Page 69 - Demo

S H O R T H O R N
Dairy
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a speaker from Edinburgh university
on perils and benefits of import or
introduction of outside genetics in
small cattle breeding programs they
were using study and findings from
dairy breeds in Czech Republic
Followed by chief technology and
innovation manger from Geno
Norway talking about their breeding
program with an impressive 200,000
cows genotyped in the reference
population to allow 1500 bull calves
to being screened annually with
genomic testing then them taking
the top 10 through for their breeding
program.
Then chairman of Viking Red
who farms in Finland gave a talk
and update on what tools and
opportunities can be used to secure
future for red cows. Which led to
Jan Lassen who manages the project
from Viking, he’s based in Denmark,
to talk on the use of 3D cameras
in barns and a study on saved feed
index, he was able to elaborate on
findings so far. Which Red cows
were able to produce more meat and
milk off low energy feed compared
to Jersey and Holstein and also
how dairy cows in calf to beef lose
more weight than when having dairy
calves, they also require more feed to
maintain maintenance and condition
during pregnancy.
IRDBF AGM was held where president
Christina Paulsen-Schluter (Germany)
and Tanel Bulitko (Estonia) retiring
on rotation and Harvard Melbo Tajet
(Norway) and Lorenz Engelbrecht
(Germany) being voted to the board
and Morton Hansen (Denmark)
becoming Vice and Graeme Hamilton
(Australia) becoming President and
proposed for next conference to be
held in new Zealand in March 2026
to be organized by Russell Tocker
(me) with the idea to set aside two
youth scholarship to help two young
breeder or farmers under 35
assistance with travel costs attending
future conferences.
Then we were off on the bus tour of
the Baltic states. Firstly Estonia then
Latvia and Lithuania were treated to
visiting dairy farms with red cows and
a few tourist sites such as castles and
old stone building cities such as Riga
and Vilnius enjoying a river cruise as
well.
The countryside was flat absent
of any hills and mostly forested
with silver birch and pines. A few
marshland with cleared pockets
of farm land in which was mostly
in grain or Lucerne and some old
abandoned buildings along roadsides.
There wasn’t many villages or towns
in Estonia and as we moved south to
Latvia and Lithuania there were less
trees and just grain crops as far the
eye could see. No fences just up to
the road edge then were some rye
grass paddocks around for silage and
rape seed as well.
The soil in the North was quite
shallow sandy and crops didn’t look
to have the yields of the ones in
the South on more peaty and clay
soils. All the milking cows we saw
were housed all year round but
they looked very well cared for and
healthy. There were a lot of good
uddered cows with Red Holstein and
Viking bulls and some Ayrshire used
as well as local red bulls. A lot of the
farmers were breeding for better
hooves and udders saw one red cow
in Latvia that done over 1000ms,
there is a big market for export of
in calf heifers, farmers were getting
2000 euro per head.
The cow barns were all cubical
stalls for laying in and centre feed
passage on all farms. The barns were
old concrete structures built during
soviet time and still in use today. The
milking set ups were mostly double
up herringbones all farms were
managed by women as well.
The farm businesses were all 30
years old because that’s how long
it had been since Soviets had left
and private ownership allowed.
After WW2 all land owners had land
confiscated and sent to Siberia by
Soviets, all farms had vast array of
machinery ie combine harvesters
foragers tractors slurry spreading
and cultivation equipment really
impressive fleets. One farm had
6000 ha of arable land another
one had over 100 staff with 2
accountants!
Then last leg of my trip was to the
UK with a visit to the Kite family’s
Cotonhall dairy shorthorn herd in
Staffordshire. They milk 150 cows
with young stock kept down road on
different block calving all year round.
There were two big strong concrete
bull pens were up by cow shed
where bulls are kept and then let out
with herd when they up in yard for
mating. Beautiful countryside with
hedged paddocks, little lanes and
gentle rolling hills, sad to hear that TB
is an issue in the area.
The cows were out grazing when
Rob showed me round the milking
herd, he had some really impressive
older cows with big bodies and well
attached udders that really stood out.
A few younger cows Rob pointed
out were immature, these cows by
Illawarra bulls Rob says will mature
well in time. A big part of the Kites
farm business is selling surplus in-
milk heifers to supplement their milk
cheque and Rob puts a lot of effort in
to showing his cows to promote his
sales.
I like to thank all the hosts and
organizers of the conference the
hospitality we were shown was really
first class.
Paul Harrison
Paul Harrison
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