The pasturing cows are fed twice a day with a feedmixer.


The farm is a former LPG (agricultural production coopera- tive), and the buildings are erected in typical GDR style.


Ohne Gentechnik) milk and another extra cent for our 3,000,000kg quantity. When milk prices are very high, this premium is not enough compared to Holstein milk, but that only happens one in every five years.”


Pasture There are several reasons for pasturing. One is cost reduction: “Cows are the best mowers and loaders ever.” Just as impor- tant is the soil type. The 450 hectare plot consists of 230ha of peat soil, which is not suitable for anything other than grass cultivation. The other 220ha consist of poor and drought-sen-


All dairy cows except the fresh and dry cows pasture from April until October.


sitive sandy soil. This is only suitable for arable farming, so the farm cultivates 90ha of silage maize, 50ha of rye, 50ha of bar- ley and 30ha of alfalfa. It’s not for sale though; everything is added to the cows’ and youngstock’s rations. “The only things we buy are some rapeseed and minerals.” The crop yields are very volatile. The soil has only 18 soil points. Hardly anywhere in Germany has soil worse than this. As a re- sult, the lease rate is about € 150/ha. It sells for € 8,000/ha. Because of the varying yields, it is sometimes necessary to buy feed. “At the end of 2017, we had sizeable supplies, which we fed in 2018. In the even drier 2019, we bought


▶DAIRY GLOBAL | Volume 7, No. 4, 2020 9


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