Modern Dairies

March 21, 2012

A lot has changed in the dairy industry from the mid-20th century--and these changes have been occurring everywhere.  In a matter of a century, we have developed from self-sustaining families with a single dairy cow to specializing dairy farms with some farms taking care of herds of 100 or more cows.  Milking by hand quickly developed into milking machines of various types that can now be replaced with robotic milkers.  The trend in the United States has been pointing toward fewer dairies producing greater amounts of product.  This means better production techniques/genetics for the expanding dairy farms.  My family's dairy farm recently made an expansion to a larger size in 2006 with a new barn and milking parlor.

There are many factors that contribute to new technologies actually benefiting a farmer rather than sinking them into irreversible debt. The state of the economy, milk prices and the amount of renovations necessary all dictate how much a farmer can invest in his farm.  For example, robotic milkers are one of the latest technologies for dairy farms because they milk the cow and maintain a lot of the records so the farmer can be more proactive about other aspects of the cows health and spend more time with other farm activities.  In the county in Pennsylvania where I am from, there are six robotic milking units currently in use.  In Ireland, there are a total of four farms with robotic milking systems. This could be because they are financially unable to make that step or because they are a dairying system that predominantly relies on grazing.

 The link (below) is a video made by the The National Dairy Council of an interview about new technologies in Irish dairying.  The Murphy's farm is a four-generation, 53 acre dairy farm and they milk a 40 cow herd.

http://www.ndc.ie/about/tv.asp?movie=5

Today, Ireland’s dairy industry has regained its position in the forefront of world dairy

processors. With a turnover of €3.4 billion, €2.5 billion of which derives from exports,

and 7,000 direct employees, dairy processing is one of Ireland’s key exporting industries

again and one of our biggest employers. Furthermore, it supports 19,000 dairy farmers

and accounts for 30% of Ireland’s agricultural output.

Citations:

O’Callaghan, Eddie. (2011).  Minimising labour in milking.  Agriculture and Food Development Authority.  Retrieved March 21, 2012, from, http://www.teagasc.ie/publications/nlmc2000/paper1.asp

History of Dairying in Ireland. Irish Dairy Board. (2012).  Retrieved March 21, 2012, from, http://www.idb.ie/section/HistoryofDairyinginIreland

The National Dairy Council. (2012).  Retrieved April 9, 2012, from http://www.ndc.ie/