carranza Valley (Bizkaia, Basque Country), the main objective of which is to efficiently eliminate the slurry from the farms and then convert it into a by-product for subsequent use. In this way, less volume is stored in the pit, obtaining useful agricultural by-products in the treatment process and favouring the circular economy. In 2022, numerous meetings were held between livestock farmers and the company concerned, together with the Carranza town council, cooperatives and management centers in the area. After specifying conditions, deadlines and resolving doubts about the slurry management system, some twenty livestock farmers (equivalent to 2,500 animals) have committed themselves, which means more than 65,000 tonnes of slurry per year. Livestock farmers will provide and pay for a management service, the maximum cost of which will be 1.5 €/T slurry extracted. The system will operate on a programmed collection on demand, and after fermentation, and biogas generation, several types of by-product will be available: digestate in semi-liquid format, composted format for cold bedding and commercial organic fertiliser. During 2023 the project has been developed and by spring '24 it is expected to be fully operational.

• Cooperative organisation that co-ordinates slurry storage, transport and applic…

As dairy cows consume large amounts of nitrogen through proteins in their diets, a large amount is excreted in urine and feces. In manure, ammonia is formed by breaking down urea and is promoted by the amount of urea, temperature and the degree of mixing feces and urine. Depending on several factors, some of the ammonia formed is volatilized into the atmosphere. Gaseous ammonia in the atmosphere is undesirable, due to its negative influence on environmental and public health.​ Many mitigation practices have been identified to allow livestock systems to reduce ammonia emissions. These practices can be divided in four categories - keeping in mind, that some practices could fit in more categories. The following categories can be distinguished: 

1) Barn; Emission reduction by barn design or changes in barn setup​. 

2) Barn management; Emissions that apply to existing barn designs and require a level of monitoring and labour to function properly​. 

3) Manure; Emission reduction by managing or manipulating the manure.​ 4) Feed; Adaptations to feeding routine 

• Technical solutions to mitigate ammonia emissions

The application of slurry matched to grassland needs and applied at the right time before harvesting provides readily available nitrogen (i.e., ammonium nitrogen) and increases the organic matter content of the soil. The use of slurry can replace part of the production of highly energy-intensive chemical fertilizers based on non-renewable inputs. Low-emission slurry spreading equipment (LESSE) is a way to reduce ammonia emissions, improve water quality, reduce odor and increase the economic efficiency of growing grass. The most widely used three low emission systems in slurry splashing are: trailing hose spreading system, trailing shoe spreading system, slurry injection system (shallow). The slurry application system must be compatible with available machinery. The effectiveness of any system depends on the characteristics of the slurry, application rates, topography of the land, soil type and weather conditions. Implementing a low-emission slurry spreading system results in increased fertiliser value from slurry, equal distribution of slurry, increase in grass yields, reduced synthetic fertilizer use, less nitrogen loss to waterways
reduced odor, reduced grass contamination, decrease silage contamination and faster accessibility to pasture. Systems can be used not only on grassland but also on arable crop. The main advantage is the reduction of ammonium nitrogen emissions. With a splash plate the loss of nitrogen can be 100%, while using a low

• Low emission slurry spreading by application of slurry directly on the ground o…
• Nutrient Management

Potential advantages of recycled manure solids (RMS) as bedding material include increased cow comfort, reduced costs and increased environmental sustainability compared with other bedding materials. RMS is economical, produced at own farm and renewable. For the cows it is soft to rest and better than sand for skin lesions. It works also better than sand in slurry system.
RMS is made of the slurry with screw press which separates slurry solids from the liquid fraction. The screw press is situated near the barn, under roof and high enough to let the solid fraction drop down to the distribution wagon. It is practical that RMS is pressed directly to the wagon with which it is distributed to the cubicles. RMS is spread to cubicles immediately after pressing, thin layer at a time. Thin layer lets the freshly pressed RMS to dry more. 
Important: use RMS soon after separation do not store it for a long time because it will easily decompose aerobically and warm up, promoting microbial growth. After pressing RMS should be at dry matter content of about 35%. There is a risk of microbial growth if it is too wet while too dry RMS increases dust formation. When using RMS the conditions of the barn should not be too warm and humid to prevent microbial growth.
Used and wet RMS should be removed from the beds frequently. Only RMS produced at the own farm should be used. The health and welfare of the cows should be monitored actively.
System for separation RMS includes the separator (screw press) itself, the pipes and/or mixer for slurry, and the distribution system (wagon). Altogether the investment may be approximately 25 000 – 35 000 euros depending of the equipment needed. 

• Use of recycled manure solids as bedding material in cubicles for cows
• Use of recycled manure solids as bedding material - FI
• Cattle bedding with solid part of slurry - ES

The management of effluents is pivotal both for environment and for the social acceptability of farming. The separation of effluents can contribute on both aspects. In detail, there are 2 main typologies of separator: the separator  with helicoidal compression and the separator with rotating cylinder. In both case, the result is the separation of solid and liquid fraction of effluent that has several pros. For example, the solid fraction it is easy to transport, it can be distributed with a manure spreader or a compost spreader, it can be used to improve organic, chemical, physycal, mechanical properties of the soil and it can be used as litter. Besides, the liquid fraction need less  volume  for storage, it is easy to mix and pump and the risk of blockage in the pipelines reduced, there is a reduction of formation of «hard cover» during storage, a reduction of smell emissions, it can be used for the flushing of the barn and in case of application on fields covered with crops, the crops will not get too dirty. It can also be used for fertirrigation. In a nutshell, separation is worthwhile  when one of these situations occurs: storage dimension >500 m3,when the distribution must be done on  fields that are far from the farm or parceled out (it is economically convenient to dedicate the solid fraction to the farest field and the liquid fraction to the nearest ones), when the distribution is done on  fields covered with crops (crops will not get dirty), when your  pipeline system has a small diameter.

• SEPARATION OF EFFLUENTS

Biogas plants on dairy farms transform manure into renewable energy, aiding in sustainability by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This provides dual benefits of lowering energy costs and offering an additional income stream for farms. 
The infrastructure for biogas plants includes digesters, combined heat and power units, storage tanks, and gas treatment facilities, enabling efficient conversion of manure into biogas, which is used for electricity, heating, or as vehicle fuel, and producing organic fertilizer from the digestate.
Investing in biogas plants involves costs for the digester system, gas storage and purification installations, feasibility studies, obtaining necessary permits, staff training, and safety measures, as well as ongoing maintenance and operational expenses. 
Despite these costs, the development of a biogas plant offers benefits, including efficient manure management, significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, production of renewable energy, and generation of organic fertilizer that enhances soil health. These benefits contribute to reduced operating costs and can create additional income streams for the farm.
Farmers must carefully consider several factors when developing a biogas plant. Ensuring that the plant's size and technology match the farm's specific needs and waste output is crucial. The process of obtaining necessary permits, adhering to environmental regulations, conducting thorough financial planning, and assessing potential impacts on local ecosystems and community relations are essential steps for the successful and sustainable operation of a biogas plant. 

• Develop biogas plant
• Develop biogas plant - NL
• Biogasbased electricity production on dairy farm

Current climate change and crisis scenarios make it necessary to work on (1) systems for implementing variable speed vacuum pump pumps, as well as (2) cooling tanks that take advantage of the temperature difference to facilitate water heating. 
With these measures, more and more farmers aim to improve energy and water use efficiency, reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions.
The former offer the possibility of setting the required pressure in the system and varying the pump speed according to the demand of the milking process, also preventing the deterioration of the machine, as it avoids unexpected stops.
It is an industrial regulator located between the power supply and the motor. The mains power passes through the equipment and regulates the energy before it reaches the motor and then adjusts the frequency and voltage according to the milking requirements.
As for the other measure, as the milk cools in the tanks, the heat that is released (heat loss) is used to heat the heating elements of the thermos flasks where the water is stored. 
In this way, to go from 20 to 90ºC, for example, this rise in temperature starts from about 40, since it was already preheated, and less energy is used. Then this water is used to clean the milking parlor, to apply directly to the troughs in winter (to temper the very cold water), etc. Thus, the objectives of both measures are to match the energy needs required by the milking process, reducing electricity and water consumption, as well as improving the productivity of milking and the farm in general.

• ENCOURAGING IMPLEMENTATION OF VARIABLE SPEED DRIVE VACUUM PUMPS, USE OF MILK PR…
• Milk pre-cooling - ES

The dependence of dairy farms on electricity, the availability of farm buildings and economic profitability mean that more and more farms are considering installing photovoltaic panels. How does it work? Photovoltaic solar energy converts sunlight into electricity via solar panels that produce direct current, which is then converted into alternating current. This electricity can be stored in batteries or fed into the electricity grid. Production potential remains unchanged, even if sunshine levels vary. Rooftop installations can have outputs ranging from 9 to 250 kW and more. At present, most installations sell their output, but self-consumption is also possible. Before embarking on a project of this kind, it's essential to define your objectives (self-consumption, installation power), the surface area available for the panels, your budget, your choice of installer and your legal status. It is advisable to seek the support of independent suppliers and technical advisers. Local grants are available for investment, and loans for photovoltaic panels are generally spread over 10 to 15 years. Investment costs vary according to the size of the installation, for example: 
- For a 36 kW installation: investment between €38,000 and €47,000, and connection to the grid between €1,500 and €5,000.
- For a 100 kWp installation: investment between €90,000 and €110,000, and grid connection between €5,000 and €25,000.

• Electricity Production on farm

The reduction of GHG emissions, the effluents exploitation and the increase of green energy use are top priorities in dairy farms. Biogas plants and naerobic digestion of the effluents fits the realization of those targets. The dairy farm creates a perfect synergy with the production of biogas: rumen microbiology is similar to the anaerobic digestion, cattle effluents are cost-free biomass, dairy farm facilities can be used for the biogas production (storage tanks, tractors…), green energy can be produced according to farm needs and digestate can be used as fertilizer. How does it work? Effluents and livestock waste, thanks to a loading system, enter the anaerobic digester, where organic compounds undergo a degradation by microorganisms, in absence of oxygen. This process brings to the production of (1) biogas that can become (1a) heat energy and electricity (by means of a cogenerator) or (1b) biomethane, e.g. for transportation (by means of an upgrading plant). Moreover, the anaerobic digestion brings to the production of (2) digestate (solid and liquid), that can be used as efficient bio-fertilizer: digestate contains many nutrients and it has  a reduced odour impact and improved sanitation characteristics compared to slurry. In order to optimize the construction and the management of your biogas plant, preliminarily investigate the quantity and the quality of the effluents of your own farm! In fact, biogas yield can be very variable and it depends on many factors such as animal feeding, farming system (housing, bedding), effluents management, rinsing and rainwater management, freshness of the slurry. The yield of the effluents can be evaluated using the Biochemical Methane Potential test (BMP - UNI EN ISO 11734:2004 standard).

• BIOGAS – HOW TO UTILISE CATTLE EFFLUENTS
• The advantages of micro-biogas
• Explore the potential of renewable energy production on farm (hydrogen)

Low carbon label is an official framework to pay farmers for the implementation of mitigation actions. 
Farmers involvement last 5 years to put into place new mitigations / carbon sequestration practices.  Two carbon diagnostics are done, one at the beginning and one at the end. A carbon plan is build with the farmer to identify and measures actions to put in place. Final payment is made according to the real GHG reduction on the farm during this period.
The 5-year support package costs around €2.000. Today, a number of french programs (regional/dairy) make it possible to finance this to a large extent.
The farmer is paid €32/t. On average, a farm reduces its emissions by 450 to 600 tonnes over 5 years. 

• Earning carbon credits by implementing mitigation actions

The EU has targets in place to reduce agricultural emissions by 25% by 2030 and achieve climate neutrality by 2050, compared to 2018 levels. Using a carbon footprinting tool allows farmers to know their number (carbon footprint), quantify their on-farm emissions, and use this to help put actions in place to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and increase carbon sequestration on their farm. Using a carbon footprinting tool also allows farmers to benchmarch their carbon footprint against other farmers, and see where improvements can be made. There are a large range of carbon footprint tools available for the dairy sector (e.g. AgNav, Cap2er, Cool FarmTool, Agrecalc). Some tools are country specific, and can not be used in other countries. Some carbon footprinting tools are also free to use, whereas others charge to use the tool (some may be paid for by the milk processors). Once a tool has been selected and the data input to calculate the carbon footprint, a plan should be made on what actions could be put in place on farm to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase carbon sequestration (e.g. low emission slurry spread, incorportating clover, slurry storage). Just knowing your number will not lead to a reduction in emissions, actions must then be taken to implement solutions on-farm. It is important that data being used within the tool is verified if possible, as more accurate data gives a more accurate number.

• Tool to calculate greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration (carbon foo…

CAP'2ER is a french tool to evaluate environmental impacts et positive contributions of the farm. More than 150 data are collected (herd, building, surface area, feed, energy…). Results are in comparison with benchmark farms. The different calculated indicators are : GHG emissions, air and water quality, fossile fuels consumption, carbon sequestration, biodiversity maintenance, food performance. The tool has 2 operating levels: level 1 - a basic approach to raise awareness, level 2 - a complete assessment of the farm and an action plan.
The tool is used in France in support innovative approach :
A carbon action plan is built with the farmer to identify practices to implement and measures their impacts.  Then technical visits and follow up visits take place to help the farmer to implement during a 3 years period. A final diagnostic is realized to monitor the concrete improvements accomplished.
In France, a significant part of the support expenses is often covered.
The tool is available in English, Spanish, Italian, Romanian (with Swiss and Romanian local settings). 

• CAP'2ER, a tool to assess carbon footprints and support innovative approaches

Different feed additives can be used to reduce methane emissions from dairy cows. These compounds include 3-NOP, red algae containing bromoform, nitrates, calcium peroxide, biochar and plant extracts. Methane is produced by ruminal microbes in the rumen, when feed is digested through a complex fermentation process. To be accepted as a safe to use, a feed additive needs to be proven not to negatively affect feed intake, production, animal health or welfare or to leave any residues to milk, meat or to the environment. The response to different feed additives may depend on the diet composition (such as fat or fiber) and forage proportion in the diet. One of the newest approved feed additives is 3-NOP, which can reduce methane emissions up to 30%. 3-NOP can be addressed straight to dairy cow's feed, and the best results are seen when it is added into TMR.  Many questions remain to be solved regarding the use of feed additives, for example, what will be the final price of the feed additives and will it be transferable into the price paid for the farms? Also, the role of the methane in mitigating climate change needs to be addressed, as well as how the feed additives and their effect will be taken into account in national greenhouse gas inventories. 

• Feed additives to reduce rumen methane production

Most of the greenhouse gas emissions from the cattle sector take place on farm, due to rumen fermentation, manure (handling) and land cultivation. Another portion originates from the production of inputs such as fertilizers and feed concentrates. The smallest part of emissions is from transportation and processing of production outputs.​ Many mitigation practices have been identified to allow livestock systems to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These practices can be divided in six categories - keeping in mind, that some practices could fit in more categories. The following categories can be distinguished: 

1) Efficiency; Emission intensity is lowered by having less resource input for equal or more product(ion) output (i.e., milk or meat)​. 

2) Directly affecting; Emissions from cattle, manure soils and crops are lowered​. 

3) Carbon sequestration; Fixation of carbon is enhanced and losses from soil are reduced​. 

4) Emission capture; Gases are captured and/or transformed​. 

5) Energy saving; Energy use from oil, gasoline, diesel becomes more efficient​. 

6) Structural; Sector level changes on herd size, land transition, energy production

• Strategies to reduce methane emissions: Methane captured and processed into bio…

Biodiversity evaluation processes across Europe assess how farming practices impact ordinary biodiversity, often using indirect indicators. These processes involve collecting qualitative and quantitative data through interviews with farmers and analyzing farm data and agroecological structures such as hedges and streams. These data help assess the farm's impact on biodiversity and provide farmers with insights into how their practices affect local ecosystems.

The collected data are used to identify indicators of biodiversity health, such as the presence of certain species or the condition of habitat features. Each indicator is evaluated as favorable, neutral, or unfavorable for biodiversity, and farmers receive individual reports detailing their farm's performance in each area.

Farmers may be required to set short- and long-term targets for improving biodiversity as part of certification programs. These targets are based on the initial assessment and are monitored over time to track progress. Additionally, farmers receive personalized advice on adjusting their practices to enhance biodiversity, such as preserving habitat connections and delaying mowing of grasslands.

Furthermore, farmers can compare their farm's performance with others through scenario benchmarking, which helps identify areas for improvement. Facilitation for farmer groups fosters collaboration, allowing farmers to share feedback, discuss best practices, and develop action plans at the territory scale. This collaborative approach ensures that efforts to preserve biodiversity are coordinated and effective across agricultural landscapes.

• Biodiversity monitoring – A way to assess the impact of farming practices on or…

Hedgerows and marginal areas, such as field margins road verges, are a typical landscape feature in many parts of Europe. They provide an important habitat for a variety of flora and fauna. In addition, hedgerows and marginal areas act as a carbon store and can help improve soil organic matter; provide shelter along field margins, helping to reduce soil erosion by wind and rain; reduce the risk of flooding by slowing the flow of water, increasing infiltration and reducing the flow of nutrients and sediment into local waterways; provide physical shelter and shade for livestock during wet, windy or warm weather. However, increased agricultural intensification and associated land-use over the past decades have led to a dramatic decrease in the biodiversity of hedgerows and marginal areas. Management of hedgerows and marginal areas is important to preserve their habitat status. Simple management steps such as;  1. Cut hedgerows in a rotation every 3 - 5 year rotation. Do not cut or trim hedgerows until after flowering. 2. Trim hedgerows in an 'A' shape (wide, dense and tall). 3. Spray adjacent crops/pasture early in the morning or late in the evening when honeybees are less active. Hedgerows and marginal areas should never be fertilised or sprayed. Hedge laying costs vary depending on species and contractor costs. Grants are available in many countries to offset the cost of establishment of hedgerows and marginal areas, speak to your local advisor on grant availability in your region.

• Management of hedges and marginal areas to improve biodiversity

For several decades, plots of land have been grouped together, and trees have been pulled down to facilitate the cultivation of agricultural land. Nowadays, some farmers are experimenting with planting trees/hedges within plots for various reasons: to provide shade for the animals, to create a microclimate favorable to grass growth, to increase biodiversity, to diversify production (e.g. orchards, wood chips as bedding material). Agroforestry consists of planting lines of trees within an agricultural plot. Several types of agroforestry exist depending on the needs of the farmers and the geographical context: 1/The orchard-grassland The main objective is to build a double production system (grass and fruit).The density of fruit trees vary according to the type of production. 2/The intra-plot tree alignment  On grassland or crops, the aim is mainly environmental, i.e. developing biodiversity, sequestering carbon, limiting erosion. For livestock systems, it also provides shade and feed (browsing) during periods of drought. Specific advice: Ask local authorities about potential subsidies for the re-planting of hedges and trees. In some countries, the cost of planting is fully subsidized. The development of these agro-ecological structures can increase the amount of EU CAP aids.

• Agroforestry on dairy farms

Biodiversity is crucial for both the planet and people, playing a key role in providing ecosystem services, regulation of the climate, pollination, maintaining soil health and adaptation to climate change.  However, biodiversity is currently declining at an unparalleled rate, creating one of the most urgent environmental issues. A resilient and bio-diverse dairy farming system builds on four interconnected pillars of biodiversity: functional agrobiodiversity, diversity of landscape and species (flora and fauna) and regional biodiversity. 
Increasing the biodiversity of dairy farm production systems helps improve soil quality and forage production, milk quality, and human health.  Biodiversity-based dairy farms can generate a reasonable income with less environmental impacts. But you should remember that each farm has unique biodiversity and, therefore, there cannot be a prescriptive ‘one size fits all approach’. Biodiversity is often associated with extensification of farming, which, without additional activities or services, lowers income.
Biodiversity Monitor for the dairy farming sector is a new tool for standardized quantification of biodiversity enhancing performance in the dairy sector. It uses Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure the influence of individual dairy farms on biodiversity on the farm and beyond.

• Biodiversity monitoring – A way to assess the impact of farming practices on or…

Animals suffering from injuries or diseases tend to change their behavior and have other needs than healthy animals. Use of hospital pens is a solution to handle these challenges, which results in shorter recovery time and larger recovery percentage from many injuries and diseases. Placement in a hospital pen facilitates resting behavior, ensures less competition for food and water, minimize waiting time at milking and enables the farmer to monitor and care for the cows. Cows that can benefit from placement in a hospital pen includes diseased cows, such as those suffering from mastitis, metritis and pneumonia, as well as injured cows, lame cows and cows with displaced abomasum. In case of infectious disease, the healthy cows will also benefit from infected cows being moved to a hospital pen as it will help prevent the spread of the infectious disease. Hospital pens are best placed where the staff has easy access to monitor the cows. The hospital pens can be for either individuals or groups, and should have a soft, deep bedding and plenty of space per cow in the pen (e.g. 12 m2 for individual pens and 8 m2 per cow for group pens for large breeds). There should also be easy access to feed, water and milking for the cows. Enough individual and group hospital pens should be ready that there is always a space available in a hospital pen for newly diseased or injured cows, e.g. a minimum of 1 individual hospital pen per 100 cows. When reintroducing animals from a hospital pen, be aware that introducing cows to new social groups has been shown to lead to aggression and decreased feed intake, rumination and lying behavior. It is advisable to use special hospital pens for calves and young stock.

• Use of Hospital Pens

Concrete is a hard and abrasive surface for cows to stand and walk on. Rubber matting is designed to increase grip and create a softer surface, increasing cow comfort and health. Farmers should consider implementing rubber matting in high risk and high use areas to improve animal welfare and production. Rubber matting creates a softer non-slip surface compared to concrete flooring, which can lead to; - improved cow flow and reduced milking time; - Reduced lameness; - Decreased hock and knee injuries; - Improved hygiene; - Increased feed intake, leading to increased milk production (when matting is present at the feed face). Studies have also shown that cows show a preference to walking and standing on rubber matting compared to concrete. However, rubber matting can lead to reduced claw wear compared to concrete flooring, and therefore cows can be at a higher risk of overgrown hooves. Rubber matting should not be placed in all areas. Identify high risk (e.g., areas where sharp turns are present) and high use areas (e.g., the feed space) which would benefit from rubber matting. Use high quality rubber matting that is suitable for cattle use, and be sure to install matting according to the supplier instructions. Some countries have grants available for the installation of rubber matting, speak to farm advisors or rubber matting suppliers about  the availability of grants in your region.

• Use of rubber-coated flooring in alleys improves and stimulates safe cow moveme…
• Use of rubber-coated flooring in alleys improves and stimulates safe cow

When a calf is born, the abomasum or fourth stomach is the only stomach that is functioning. Teat feeding triggers a reflex which causes a  groove in the rumen (oesophageal groove) to close. This directs milk past the rumen and  into the abomasum where it is digested. In addition, using a teat may also stimulate saliva production, maintain fluid intake in scouring calves, provides an outlet for the sucking motivation and can therefore prevent the development of cross-sucking. Be careful: Feeding via a teat does not prevent competition for milk. Younger calves typically drinks slower that older and may need protection if group housed. To reduce competition, group calves of similar age.
Specific advise: Competition for milk is reduced by feeding high milk allowances, keeping group size small (<7 calves/group) and separating the heads and bodies of calves while drinking milk. Equipment involved: A variety of options are available these can include teat-buckets and “milk-bars” with teats, which are relatively inexpensive, and computed-controlled automated calf feeding systems which can cost thousands of Euros. In group housing competition for milk is reduced by placing barriers between the calves. Barriers separating the calves’ heads and front part of their body offers better protection than barrier that only separates the heads. Quote of the farmer: “Use of multi-teat milk bars has reduced the time required to feed my calves”  

• Offering milk to calves via teat using teat bucket or milk bars

Housing calves in small groups of 2-7 calves pre-weaning has welfare benefits compared to both individual housing and housing in larger groups. Individual housing in the milk-feeding period is stressful for calves because it prevents social behavior and restricts calves movement. Calves housed in groups have an improved learning ability, better social skills and a higher solid feed intake. Group housing also allow the calves to have social contact and reduces the amount of labor necessary per calf.  Housing calves in groups larger than 7 calves is associated with increased incidence of respiratory disease. In comparison, calves housed in groups of 2-7 have fewer respiratory diseases, a reduced mortality and less competition. When using this strategy, the calf is kept with the dam for the first 12 to 24 hours. It should be fed 4L of colostrum within 6 hours, followed by 4L of whole milk twice a day (8L/day). Then the calf is moved to an individual straw bedded pen until it is 7 days old, with the same milk allowance. Group housing begins at 1 week of age, where groups of 2 to 7 calves of similar age are moved to a straw bedded group pen. The milk allowance is gradually increased to e.g. 5L twice a day (10L/day), with 75% whole milk and 25% replacer.  The calves are gradually weaned from week 7 to week 8, and they are moved as a group to a larger group pen at week 10. It is best not to wean and re-group the calves at the same time, and to only combine the existing groups after weaning. To reduce competition for milk it is important to feed high milk allowances and use a barrier protruding into the pen to prevent milk stealing. To prevent abnormal suckling behavior it helps to feed milk via a teat, e.g. teat bucket, and let the teat be available for 20 minutes after feeding. 

• Group housing of calves
• Group housing of calves - DN

Sand provides a comfortable lying surface and provides extra grip when getting up and lying down. Cows lie down longer on sand than on harder surfaces. Sand is an inorganic material that limits bacterial growth, and the prevalence of lameness and mastitis problems is low.​ Compared to mattresses, sand in cubicles improves cow comfort, increase lying time and support the lying down movement. Sand reduces the risk of hock injuries, and the risk of mastitis.​ To keep the sand in the cubicle, it should have an edge (curb) of 15-20 cm deep (no sharp edges). The cubicle should be cleaned twice a day by removing any manure, refreshed with new sand as needed to maintain at least 30 cm bedding and managed well to ensure an even depth of bedding. ​Because manure processing and its separation from the sand is the biggest challenge, the preference is to have barns with a solid rubber floor. Barns with a slatted floor and a manure pit underneath are deemed unsuitable for sand bedding because in these barns settled "cake" of sand and manure cannot be mixed.​ ​To remove sand and manure from the solid floor of the barn, a manure chute is recommended. It is recommended that a mechanical manure scraper pushes sand and manure toward the manure chute regularly. ​To separate the sand from the manure, the mixture is flushed through the manure chute to a settling tank placed adjacent to the barn. Sand settles in the wide section whilst the thin fraction flows and is removed via an overflow system. The thin fraction is then used to flush the manure chute allowing sand to further settle. The unsettled fraction is pumped to the manure silo when the settling tank is filled.​ The settled sand is scooped out of the settling tank by crane regularly. The sand can then be spread on the land or put into storage.

• Sand Bedding in freestalls
• Sandbedding in freestalls - NL
• Sand as deep bedding in cubicles to improve health, welfare and productivity - …

Consistent implementation of the strategy  ensures that the health of dairy animals and monitoring helps in the prevention of the emergence or spread of disease. Vaccination schedules, preventive care programs, balanced diets and nutritional content of diets improve reproductive health and ensure animal welfare. All of these measures increase farmers' incomes and help reduce costs. 
Digital tools make it easier to manage and analyze data, allowing for farmers to react faster to situations and make the right decisions. The aim of this measure is to make more efficient use of natural resources, thus contributing to reducing production costs and negative environmental impacts. 
The success of this strategy requires staff training and education, without which the strategy will not be properly implemented. 

• Improvement of health, fertility and longevity in dairy herds to provide higher…

In recent years, there has been an increased interest in better animal welfare in the agricultural industry, with a particular focus on cattle breeding. One approach to improve the quality of life for cows is to introduce improved barns with free access to the outdoors. This offers a number of benefits.
Firstly, they enable cows to perform natural behaviors. Cows need space for daily exercise and natural walking. Access to open land allows them to go out, jump, run and forage in natural pastures. These activities are key to maintaining the physical and mental health of the animals.
Secondly, they allow cows to benefit from natural sunlight and nitric oxide. Free access to sunlight provides a bundle of vitamin D, which is essential for healthy bones and immunity in cows. In addition, natural daylight and fresh air can improve the wellbeing of cows, which can contribute to their overall wellbeing.
A third benefit is a reduced risk of disease. Traditional barns, where cattle are kept permanently, can create favorable conditions for the development of diseases such as fungal or respiratory infections.
It is also worth mentioning that improved cow housing with outdoor access contributes to the image of the agricultural industry. Consumers care that products come from sources that are ethical and concerned about animal welfare.
In conclusion, improved cow sheds with outdoor access bring many benefits for both animals and farmers. 

• Improved barns for greater animal welfare with outdoor access
• Calf barn ventilation - PL
• Animal welfare barn with access to outside

Cow-calf contact (CCC) systems, where calves are housed together with dairy cows, are being developed and evaluated to enable animals to express more natural maternal and suckling behavior. Different management strategies are based on the amount of maternal contact and suckling allowed. Here a 'Foster' CCC system is described. Each dam-calf pair is kept together for the first week after calving. The calf is allowed unrestricted suckling and the cow has access to being milked. After the first week, the calf is moved to a group with 5 foster cows, and 2-3 calves per foster cow. The calves continue to have unrestricted suckling access. Gradual weaning begins once the youngest calf is between 2 and 2.5 months. The weaning process consists of removing one foster cow a week, until there is only one cow remaining with up to 12 calves at around 3 months. Then the last foster cow is moved to a smaller pen with fenceline contact to the calves. Complete separation occurs at 4 months. Calves in CCC systems have greater growth rates than conventionally reared calves, especially before weaning, which potentially can cause an increase in first lactation milk yield. It also allows for more natural maternal and suckling behavior and improves animal welfare for the calves. Some challenges of the system include a decrease in saleable milk yield as calves may drink more than 15 liters a day, additional costs for labor and management and possible challenges to calf health (e.g. cryptosporidiosis, pneumonia, and mortality). To have success with this system, implement systematic calf monitoring to check if newborn calves get enough milk and consider restricting physical cow-calf contact

• Cow-calf contact systems for improving animal health & welfare – Foster cows
• Nurse cow - FR
• Cow-calf contact system - FI

A freewalk housing system is a barn without cubicles with various bedding material and ample space per cow in the bedded area where cows can walk and lie down. The aim of the system is to create more movement space for the animals, as well as to provide manure fractions, or products that can improve soil quality. To this end, feces and urine may be separated on a permeable synthetic floor or a sand bedding, or composted organic material, such as sawdust or wood chips. The choice of material depends on weather conditions, soil type, farming system and the farmer’s preference for manure type (organic manure versus fractionated manure). ​For the composting process to work a large area per cow is required. Adequate bedding management is essential to maintain cow cleanliness and to reduce the risk of mastitis. Poor bedding management may reduce walkability of the surface. Woodchips bedding barns use wood chips where urine and feces both fall onto the bedding. Organic material is added regularly, and the top layer is cultivated daily. Only at the feed manger is the floor slatted, where slurry is collected. If necessary, a low emission floor can also be used at this location. Permeable synthetic floors consist of a soft liquid-permeable floor that quickly separates urine from faeces. The faeces is picked up by a manure robot.​ On sand bedding floors, or so-called 'Free-Living Barns' urine sinks through the sand to a drainage pipe, where it is drained an

• Freewalk housing system
• Freewalk Housing system - SL

Dairy farms are typically family ventures were parents, children, siblings and others (including employed staff) need to work together in a coherent and cohesive manner.  This can include the day to day running of the farm (daily tasks) to the longer-term strategic future of the farm which includes topics such as setting values, investments and significant changes to the business. How do you ensure the family and staff work together on a farm. Ensure that there is an agreement on the overall goals and objectives to the farm.  This should align as much as possible with the personal goals of the family members.  It is often helpful to have a third party to facilitate these discussions.  There are a number of consultants who specializes in this area.  Good succession planning is also important in avoiding friction between family members. Regular meetings of family and / or staff are vital.  This should be done on a weekly basis - ideally at the start of the week.   Current performance of the dairy herd and any pressing issues can be discussed. Tasks for the week ahead should be agreed and person(s) identified to complete the tasks.  Ideally this should be written up on a whiteboard for future reference. Standard operating procedures should be agreed so all tasks are undertaken in a consistent manner and not duplicated.  For example, agree a procedure for dealing with newborn calves (e.g. feeding colostrum, spraying the naval and applying an ear tag). 

• Working together on a farm

To build a socially sustainable system, you need to consider organization and solutions for your farm, connected to your goals and investigate the impact on several dimensions (workload, organisation, health, quality of life...)
To focus on working time is a good way to tackle labor issues.
The Work Assessment Method (WAM) designed by INRAE and the French Livestock Institute quantifies the work related to management of herds and lands.
It assesses farmers’ flexibility to carry out other professional activities and to have free time.
This tool was created for advisers and farmers to get global analysis of farming systems with a work perspective.
Main Recommendations:
• Qualitative/quantitative data are collected via a semi-structured survey on farm, with people involved on the farm activities.
• To be able to describe different “typical days” per period, it’s important to take into account:
- the diversity of workers
- the variety of periods of year (calving, grazing…)
- The temporality of tasks (daily, seasonal)
Benefits to Farmers:
• To have a clear view on their organization and time benchmarks on their farms, several figures are produced (hours /year, /worker, /cow...)
• To objectify their situation, to compare themself and identify the scope for progress, annual routine work allocation in hours per task and annual diagram are delivered.
• To get an individual use (compare results to benchmark, identify explanations and actions plan).
• to facilitate group discussion, it's recommended to share results, discuss with farmers and experts on some solutions.

To define sustainable models with social benchmarks (labor production cost, workload, free time) will improve the attractiveness of dairy systems.

• Work Assessment Method – a way to discuss labour with farmers
• Comment combiner efficacité au travail et efficacité économique grâce à un syst…

Skills alone are not enough to run an agricultural business. You constantly have to make and take choices. It's normal that you can't do everything well. You have more talent for some than others. Ask yourself questions such as: what do I want, what am I good at and where do I want to go? Then career coaching is for you! Most commonly, the career coach will conduct multiple in-depth interviews with each individual (sometimes the individual brings his/her partner along). During the conversations, the coach will strive to maintain a critical perspective and a 'mirror' with the aim of making the right decision to improve his/her future well-being, .... Strengthen your entrepreneurship based on your own talents.

• Career coaching support and stimulation

What is LEAN?
Dairy Lean is a management system that encourages continuous improvement in production efficiency, maximizing value creation and minimizing losses in every dairy production process.
How does it work ?
The process is in 3 steps : define the medium term goals and share them with associates and employees, organize the work by designing  a person responsible per task, and finally have tool to communicate.
At the beginning it can require time investment and support to put in place the method, but afterwards it is a winning solution with time saving, reducing loss of information, of materials... At the end it allows to save money.
Several practical examples of LEAN practices :
- A board meeting to plan the weekly tasks and the objectives in order to evaluate them
- Task cards to describe steps to carry out a task. To standardize procedure between different workers.
- Instruction transmission board to avoid loss of information and communication problem, to put up in various places (milking parlor... nursery)
A final advice to implement lean method : identify only one or two top priorities and then define simple actions to implement in order to avoid dispersion. 

• Applying LEAN on a farm

Management can be defined as, “All the different techniques of organization and management of all resources and teams within a company that enable the development of an organization”. In addition to remuneration, it is important to consider human relations with employees as a key factor in recruiting, motivating and retaining staff. Poor management can cause the deterioration of working conditions and organization on the farm. 
Few implementation ideas :
- Firstly, ask yourself if you are ready to delegate and analyze your company's needs. One advantage of having some employees is to remain the decision-maker (as opposed to being in a partnership, where decision are shared). However the legislation that needs to be respected regarding employment can be onerous.
- Identify and adapt your management style to the context and the employee. Four types of management can be identified to characterize your relationship with your employees.
- Communication should not be neglected. For example : Allow time for discussion with each employee, showing your appreciation by saying "thank you" and sharing the company's project.
-Organizing work with your employee can increase his motivation and  productivity and generate more satisfaction. To do that : make the employee aware of the tasks to be carried out and the deadlines, propose a well-balanced schedule, ensure that procedures are respected by proposing, for example, pictorial protocols and prioritize jobs according to their importance. Successful management is not just about personal qualities, but also about knowledge and know-how. Don't hesitate to ask for support and training on the subject. 

• Managing employees

Dairy farming requires expertise in animal health, breeding, nutrition, and environmental management, often necessitating external service providers. Financial and insurance services play a key role, offering farm financing, operational credit, insurance products, risk management, investment advice, retirement and succession planning, tax planning, financial analysis, and advice on government programs and business consulting. Legal and compliance consultants navigate the complex legal landscape in agriculture and in livestock. Breeding consultants enhance dairy herd genetics, advising on AI and ET techniques, and selecting animals with desirable traits. Feed and nutrition consultants create balanced diets, assess feed efficiency, and offer supplementation advice, often employed by feed companies. Veterinary services are vital for routine health checks, hygiene, reproductive health, vaccinations, parasite control, and preventing infectious diseases, also providing nutritional deficiency prevention strategies. Claw trimmers maintain hoof health. Dairy technology suppliers offer equipment for farm buildings, milking, watering, feed and waste management, cooling, and milk storage, along with technology for cattle health and milk production monitoring. Sustainability and environmental consultants promote sustainable practices and ensure environmental regulation compliance. With a range of domestic and international service providers, dairy farms can address various operational challenges. Regular market monitoring and considering multiple providers can optimize outcomes, with choices often based on references, expertise, cost-benefits analysis and service availability. 

• Relying on specialized expertise in specific aspects of farming

Labor cost is one of the major costs on dairy farms. Working time monitoring is a relevant topic especially in large and growing dairy farms. Digital and easy-to-use work time monitoring is useful both in measuring the farmer’s own work efficiency, but also in relation to employees’ work time monitoring. 
Real-time working hours monitoring is easy to do with modern digital tools (mobile phone, application, computer). First installation of a suitable application on the mobile phone. Then real-time working hours recordings while working. Recordings and working time summaries are saved in one place. You can further analyze the data in many ways if needed.
Working hours monitoring facilitates time-of-work accounting. Better understanding of working hours is one important part when developing working methods and management of a dairy farm. It is potential to monitor one interesting efficiency indicator of dairying which is how much milk is produced during each working hour?
You should check country-specific possibilities for different applications available. There are variations in applications: some are well developed and intended for demanding use, but sometimes simpler and cheaper user-interface may be sufficient for the purpose. 

• Working hours monitoring

Agriculture has long been based on farming families to supply most of the farm labor. Due to the migration of youth and able people from rural areas to cities to pursue employment and obtain a more competitive income, farming labor supply is insecure. There are some solutions that could make the working on dairy farms more attractive. The followings are a list of possibilities: Providing training and mentoring to new farm workers; changing positions at different times might help to avoid worker boredom; developing clear career paths that showcase promotional opportunities within the dairy farm; encouraging employees to share their ideas and suggestions to improve production processes; evaluating performance regularly can provide a platform to discuss goals, assess progress and identify areas for improvement; constructive feedback and goal-setting can help employees align their efforts with production targets; implementing a bonus system tied to specific production metrics, such as milk yield, milk quality, conception rate, calf born, or herd health indicators. Employees who meet or exceed targets can receive monetary bonuses; considering a profit-sharing model where a portion of the farm's profits is distributed among employees based on their contributions and the farm's overall performance; a workforce loan or sharing system developed with other industries could also be a solution; incorporating technological advancements and automation to streamline tasks and reduce the need for manual labor.

• Human resource management, incentive systems and financing benefits to retain e…

Recruitment and managing the workforce (or human resource management) is becoming more important in agriculture since an increasing number of farms have employees. Creating an attractive workplace is important for attracting and retaining staff. The aim should be to create a good working relationship between the employee and the employer. Good people management and communication is key.​                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
Offering a good work package is important, and should include things such as:

• Attract workforce/employee cooperation

Volatile profitability, low prestige of rural jobs, demographic issues, increasing milk replacer demand and an increasing number of policy regulations make dairy farming less attractive to young people for staying. This risks the supply security of milk products. There are elements of dairy farming that attracts young generation: these are the rural lifestyle, self-employment, working with family members and with livestock. Small farms are more exposed to succession problems than large farms due to the security of the livelihood. The most important is to have a comprehensive estate plan that outlines how the assets will be transferred. All generations requires financial security after the handover. Consider how the farm's income will be shared among generations. Early retirement offered by the state is also an option. Additional financial support, resettlement allowance, low interest rate loan for young farmers helps the succession. The process of the takeover is advised to be gradual, fitted to the capacity of the heir and to be completed by the age of 35-45 of the successor. There are practices such as encouraging the successor to gain experience outside the farm, internships, education, or work in related industries. Young farmer’s organizations are good for networking. There is an emotional element of the succession, especially if the older generation established the farm. Seeking the help of a coach specialized on the field is a good solution.

• Generational succession strategies, support and planning

Succession planning for dairy farms is a critical process, and the choice of the right financial model can significantly impact the farm's future. Key financial models:
- Installment sales: the successor can buy the farm in installments. This reduces the financial burden on the successor while providing a source of income for the current owner.
- Lease-to-Own: The successor leases the farm with an option to buy it. This allows the successor to build equity in the farm and gradually secure financing.
- Equity sharing: The current and future owners form a partnership and share ownership and profits. This helps the successor finance the purchase and allows the current owner to retain some control.
- Employee share ownership plan: The current owner sells the farm to a trust that holds the shares on behalf of the employees. The successor can purchase shares over time, facilitating a gradual transition of ownership.
- Gift and Estate Tax Planning: Farm ownership transferred to successor as gift or estate.
Main Recommendations:

• Finance models to facilitate succession

Training vets to provide advice on preventive measures for animals is essential for promoting their well-being. Such training should cover topics such as vaccination schedules, parasite control, nutrition and health assessment. The advantages of such training includes:
·         Improved animal health: Vets equipped with preventive knowledge can identify potential health risks early and address them proactively, thus leading to better overall animal health
·         Reduced treatment costs: Preventive measures often cost less than treating advanced illnesses, potentially reducing the incidence of the actual disease and reducing costs.
·         Improved animal welfare standards: Achieved through lower incidence and spread of disease.
However the disadvantages of such training of veterinary surgeons includes:
·         The initial training cost of preventive measures;
·         Time constraints which may limit some vets ability to attend such training courses.
We recommend that a minimum of one time-critical veterinary visit on prevention of diseases is carried out on farm. Such times include periods when dairy cows are being dried off or with sheep, during the pre-lambing period.

• Training of vets on advising on prevention methods

Prejudices circulate about modern agriculture. In order to dispel these, a group of Luxembourg's rural youth and young farmers took the initiative to communicate facts with objective articles and to engage in active public relations work. "Fro de Bauer" was initially a LEADER project, which led to a convention between the Ministry of Agriculture and "Fro de Bauer" coming into force in 2020, enabling all pupils in the relevant age group to take part in the project. The project aims to start awareness-raising in primary schools (Cycle 4). The main aim is to familiarize children with agriculture and its processes. Specialists have been hired for this purpose and the relevant lessons are integrated into the school lessons. The children are given an insight into the diversity of agriculture in a playful, serious and challenging way. In addition to theory, a trip to a farm is organized at the end of the school year so that the children can get an idea of the topics that were previously discussed at school. They should not only get to know the farm, but are also made aware of seasonal and regional products and labeling. It is not just the children who need to be cleared up, there is also a need to clear up adults. This is why "Fro de Bauer" actively participates in agricultural and ESD (Education for Sustainable Development) fairs in Luxembourg. They also regularly launch a campaign with large awareness-raising posters and now offer further training for teaching staff. 

• Re-educate and inform the (young) public about farming - "Fro de Bauer" (ask th…
• Re-educate and inform the (young) public about farming "Fro de Bauer" - LU

Many countries have state funded advisory services (e.g. Teagasc in Ireland).  Other countries have little or no such advisory services. A very effective form of advisory extension is a facilitated discussion group.  These generally comprise of around 12-15 farmers operating similar farming systems. The group will typically meet on a monthly basis on a member’s farm and discuss topical issues. In addition, farmers may wish to engage consultants and technical specialists directly to cover a range of issues, e.g. Farm business planning or animal health. The group structure allows the cost of engaging this specialist to be shared. Positive features: It allows for an unbiased view of the farm business and it can also help prepare plans to present to financial institutions and regulators. It gives the farmer confidence in their decision making and enables them to progress faster. Be care

• Engage advisory services / consultants to improve farm management

Farmers gather in peer groups for geographical or thematic reasons. They meet few times a year to share their experiences about practices and launch experiments with the help of a facilitator. They come to the meetings to work but also to share a nice moment with others and escape daily routine.
Those kinds of groups could be organized by technicians, engineers, advisors working in farmers’ support organizations who have technical and facilitation skills.
Inside peer groups, facilitator is in charge of:
- Logistics upstream
- Preparation on content beforehand
- Facilitation on D-day
Farmers of the group provide fuel for the discussion:
- Share tips to one another
- Reassure one another
- Share experiences about their difficulties, success and experiments
In brief, farmers are the ones having the answers, facilitators should be supportive, not prescriptive.
Organized support groups enable people to share personal experiences and ideas that push the whole group forward. Main benefits are group force, a support network for farmers to rely on, actions adapted to local context and social moments.
To keep a group alive over time be careful on the following points:
- Choice of facilitation methods
- Actions continuity and individual follow-up
- Dynamics within the group

• Peer groups of farmers to share technical skills, socio-economic knowledge and …
• Les groupes d'échanges entre éleveurs - FR

Personal development increases person’s resilience skills, and these skills enables to adapt to constantly changing and unforeseen circumstances and cope with the challenges that arise by making realistic decisions.
Specialized training, courses, seminars, practical sessions on farms and sharing good experiences of other farmers help to deepen knowledge and, at the same time, the understanding of how it could be applied in real life.
The attitude of the farmers themselves and their willingness to learn determines their resilience skills.

• Personal development on a wide spectrum of topics to increase resilience skills

Quality advisory services are the long-term foundation of success that contributes to the sustainability and operational success of a dairy farm.
Digital tools and data analysis help to realistically assess the situation of a specific dairy farm and make real decisions that are relevant and suitable for that farm.
Quality of advisory services are impossible without state support and cooperation with agricultural universities and research institutions. It should be noted that without state support, farmers' access to quality advisory services may be limited.
 

• Improve quality of advisory services

The Observatory of the Food Chain of the Basque Country, Behatoki, has defined the first average production costs of the primary sector. In order to carry out this work, it has been necessary to have extensive knowledge based on the study and monitoring of the operation of the agents, products and services that are part of the food chain in the Basque Country. In this process, the information and analysis that is systematically collected from the data, statistics and key prices of the different elements of the agri-food sector for their consolidation and control is particularly relevant. Among the essential services of the Behatoki is the cost observatory that aims to serve as a reference for the different agents of the Food Value Chain for the formation of prices throughout it, without, in any case, being interpreted as a minimum price fixing. To this end, the aim is to identify and analyse the structure of aggregation of costs and revenues along the different links that make up the sectoral food chain. As for the study of milk, it focuses on the calculation of the costs per liter of milk in the livestock link. The main results of the study are the following, despite the fact that the Factsheet is developed graphically: Milk production had a cost of €0.526/liter in March 2023. The total cost has increased by 25% since 2021 due to the increase in the cost of livestock feed, which rises by almost 7 cents. The opportunity cost of own labour represents 9.6% of total costs and the opportunity costs of own capital and land account for 3.1% of the total cost in March 2023.

• Creation of agrifood value chain transparency

The aim of this aid granted by the Basque Government, in the form of financial aid for the hiring of the person concerned, is to boost the incorporation of people into the agricultural sector and industry and the rural environment, by means of supervised activities typical of the agricultural or agri-food company, so that they are instructed in the management, operation and reality of the sector; achieving a transfer of knowledge. 
On the one hand, the beneficiaries can be young people (>18 and <41 years old) registered in the Gaztenek procedure (agricultural incorporation process in the Basque Country), or young livestock farmers or participants in the food and rural value chain. 
In addition, they have to present objectives within a business plan evaluated by Hazi (Basque admin.), which awards a score based on the profile of the beneficiary (young farmer > person over 41 years old), the coherence between the aid requested and the business plan, and according to the suitability of the applicant's profile.
On the other hand, the host companies must be located in the Basque Country, up to date with payments and have no links with the entrepreneur.
Thus, the applicant receives remuneration during this training (3 months max.), as well as comprehensive advice. They also acquire contacts and knowledge of the sector that will enable them to set up their own business or work in companies already established in the sector. 
Finally, the host farmer receives a grant to hire the trainee, which is a possible solution to the problem of generational replacement. Thanks to this process, they can transfer real knowledge based on experience in order to preserve the values of the sector. 

• Grants to promote knowledge dissemination, skills enhancement and opportunity i…

Over recent years the number of dairy farmers has decreased while the average herd size has increased.  Dairy farmers are now looking after many more cows per labour unit than in previous generations.  At the same time agricultural machinery has become much more expensive.  This makes contracting of machinery work an attractive option for dairy farmers.
The farmer generally has a relationship with one main contractor (although other contractors may be used for more specialist operations).
The main tasks carried out by contractors are: Silage making (mowing, tedding, raking, harvesting and ensiling).  Some farmers may do some of these operations themselves (most likely mowing)., Spreading of organic manures., Tillage work (e.g. ploughing, soil cultivation and sowing of grass reseeds and forage crops)., Application of plant protection products., Hedge cutting., Land maintenance and improvements (digger work).
Contractors can justify and afford much larger and more advanced machinery than the farmer, meaning that these tasks are completed faster and more efficiently that the farmer could with his own machinery.
It is vital that the farmer and the contractor maintain good and respectful communications.
Agree rates in advance and whether the contractor will use his own fuel or the farmer’s fuel.
The advantage of contracting is that it does not require investment by the farmer.
Contractors will tend to have much larger machines so the farmer may need to improve turn

• Outsourcing of General Contract work

Increased co-operation between tillage and dairy farmers can be beneficial to both parties. The benefits achieved depend on the arrangements made between both but include slurry transfer from dairy to tillage farms, contract growing of fodder or tillage crops for dairy farmers or the swapping of land between the tillage and dairy farms. How do you ensure the two farmers can work together?​
​
To ensure both farmers work together, it is important to;
1. Ensure that there is both parties are very clear about the objectives of the collaboration. ​Consider including a third party as a faciliatator in this discussion!

2. Plan interim meetings to review progress made and provide feedback on changing circumstances e.g. reduced yield expectations. ​

3. There should be a final meeting to review the outcome of the arrangement and look at how collaboration could be improved in any future arrangements between the two parties.​ The only real investment that is needed is perhaps the use of an independent facilitator or other experts when scoping out the collaborative arrangement.​

The use of a consultant, accountants etc. to assess how the initial objectives set aligned to the final results could also be helpful.​ A written document containing the details of what both parties will contribute to the collaborative arrangement is essential.

• Cooperation between tillage and dairy farmers

Stimulate cooperation between farmers saves or creates new resources. Pooling these resources helps to optimise the farm. This cooperation can take different forms and activate different levers.  It helps to make the farm more resilient
Main Recommendations:
Initiate and bring together several people to work on a project, then managing it to implement it, requires energy, conviction, know-how and interpersonal skills to listen and deal with the expectations of the group as a whole. 
From the outset, you need to set aside time to bring a collective project to life, by establishing clear rules of operation and governance. 
This cooperation can take different forms and cover several areas: 
• Governance: Bringing together several farms/partners with the same functions/responsibilities (investment, strategy, work) within a single legal structure (GAEC in France for instance). 
• To limit expenses - Joint investment: pooling purchases, buying equipment on a joint-ownership basis, setting up a Cooperative for the Use of Equipment.
• Technical : joint crop rotation, sharing technical skills, etc.
• Human/labour: setting up mutual support mechanisms, building mutual aid banks, creating a group of employer
Benefits to Farmers:
• Cooperation strengthens the links between actors within a community in a given area. 
• To organise projects collectively requires investment of time, but saves time in the long run.
• Joint investment means :
- more efficient equipment than that designed for one's own use

-access to equipment at a controlled cost

-renew equipment more regurarly

• Cooperation between farmers to optimize farm efficiencies
• GAEC des 2 vallées

Dairy farmers are now looking after many more cows per labour unit than previous generations.  In addition, farm sizes and the area needing to be harvested etc has increased resulting in the needs for larger machinery has become much more expensive.  This makes the use of contractors of fodder production an attractive option for dairy farmers.  The farmer generally has a relationship with one main contractor. Tasks that contractors can undertake include:  Tillage work (e.g. ploughing, making ready and sowing of grass reseeds and forage crops); Spreading of organic manures; Application of plant protection products; For grass silage swards mowing, tedding and raking; Harvesting (including transporting the forage to the farmyard and ensiling it (buckraking)).  Some farmers may to choose to some of these tasks themselves (most often this will be mowing and tedding). Contractors can justify and afford much larger and more advanced machinery than the farmer, meaning that these tasks are completed faster and more efficiently that the farmer could with his own machinery. It is vital that the farmer and the contractor maintain good and respectful communications. Agree rates in advance and whether the contractor will use his own fuel or the farmer’s fuel. The advantage of contracting is that it does not require investment.  Contractors will tend to have much larger mach

• Increased use of contractors for fodder production

Dairy farms are often at a crossroads: increasing the number of livestock, doubts about outdoor grazing, investing in automation, hiring staff, etc. Strategic decisions are often not sufficiently supported by figures because the consequences are often indirect, complex and difficult to estimate. For instance, expanding the herd not only requires extra land and extra labour but also influences the choice of labour input, manure disposal, rearing young stock and cultivation choices. At present, farm choices do not sufficiently take into account combinations of consequences because they too often focus on separate processes. The economic decision tool 'routeplanner dairy cattle' takes the interconnectedness of processes into account and provides an integral insight into business profitability for individual farms and also points out possible limiting factors in the current situation. The tool will lead the farm manager (and consultant) to new insights that can be taken into consideration when making strategic decisions. It will strengthen the justification for a final decision.

• Routeplanner Dairy cattle

Farmers may feel being managed in how to do their job as well as being piled under by rules and regulation leading to displeasure, unhappiness and resistance farmers at the expense of their relations with influencers, stakeholders, policy makers and society. Approaches that encourage collaboration, discussion and working on perspectives that are carried more broadly can help to steer and reach multi-stakeholders’ targets, wishes and desires. One such approach is applied in the Netherlands under the name ‘De Marke Model’. The model is based on ideas and wishes from farmers to collaborate with a regional network of responsible parties. The network in this model consists of parties such as dairy companies, banks and government. Collectively they are termed the ‘Council'. Once established, it can be expanded with other parties as well. Together,  a regional development plan is developed, setting targets on water, biodiversity, conservation agriculture and ammonia and nitrate emissions. Achievements result in farmers receiving predetermined rewards. The more, the greater the financial reward. This incentivizes farmers to work on these targets as part of their self-determined business development plan (BDP). In this manner farmers decides themselves on the targets and pace. The implementation of the BDP is further supported by  a farmers network that share knowledge, insights and experience.​ In The council can take up other roles by facilitating farmer

• Explore, align with stakeholders and develop opportunities to align with region…

The dairy market is very volatile and tightly  linked to global dynamics. To counter this,  farmers can sell their products directly to the final consumer, keeping the added value. Nowadays  technology are affordable and can  fit also  a small size dairy family farm business. Milk can be  sold as (1) liquid milk, that can be (1A) RAW MILK by using a dispenser, where consumers can bring their own recipient.
No processing on milk is needed; only refrigeration. NB: Selling raw milk is not permitted in all European countries!). Otherwise,  (1B) pasteurized milk can be sold ( in bottles or tetrapack boxes). In this case, consumers buy it from the vending machine or in the farm shops; pasteurized milk have a longer shelf life and therefore can be also  distributed to local shops. Alternatively, milk  can be (2) processed into fresh products, such as YOGHURT (milk fermented by Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus ) OF ICE CREAM. Moreover, milk can be (3) processed into CHEESE, that can be very different according to the production process

• Exploring the possibility of on-farm milk processing
• On Farm Milk processing - IT
• Milk processing and direct marketing on Mountain family farm

Many dairy farmers do not know enough about the level of costs and income on their dairy farms. This knowledge is essential to make correct management decisions. Instead of deciding on the basis of intuition, it is better to adjust the business operations based on correct own results. Not only the knowledge of one's own company is an added value here but also knowledge of similar companies. Through external comparison, strengths and weaknesses can be quickly identified and this knowledge can give rise to the right action. A management tool can include both economic and technical figures. Via an (online) management tool, all necessary parameters are entered. Both production costs, break-even point, profit of the company are calculated.
Technical key figures are also calculated because these will often form the basis for pursuing improvement steps both technically and economically. Through a visually powerful dashboard, the results are readily available in real time. These figures are the basis for tracking one's own progress on the farm and positioning the company against comparable companies. Both of these things are essential to judge whether you are doing well.

• Individual Farm KPI/Economic indicators including sectoral indicators for bench…

Grass based milk production is seasonal and results in peaks and troughs in cash flow for the farm business. Because of this, a cash flow planner will help farmers to manage their cash flow throughout the year better, improve their mental health and the resilience of their farm.
The creation of a good cash flow budget:
·         Allows farmers to better understand and plan their annual cash flow;
·         Being aware and ‘in control’ of their finances facilitates better mental health;
·         Helps farmers to identify peaks in cash flow;
·         Helps farmers to forecast when credit facilities are required.

• Managing cash flows

A2A2 milk is characterized by the  presence of A2A2 Beta Casein, which was originally present in bovine milk but over time it has been replaced by A1A1 variant, due to the genetic selection which occurred in dairy cattle. In the last few years, production lines of A2A2 milk have been created in several countries, valorizing this niche product. How can we obtain A2A2 herd? Firstly all the cows must be screened by analyzing individual milk. A2A2 cows are kept and inseminated with A2A2 bulls. The rest of the herd is gradually culled. At the same time, heifers can be tested through blood or hair analysis, which is more expensive than testing milk. Otherwise, to speed up the process, A2A2 cows can be bought in to replace non-A2A2 cows. This way is more expensive and farmers must take into account potential management and animal health issues that can occur.
The fact that A2A2 milk production is linked to a genetic selection, enables the farmer to “create” by her/his own this different product and to put in place a certification system at farm level would add further value to it. Be careful, that genetic selection to a full A2A2 herd can take years takes time and it can be difficult to combine A2A2 genetic selection with other genetic targets already in place in the farm. So it is a good practice to define with the farm vet/consultant a good genetic program to combine the A2A2 target with other targets, taking into consideration the available budget.

• Adding value to milk: the case of A2A2 milk
• Hay milk production

Community-supported agriculture (CSA) is a contract based partnership between farmers and consumers. The basic idea is that a fixed circle of consumers finances a farm and thus ensures their own supply of sustainable and high-quality food. It is an alternative socio-economic model of agriculture and food distribution that allows producers and consumers to share the risks of agriculture. The members advance money to the farmer for seeds, wages and agricultural equipment, decide together with the farmer what and how to produce and in return receive their share of fruit, vegetables, dairy products and meat.
Their are 4 main types of CSAs: farmer managed, shareholder managed, farmer cooperative and farmer-shareholder cooperative. CSAs have multiple advantages for the farmers, customers the environment and region.

• Community supported agriculture on dairy farms

Many farms have invested in fresh milk vending machines as a means of diversifying and getting more money for their milk.  While these can be very successful there are the lot things that need to be got right and pit-falls that need to be avoided.  Vending machines have been on the market for many years and are becoming increasingly popular.​  Most machines need the milk to be pasteurized before it is placed in the vending machine. While in some countries it is possible to sell raw (unpasteurized milk) this comes with a lot more requirements and is riskier​.  Farm location is also vital, as passing traffic is needed to generate a regular income and repeat buyers. ​ Vending machines close to tourist areas often do particularly well.  Farmers should make the area around the vending machine as attractive as possible.  Most farmers with a milk vending machine usually have a second machine which dispenses reusable glass bottles.​ They can also be used as an opportunity to sell other farm produce.   It may be necessary for the farm to become an “approved premises” for selling food under EC 853/2004. ​It is good practice to get a consultant to prepare a HACCP document.​  Many farms also use this as an opportunity to sell other goods at the same site.  Farmers also need to ensure that their current milk contract with their processor will allow them to sell milk direct

• On Farm Milk Sales
• Development of an organic cheese factory to adapt to the market
• On-farm milk processing and dairy products direct sales -PL