Newsletter
October 12, 2021

 

UK - Dairy industry urged to share GHG emission facts ahead of COP26

 

The dairy industry is being tasked to get behind a drive to spread accurate facts about greenhouse gas emissions from the sector ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow at the end of October (31st Oct). The RABDF has pulled together some key facts to highlight how little the UK dairy industry contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. The association asks individuals, key industry stakeholders, businesses, and organisations to push the messages within the industry and the wider public before, during, and after COP26.

 

The aim is to help inform of the actual levels of greenhouse gas contributions coming from the dairy industry and dispel many of the current myths. Matt Knight, RABDF Managing Director, said: "It is vitally important we come together as an industry and highlight what the UK dairy's contribution is to greenhouse gas emissions. As an industry, we are working so hard to reduce the levels, but often this is pushed back in our face when inaccurate facts are published. The dairy sector, along with other areas of agriculture, is often used as a scapegoat when it comes to emissions, with 'belching' cows regularly hitting the headlines in the national press.

 

"We anticipate UK agriculture will come under the spotlight at COP26, so we must be ready to make our story known and shout about the good work we are doing to reduce emissions from what is already quite a low level." Knight continued: "If everyone can share just one fact on social media, in their company newsletter, to a friend or in a conversation, for example, then that is at least one extra person that is better informed about emissions from the dairy industry."

 

The facts the RABDF is asking the industry to promote facts such as: Less than 3% of total UK emissions come from UK dairy farming; 46% of dairy cow emissions: Almost half of the emissions coming from the dairy cow is from their digestion - a perfectly natural process of ruminants. Producing milk efficiently: It takes 8 litres of tap water to produce 1 litre of milk or 158 litres of tap water to produce 1 litre of almond drink. UK milk emissions much lower than global average: The carbon footprint of a litre of British milk is around 1.25kg CO2e compared to a global average of 2.9kg CO2e per litre. UK dairy cows are some of the most climate friendly in the world: There are 278 million dairy cows worldwide. If they were all as efficient as UK dairy cows, we WOULD ONLY NEED AROUND 76 MILLION of them to produce the same amount of milk.

 

The RABDF has produced some draft social media posts, newsletter snippets, visuals and posters that are free to copy and paste from their website at www.rabdf.co.uk/emissions

 

 

UK - Very high concentrate levels do not always pay with feed-to-yield systems say AFBI

 

Dr Aimee Craig and Dr Conrad Ferris, Dairy Research Group, AFBI Hillsborough reports. 'Feed-to-yield systems,' in which concentrates are offered to individual cows according to their milk yield, are now common on local farms. In these systems cows are often offered a 'basal diet' (normally silage plus concentrates) to support the energy requirements of the cow for maintenance, plus a given milk yield (M+). Additional concentrates are then offered to individual cows to support milk yields above those supported by the basal diet. However, in recent AFBI studies examining feed-to-yield systems, milk fat percentage (and sometimes milk protein percentage) decreased at higher concentrate levels, and as a result, some of the potential economic benefits of these higher yielding cows were lost due to the lower milk composition payments. Consequently, the current study was conducted to provide a better understanding of how feed-to-yield systems operate on local dairy farms, and to examine the physical and financial performance of individual cows within these systems.

 

The study, which was co-funded by DAERA (through the Research Challenge Fund) and by AgriSearch, was conducted by AFBI on 31 local dairy farms from August 2018 to May 2019. Participating herds were predominantly Holstein-Friesian (18 herds were pedigree registered), and had an average annual milk yield and concentrate input of 8,800 kg and 2.9 tonnes per cow, respectively. On all farms concentrates were offered on a feed-to-yield basis.

 

The feeding approaches adopted differed across the farms. On the majority of farms cows were offered a basal ration containing both forage and concentrate ingredients, prepared using a mixer wagon, with additional concentrates offered using in-parlour and out-of-parlour feeding systems. However, on seven farms cows were offered a forage only basal ration, with additional concentrates normally offered using in-parlour and out-of-parlour feeding systems. All farms adopted a concentrate 'build-up' period following calving, before moving onto a feed-to-yield approach. While most farms had started offering concentrates on a feed-to-yield basis by day-30 post-calving, on three farms this did not happen until at least day-60 post-calving. In addition, the feed-rate settings for the concentrate feeders varied between farms. While the majority of farms used a feed-rate of 0.45 kg concentrate/kg milk, five farms used a feed-rate lower than 0.45, while two farms used a higher feed-rate.

 

As concentrate intakes increased, total dry matter intake also increased, as expected. However, silage intakes stayed relatively constant across a wide range of concentrate levels, and did not fall off as might have been expected at higher concentrate levels. As concentrate intakes increased, milk fat % decreased on the majority of farms, while milk protein % was relatively unaffected by concentrate intake. A further examination of the data indicated that 56% of the reduction in milk fat content could be explained by cow genetics, while the remaining 44% of the reduction was likely explained by the effects of diet. This suggests that with higher yielding herds, farmers have placed a greater focus on milk yield than on milk composition when selecting sires.

For full press release contact sharon.spence@afbini.gov.uk

 

 

UK - Review your farm business says AHDB

 

With reductions in BPS payments beginning this year, taking a wait-and-see approach isn't an option for farmers and growers who rely on this income. AHDB's Farm Business Review service, funded by the Defra Future Farming Resilience Fund, is designed to help those most affected by the move away from direct payments prepare for the biggest agricultural policy shift in a generation. Aimed at dairy, beef, sheep and cereals and oilseeds producers across England, this free and impartial service provides expert advice and an online self-assessment tool to support farm businesses through this transition period and help you prepare for a prosperous future.

 

UK - 48% of farmers see the removal of BPS payments as having the biggest impact on-farm

 

Recent research has found that 48% of farmers believe the removal of BPS payments by 2028 will have the biggest impact on their farm business going forwards.The poll carried out by the National Farm Research Unit (part of the Map of Ag Group) on behalf of the Institute of Agricultural Management (IAgrM) asked farmers about the biggest issues they will face in the next three years, as part of the lead up to the IAgrM National Farm Management Conference in November."We wanted farmers to be involved in shaping the conference this year," says John Giles, Institute of Agricultural Management council member.

 

"Ending of BPS payments was way out in front in the results, with increased restrictions on input use and ability to achieve net zero carbon targets and the impact of climate change coming in second and third respectively. It's interesting to hear that this is such a focus, as the main aim of the conference is to look ahead to transitioning into life after direct payments. Rather than just talking about the issues, we've taken it a step further to look at life beyond this and what skills and solutions are needed to get ready for this momentous change," says Giles.

 

The conference entitled 'Agriculture 2028: Transitioning to Life Beyond Direct Payments' is to be held at the QE II Centre in London on 16th November. Sessions will focus on the gaps that need to be bridged by the industry to reach success after 2028.

 

Book your tickets on the IAgrM website: www.iagrm.com/conference

 

 

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UK - Dairy farm profits a credit to producers, says Old Mill

 

Dairy farm profits averaged £185/cow in 2020/21, despite the cost of production outstripping milk income, according to Old Mill's Annual Dairy Report.

 

The Milk Cost of Production Report - conducted by rural accountant Old Mill and the Farm Consultancy Group - found that average farm profits fell from £233/cow in 2020/21 to £185/cow last season. "This is on the back of a falling milk price, rising feed costs and straw prices at levels not seen before," says Dan Heal, rural adviser at Old Mill. "So maintaining profits to this level is all the more credit to the dairy industry."

 

It was the fourth year in a row that profits remained stable above £100/cow, as increased yields offset the fall in milk price. Average yields rose by 151 litres/cow due to a favourable milk to feed ratio and good quality forage. However, the total cost of production - at £2,393/cow - averaged more than the milk income of £2,321/cow. This loss was offset by a recovery in non-milk income due to the improved beef market. Herd size has also shrunk - from 307 to 269 - after farmers culled their less productive animals harder. The top 10% of producers still far outperformed the bottom 10%, due to tighter control on costs, explains Heal. "The bottom 10% incurred £1,097/cow more costs, spending an average of £2,954/cow." This gap had widened on the 2019/20 average of £950/cow. "Though overall profitability has declined from last year, the gap between the top and bottom performing herds has significantly widened."

 

The top 10% spent £320/cow less on feed and £261/cow less on labour than the bottom 10%, whilst income brought in was £231/cow higher. This is despite the top farms producing lower yields of 7,229 litres per year against the bottom farms' average of 7,483 litres. "There is a huge range of production level within the top 10%; from 4,828 litres/cow to 9,711 litres/cow, showing that a focus on efficiency pays whatever the yield," Heal adds. "Less efficient setups likely require investment to change this."

 

Though organic farmers are excluded from the top versus bottom 10% statistics, their performance has been variable, with some producing within the top 10% of conventional farms and others in the bottom 10%. Overall, labour costs have increased by £27/cow, up from £458/cow in the 2019/20 season. This trend is likely to continue due to staff shortages and higher wages, according to Mark Yearsley at the Farm Consultancy Group.

 

Power and machinery costs also rose, by £19/cow to £543/cow. "This is no surprise when fuel and energy prices have increased," says Yearsley. "This is reflected in the silage costs, which have jumped by 42%." In the 2021/22 season, labour, energy and machinery costs are expected to continue to rise, so profits are predicted to fall to £167/cow, especially as the marginal litres become uneconomical to produce, explains Heal. The cost of production is projected to be £2,354/cow against a predicted milk income of £2,165/cow, down £66/cow as yields decline due to higher feed prices.

 

To download your copy of the report go to om.uk/insight/milk-cost-of-production-report-2021.