Farmers Share Ideas To Boost Milk Profits At Springfield Dairy Grazing Conference CONTINUED FROM PAGE 18


has 740 cows divided into two milking herds. Their milking herds and farm is one of five Grasslands Dairies owned by New Zealanders near Grandby, Mo. “We came from New Zealand to apply


the best of what we knew,” Grant Chadwick said. “But, we’ve learned Missouri is more extreme. The winters are colder and rainfall less reliable.” The couple is working toward owning their own herd. Their farm has 4.5 employees. The next stop was at Friend Heifer


Ranch, in Aurora, Mo. Some 3,000 heifers are raised for the milking herds of the other Grasslands dairy farms. “We take the management stress and labor of raising heifers from the managers of the other farms,” said Jock Fulton, operations manager for Grasslands LLC. The heifers are raised, bred and re-


turned to their home farm within two months of calving, at the age of 22 months. About 70 percent of the heifer diet is grass, however, corn silage in- creases dry matter intake of the grow- ing


calves. The heifers are


synchronized for artificial insemina- tion. At


the opening session, Tony


Rickard, of Monett, Mo., University of Missouri Extension dairy specialist and co-host, said, “Until just over three weeks ago, we thought we would be welcoming you to Joplin, Mo. But, that devastating tornado changed our plans.” Later in the conference, Rickard told how more dairy farmers are adding


grazing to their feed sources on con- ventional dairy farms. Management- intensive rotational grazing systems help reduce feed costs. Cost reduction becomes important


as feed costs have risen and milk prices have dropped. Opening day, Jay Waldvogel, vice


president for international develop- ment at Dairy Farmers of America, told of a world of opportunity awaiting dairy producers. “You have a product that consumers


want,” he said, referring to milk from grass-fed cattle. As world populations gain more in-


come, the first thing people want is high quality protein. They want milk and cheese. “The first thing a mother in a third-world country will buy with her first dollar is milk for her chil- dren.” Denis Turner spoke twice at the con-


ference about raising dairy replace- ment heifers. Then he invited attendees to stop at his farm, Heifer Haven near Hartville, Mo., for a tour on their way home. He contracts with other producers to


give the intensive care needed to grow replacement heifers that will go back into their milking herds. “About 25 percent of a dairy farm budget is tied up in replacements,” Turner said. “We want to improve the efficiency of that investment.” Turner changed his career in 1994-


95 after cooperating in an on-farm ro- tational


grazing demonstration


organized by MU Extension special- ists. He found a needed niche in heifer


development. With synchronized AI breeding, he


develops a more uniform set of re- placement heifers. The AI genetics from superior sires add value to the customers’ milking herds. All speakers told a common theme:


the importance of management for in- creased growth. Charles Fletcher, Purdy, Mo., de-


scribed his forage measurement tools. A rising-plate meter calculates stand- ing dry matter content in each of 52 grazing paddocks used to feed his 320-cow herd. The other part is a computer model on the MU Extension dairy grazing website that shows him


a “grazing wedge” of the growth stage in each paddock. “I used to run around on a four-


wheeler looking at paddocks,” he said. “Now the grazing wedge shows me which paddock is ready to graze next.” He turns his cows into a fresh pad-


dock after each milking. “I can re- member where the paddocks are, but can’t remember the growth in each one.” All farm speakers remarked on the


changes in their farm management after switching to dairy grazing. Meier said the single biggest change


he saw was on the face of his banker. “He lost that worried frown.”


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