‘OAD can be as profitable as twice-a-day milking, but has to be done well’

COMPARISON of the Pioneering Once A Day in Ireland (POADII) group average herd with the average herd in the Glanbia area has put OAD into perspective for the discerning dairymen.

Fat percentage at 4.81pc, protein of 3.90pc, and milk price of 32.2 c/l in 2016 outperformed the Glanbia averages at 4.11pc, 3.51pc, and 27.6 c/l respectively, while SCC was slightly higher than the Glanbia average of 165 at 197 and milk solids at 357kg slightly lower than Glanbia’s 372kg.

These facts were presented at the open day by Brian Hilliard from Teagasc, Dungarvan, who, with three other Teagasc advisors, are providing specialist advice on OAD.

His belief that there is considerable potential in the system was reinforced by interest at the first national conference on OAD at The Horse and Jockey Hotel, Co Tipperary earlier this year.

The conference in January, which was planned for 80 farmers, attracted an overflow attendance in excess of 200.

“OAD can be as profitable as twicea-day milking under good management, but it has to be done well. Higher milk price is adding up to 5 c/l from the higher fat and protein, while lower labour demand is reducing the cost of production,” he explained.

“Grassland management is very important. If cows on OAD go back (in production) because of bad grass and so on, it is hard to get the yield back up again,” he said.

He pointed out that there is also an advantage for cows where a long walk to pasture is involved with less walking contributing to virtually no lameness in herds on OAD.

His advice is that it is mainly for very good dairy farmers and will not suit everyone, but there are many it will suit — and a big increase in uptake can be expected as the benefits become more obvious.

Yield drop

“Expect the cows to drop a lot (in yield) the first year, but it will bring up some of the loss by the improved milk solids which can be worth about 5 c/l on average,” he says.

“OAD must be planned for well in advance and it is not something to decide overnight,” he added.

Twenty-five OAD herd owners nationwide have now formed their own discussion group known as POADII, meeting four times a year. Three of the meetings are on the farms of members and the fourth at a central venue for overall discussion.

The members are scattered over Kerry, Cork, Wexford, Wicklow, Mayo, Galway, Clare and Sligo, mostly with a range of herd sizes but a lot in common to support each other.

In addition, they now have a WhatsApp group for almost daily contact, advice and solutions.