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Compared to the same month last year, milk solids sold is up 14% at Greenfield Farm and that is with about 60 less cows delivering milk to the tank.
Milk solids sales for October 2018 were 11,576kg milk solids compared to 10,005kg sold in 2017 for the month (+1,571kg MS (+14%)). In total, 115,660 litres were sold compared to 98,640 in 2017.
On average in 2017, there were about 340 cows delivering milk while this year the number is closer to 280. Meal fed per cow for the month was similar for both years.
For the 340 cows in 2017, about 31t of feed came into the farm. This year about 26t of concentrate came in for the 280 cows.
Good grass year
Remember, 2017 was an exceptionally good grass year in general compared to 2018. However, October 2018 was an exceptionally good October for grazing and growth rates.
In 2017, October grass growth averaged about 30kg per day while in 2018 this was closer to 50kg per day. What a year of extremes, capped off by a very extreme October in a positive way.
This week, the grass growth rate dropped to 6kg per day down from 27kg per day with grass cover per cow down to 330kg per livestock unit. About 65% of the farm has been grazed off in the last round.
The last milk test (29 Oct) shows a result of about 1.50kg of milk solids per cow for the 283 milking cows (15.5kg per cow at 4.57% protein, 5.49% fat). Cell count is at 193 SCC, 8 TBC and 4.63% lactose.
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