HEIFERMAX

I recently returned from working in Sabah, East Malaysia. The trip gave me the opportunity to gain an understanding of a dairy industry which is significantly different from many of the others I have seen in Europe, the U.S.A. & Canada.

Even the sub-tropical dairy industries in Florida and Queensland are significantly different from the industry in Sabah.

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Farmers often think that losing a few calves a year is not a big problem. In fact, dead calves are actually the tip of the iceberg. Related illness and poor feed conversion efficiencies & growth rates in surviving calves cost far more money than the value of the dead calves.

Heifers are going to cost money to rear; particularly when money is short, it needs to be spent where it will give the greatest return. Low milk prices often result in farmers attempting to save money by reducing the costs of calf feeds. Calves which are not adequately fed are more likely to become ill & die. Experience of large scale calf rearers would say that, in general, for every dead calf there are about 5 sick ones.

The death of only 2% of heifers reared is often viewed as a good result. The following illustration estimates the unseen costs and lost productivity associated with 2 deaths from a group of 100 calves. Using “middle of the road” figures based on a Holstein herd, the “iceberg” shows the hidden costs of economising on feed and other rearing inputs.

Whether the figures are exactly accurate for every herd is not important; the point is that by cutting costs to save cents now, the enterprise will be losing dollars both now and in the longer term. Long term productivity will certainly be compromised, possibly at a time when milk prices have risen and dairies are looking for maximum productivity to make up ground lost to poor prices.

The above illustration calculates the costs associated with sick calves and associated lost productivity to be a startling $53,340. Read more »

I am just writing the report required of me by RIRDC at the conclusion of my year as Tasmanian Rural Woman of the Year. In writing this report, I gave some thought to the question of what I perceived to be the greatest challenge facing the calf rearing industry.

I have seen 100’s of 1000’s of calves being reared for a variety of reasons, both within Australia and in other parts of the world. My belief is that the greatest problem facing the calf rearing industry is a common thread uniting these different enterprises and different countries.

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