Martin Merrick details the significant cost of converting a suckler farm to a milking robot farm on pages 36 and 37. The article clearly highlights where the huge increase in the cost of on farm investment has gone.

Fifteen years ago, €1,000 per cow would have gone a long way on slurry storage and cubicles, and now €1,000 per calf wouldn’t do a top spec calf shed. Taking the detail from this farm which had a five-bay slatted shed in situ and adjusting for a realistic stock purchase and reseeding cost, the total conversion cost comes in at between €9,000 and €10,000 per cow. The investment is significant and a clear plan is essential.

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