Publications

This Dairy Insight explores the critical role of the dry period and how managing it effectively can significantly impact herd health. Consider when and where to use medicines and vaccines to reduce associated risks of mastitis, in consultation with your vet.

Regardless of system type or grazing aims, with the right mentality it is possible to graze cows whilst milking through robots. In doing so, farmers could realise the benefits of a high-tech system, lower costs by getting more from grazed grass, and benefit cow performance and welfare. The key is to put the right infrastructure in place and focus on grass quality to drive robot visits. This Dairy Insight explores the potential benefits of rethinking your perspective on robots. We discuss the steps involved in adapting your farming system to accommodate grazing alongside an automatic milking system (AMS), outline some possible grazing systems suitable for AMS, and highlight key considerations before initiating your transition to grazing with robots.

Increased milking frequency, whether through a parlour or robots, is often considered as a means of maximising herd genetic potential and income. However, before making any changes it's essential to weigh up the pros and cons of different milking systems and calculate the impact on the milk cheque, staffing and long-term sustainability.

Are cows fidgeting during milking? Are liners slipping? Do you have a lot of 'slow milkers'? It's these types of observations that should form part of everyday parlour checks to establish if your set-up is working effectively; to ensure the health and well-being of the dairy herd, the quality of milk produced, and the overall efficiency of the milking process. Including: • Cow Health Monitoring • Milk Quality Assurance • Equipment Maintenance • Hygiene and Sanitation

Private water sources are a great way to lower water costs on dairy farms, but failure to routinely monitor and address water quality issues can lead to problems with udder health. As such, it's vital that any non-mains water sources used in and around the parlour are tested for bacteria levels every 6-12 months. This DAIRY insight looks at the risks surrounding private water supplies, how to monitor contamination and how to address any problems that arise.

Achieving good, natural cow flow in and out of the parlour will reduce frustrations in the pit and minimise cow stress. Less requirement to push cows in for milking will also reduce pressure on the feet and help foot health. The key is to ensure every aspect of management and cow environment is set up to make the most of the cow's natural behaviour. This DAIRY insight explores practical changes that you can make on your farm to improve cow flow at milking time.

Farmers aim for a quick efficient milking. But can milking be done too quickly? This DAIRY insight explores the concept of bimodal milking and what practical actions you and your staff can take on farm to reduce it, whilst speeding up the milking process. This insight includes a case study into changing milking routine to reduce bimodal milking.

This issue of DAIRY insight looks at the importance of keeping bacteria out of milk, from a farm, processor and consumer point of view. It examines the main causes of high bactoscans and provides solutions to issues seen on farm.

Expanding dairy export markets and increasing consumer interest means processors are tightening up on milk quality standards, which means an effective parlour circulation cleaning routine is more important than ever. This dairy insight looks at getting the most from your parlour chemicals: Why is a circulation clean so important? Achieving the optimum CIP How to […]

to the public is something that both industry organisations and individual farmers can – and many say, should – be doing. This insight publication looks at what initiatives are under way, and how producers can get involved. About Kingshay insight publications insight publications replace the Farming Notes which have been produced by Kingshay […]

Freezing Point Depression (FPD) is a test used to measure extraneous water in milk. The freezing point of milk is usually in the range of -0.512oC to -0.550oC with an average of -0.522oC. FPD is usually reported as a whole number, hence -0.522oC would be reported as 522moC. This insight publication looks at the factors […]

Well-designed collecting yards save time and reduce stress, whereas poor designs or improper cow handling will compromise cow flow and welfare.