North Cork Co-op, in conjunction with Teagasc, has set up a joint programme with six demonstration farms to get more measurement and better technical management onto dairy farms in its catchment area.

North Cork co-op is one of the smaller co-ops in the country with 135 suppliers and, traditionally, liquid milk production would have been a large part of the product mix. Liquid milk has become less and less of a focus for the co-op of late.

Recently, they opened a new spray drier producing skim milk powder for the Irish Dairy Board and private sales, so more and more milk fat and protein is what North Cork Co-op are looking to source from suppliers. As part of the strategy to increase milk solids produced, the co-op is subsidising its suppliers with cheaper AI straws for nominated sires that fit a target.

The North Cork region is a high rainfall area and the majority of the farms have a portion of heavy soils compared with drier areas of Co Cork. However, some farms have a good proportion of dry soils and this new programme is aimed at maximising growing and grazing grass on dry land at the shoulders of the year rather than planning to stay in on silage.

This year, Teagasc in conjunction with North Cork co-op will hold three farm walks to highlight some of the issues the new programme will focus on.

The first farm walk took place last week on the farm of Martin and Anna O’Riordan who farm with their son, James.

James, a qualified civil engineer was working in London until his father Martin broke his leg in early 2012 and he came home to help out on the family farm. James also works part-time with the Eurogene AI company.

James Fleming, Teagasc Kanturk, spelled out the programme focus: “Every year, we look at the active bull list and select targets for AI sires based on milk fat, protein and calving interval. We are looking for sires that have a minimum fat and protein percentage of 0.15 for each and a minimum of 10kg fat and 8kg protein with at least minus six days in calving interval.”

Obviously, breeding is a slow burner but a worthwhile focus.

James went on to explain the plan for getting more grazed grass in. He said: “Within the catchment area there are farms, like the one we are on today, that are using more grazed grass. There is room to improve on some farms. This year, Martin and James were getting a few hours of grass into cows on 27 February. This is much later than normal for this farm but given the exceptional rainfall in February, it is still good.”

Milking platform

Martin and James have a 64ha milking platform of mixed heavy and dry soils and, up until recently, have been milking 80 cows. The farm is elevated and exposed, looking right down onto Millstreet and Rathmore, between 550ft and 600ft above sea level.

Up until recently, they were stocked very lightly but now that a plan has been developed to increase cow numbers to 130, they are going to invest in growing more grass. This involves improving soil fertility, drainage and making better use of the 64ha grazing block.

The O’Riordans will milk close to 105 cows this year and at last week’s farm walk, all but one cow had calved. There are 33 maiden heifers for breeding, so the target to milk almost 130 cows next year is realistic.

The increased cow numbers will mean more and more of the heavy land must come up into the grazing area.

Up to recently, they had such a low stocking rate they could afford not to graze this area of the farm in spring and, instead, close it for silage or not push it to grow grass.

James Fleming said at planned stock numbers they need to be growing at least 12t of grass per hectare, even with feeding up to 800kg of meal per cow. This will mean more investment in soil fertility.

Soil analysis

Soil analysis results show 30% of the farm at Index 2 for phosphorus or potassium. The remainder is Index 3 and 4 with pH status relatively good with over 60% of the farm between 6.1 and 6.6 pH.

Drainage will need to be improved on about one third of the farm and, already, James and Martin have cleaned out existing open drains to help drain water away faster.

When cleaning existing drains last year, they exposed old stone drains underneath paddocks that released huge volumes of water from the land.

They estimate that they need more drains in between the old existing stone drains and perhaps some gravel mole drains where the topsoil is heavy and won’t let the water off the surface fast enough.

Another portion of the farm is old pasture and needs to be reseeded. With two labour units now working on the farm almost full time, there is the capacity to compete this work and get paddocks growing more grass.

Last year, the O’Riordans built a new slatted cubicle house, which also increased feeding space and a new farm roadway was installed.

As discussed, some drainage was also completed. Rome wasn’t built in a day but when the plan is in place, money will be spent on high return areas as the O’Riordans are showing. Weather will dictate reseeding and drainage but there are plans for more in the autumn.

OVERALL PROGRAMME

There are six demonstration farms and the plan is to hold three farm walks per year – in April, June and September. All monitor farms will have the profit monitor completed, soil sample results, will be members of HerdPlus (ICBF) and all will be milk recording. The programme will run for three years. The co-op are also offering incentives for its suppliers to complete soil analysis, start milk recording and to use AI bulls which meet the targets set out.

The cows are out day and night, weather permitting. Last week’s walk was preceded by heavy rain and meal feeding had increased to 7kg per cow per day with cows in at night again on some silage but, this week, the cows are out grazing and are back to feeding 3kg of meal per cow daily. Already, 58 units of nitrogen have been spread and the first round won’t finish until 20 April even with the cows out day and night and no silage in the diet – weather permitting. Cows started calving on 16 January and all bar one cow had calved by week 11. The farm cover is 583kg and, for the first round of grazing, there are 52.5ha available to the cows. They had 44% of the farm grazed and 56% still to graze last week. The cows were milking 27.5 litres at 3.29% protein and 3.99% fat (2.06kg MS) with SCC at 122,000 cells/ml. Production was also very good. The herd supplied 468kg MS/cow on 1.1t of meal per cow and grazed grass. This was 5,956 litres per cow at 3.54% protein and 4.07% fat.

The EBI of the herd is €139 (31 milk/90 fertility), which is short of the best herds that are around €200 EBI but there are 33 maiden heifers with an EBI of €173 waiting to come in.

Herd fertility is excellent and the six-week calving rate was 83% with a 365-day calving interval.

Also at the walk, some of the suggested AI sires that meet the plan for the programme to increase solids and fertility were discussed.

The bulls selected include WLY, GXY GKW, TRW, AKZ, PMN, AKZ, YRC, WXE, EEZ and KJT.

Con Drew, of North Cork Co-op, said that for the average 60-cow herd in North Cork, there was a difference in output of €10,900 between the best and bottom performers and most of this was due to better milk solids.