Description
- Setting up a new grassland farm
- Focusing on higher production and lower costs
- Setting up a 2nd milking platform- grazing infrastructure
- Increase output on the farm
- Justifying an extra labour unit, benefit from economies of scale and produce more milk from grass
- Bank loan repayments
- More milk being sold to the co-op
- Economic results
- Good support team- advisors, discussion group, bank
- Job satisfaction for the farmer
- Pasturebase Ireland
Reason for the innovation
Produce more milk from grass
- Justifying an extra labour unit, benefit from economies of scale and produce more milk from grass
- More milk being sold to the co-op
- Good support team- advisors, discussion group, bank
Farm description
Environment
- Soil type: Clayey-loam
- Climate type: Oceanic Temperate Climate
- Agricultural area (ha UAA): 170
- Permanent grassland area (ha) : 170
- Average stocking rate (agriculture area) (LU/ha UAA): 2.9
- Altitude: Variation across the farm (200m)
- Slope: Variation across farm (20%)
Grassland management
- Grazing: Yes
- Grazing management type: Rotational grazing
Structure
- Main animal type: Dairy
- Total Livestock unit (LU): 380
- Breed type 1: Fr*Je
- Breed type 2: Fr
Animal performance
- Milk production per head (l/year/dairy animal): 5300l
- Grassland management type: Rotational
- Length of grazing period: 260-270 days
- Fertilization rate (kg N/ha): 240
Why it is working
- Setting up a 2nd milking platform- grazing infrastructure
- Increase output on the farm
- Justifying an extra labour unit, benefit from economies of scale and produce more milk from grass
- More milk being sold to the co-op
- Economic results
- Good support team- advisors, discussion group, bank
- Job satisfaction for the farmer
- Pasturebase Ireland
