Goodbye silage, hello hay - A Dutch farmer switches to hay milk
Dairy farmer Harold Dubbink has invested in a hay drying system. He is one of the first Dutch farmers to produce hay milk. Maize and grass silage are the main components of Dutch dairy cattle rations. This is still the case on Harold Dubbink’s farm. To produce 100 kg of milk, the farmer feeds his dairy cows two thirds grass silage, one third maize silage and an average of 21 kg of concentrated feed via the concentrate feeding station and the milking robot. The traces of the silage cutter can be seen on the inwardly curved cut surface of the grass silage in his silage clamp. The farmer lifts the top layer and says: “The silage has already warmed up again here. There are always problems in summer. Mould and reheating mean up to ten percent feed loss and endanger the health of the herd.” That is why Harold Dubbink has decided to convert his farm. In a year’s time, he only wants to feed grass – fresh or dried.
Health has priority
Above all, Dubbink hopes for lower veterinary costs and better fertility. His herd’s calving interval is currently 421 days. The farmer cites ketosis and heat stress as the reasons for this. He has been using a three-breed cross for six years. Only a few of the purebred Holstein cows are still in the high stalls in the cubicle barn. The young cows are crosses with Brown Swiss and Norwegian Red or Simmental cattle. “These crossbreeds are somewhat meatier, but also have milk.
The big advantage is that they are more resistant,” explains Dubbink, pointing to a shiny black calf with red horns and a white muzzle, which is currently trying to find the best morsels in the mixed ration at the feed table. There are still silage maize plants on seven hectares of his fields. For the last time, because the farmer kept noticing undigested corn kernels in the liquid manure. This annoyed Dubbink, as his cows excreted the valuable nutrients undigested. The farmer looked for alternatives.
Getting more out of the grass
The farm has been smelling of hay since June. The two 215 m² hay boxes in the 65 meter long and 25 meter wide hall are full. The harvest took three days in each case. Depending on the forage density, between 30 and 45 hectares fit into one of the hay boxes planned by LASCO. On sunny days, the roof extraction system provides around 400 kWh of heat, while on cloudy days this task is performed by two biomass hot-air ovens with a heat output of 300 kWh. A high-performance fan then forces the warm air through the haystack, which is up to six meters high The farmer proudly lifts the chipboard lid out of the side wall and pulls out a sample by hand. He smells it. “This hay should improve the health of my cows,” the farmer hopes. He has invested 600,000 euros in the hay barn with hot air oven, roof extraction system and hay crane. “40 percent of this was subsidized because I opted for an environmentally friendly solution with wood pellets instead of heating oil and I can also do without the annoying silage films,” he explains. Five years ago, Dubbink started looking into how he could get the nutrients from the grass into the cow with as little loss as possible.
In the process, he came across hay feeding and visited farms with hay drying systems while on vacation in Tyrol. Construction work began in February of this year. Since then, his eleven-metre-high hall has become a talking point. Few of his colleagues can understand his move. They all make silage milk. From their point of view, there is no reason to switch. There is no premium for hay milk. “Not yet,” replies Dubbink. He supplies his milk to Cono Kaasmakers, who use it to make cream for ice cream and cheese. Dubbink is one of around 450 suppliers to this cheese dairy in North Holland. “Small cheese dairies can also produce specialties in small batches. We have already talked about a hay milk supplement,” says the farmer optimistically. He has committed to participating in his dairy’s “Caring Dairy” animal welfare project, which includes eight hours of grazing 180 days a year. Instead of the current market price of 35 cents/kg milk, he now receives 41 cents net.
Make an additional cut
In future, the farmer expects to be able to make an additional cut on high-growth areas. Previously, he silaged five cuts a year. The contractors arrived with two push-off trailers and heavy equipment for compaction to fill the flat silos. He says: “With the hay drying system, I am more flexible and independent and can also mow parts of the field earlier.”
Dubbink brings the dried hay home himself with the loader wagon to distribute it loosely and evenly in the drying boxes. Less loss of quality, an additional cut – these two factors also make Dubbink think about selling hay to neighboring farmers in the future. He wants to be a pioneer with his farm, because the advantages of hay feeding could also convince other farmers in the Netherlands. He says: “Rental prices are between 800 and 1,000 euros per hectare, regardless of whether it’s arable land or grassland. Everyone wants more and more land, but there are too many farmers here. In addition, the silage piles are getting higher and higher and the desired feed rate of two meters per week can no longer be achieved.”
In addition, hay milk also has a good image among customers and could also become an interesting niche product with good added value in Holland. By Karin Ch. TAFERNER, LANDWIRT editor, Photos Lasco and Taferner