"We would make the same investment again today."
Who?
Dirk and Michael Schröder
Dairy farmers
Where?
Jürgenstorf, Germany
About the farm
- Dairy and crop farm
- 500 dairy cows - 410 lactating animals - and 600 young stock (Holsteins and Canadian-Frisians)
- Youngstock pastures at the end of the year
- 10,000 kg per cow, with over 4% fat and 3.43% protein
- 13 full-time employees
- 1,000 hectares of land
Nedap solutions
Results
Schröder brothers:
"If we had to make the choice again today, we would make the same investment."
Reliable heat detection, better overview of the cows, significant labor savings and satisfied personnel – for brothers Dirk and Michael Schröder those are the benefits of Nedap COWControl™ with Heat Detection and Health Monitoring in a nutshell.
“If we had to make the choice again today, we would make the same investment.” The Schröder brothers took over the company from their father in 2014. He had 500 cows and 600 young stock and used 60 tags from a different vendor, but only on the cows with hard-to-detect signs of heat. The company also used the old-style Nedap ISO transponders for cow identification. “After 25 years they were due for replacement,” say the brothers.
Know your herd
Nedap COWControl™ was an easy choice
The brothers wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to expand the heat detection system. Because they had always been happy with the Nedap transponders and the local installer, their choice was quickly made.
“You just switch it on and it works”
The installation went quickly and smoothly, says Michael Schröder. “A big advantage of this system is that you just switch it on and it works. We visited several other farmers who have the Nedap system, and without exception they were pleased about how easy it is to use.”
According to the brothers, one of the biggest advantages of Nedap Heat Detection with Health Monitoring is that all the information can also be viewed online. “We now have a much better overview of the entire herd, and it also allows us to monitor the pregnant animals,” they say. “For us, it is really a herd management control system.”
Nedap COWcontrol ™Savings on personnel costs:
Full return on investment within three years
The brothers already earned back a large part of the investment in Nedap COWcontrol™ with Heat Detection because the fertility management can now be done by one person, whereas it used to take two employees. “Based on the reduction in personnel costs alone, we will certainly have recuperated the investment within three years,” says Michael. “Our herd manager can now keep track of 600 cows on his own, and it takes him less time than he used to spend.”
If they were to consider just the improvement in fertility rates (i.e. without the labor cost reduction), the Schröder brothers estimate they would recoup the investment in ten years. Therefore they certainly recommend the system to their fellow farmers. “If you were to ask us now whether we would make the same investment all over again, I would definitely say ‘yes’. I wouldn’t change a thing,” Michael says.
The Nedap Smarttag Leg eliminated hassles
“And don’t forget the pleasure factor,” adds Dirk. “Our employees find that the new Smarttag and the new milking parlour have eliminated a lot of the hassles from their work. The cows are identified correctly, and with the accurate heat detection the milkers can easily select the animals that need to be separated. That keeps things running smoothly and reduces stress in the milking parlor.”
Your farm is unique
About the Schröder farm
The dairy and crop farm run by brothers Dirk and Michael Schröder in the northern German town of Jürgenstorf (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania) has 500 dairy cows (410 lactating animals) and 600 young stock. The young stock are released to pasture at the end of the year, and that is also where they are inseminated.
The Holsteins, milked twice daily, give an average annual milk production of 10,000 kg per cow, with over 4% fat and 3.43% protein. The barns date from the late seventies and were built in various styles: Russian, Czech and GDR type L203. The parlour is a 2×16 herringbone arrangement with Nedap Milk Yield Recording and Nedap Sorting and Routing via a walk-over antenna.
The dairy section of the business operates with 13 full-time employees. Eleven are assigned specific tasks: feeding, milking and care for the young stock or the youngest calves. There is also an accountant and a herd manager who is mainly responsible for the fertility and reproduction. The brothers have found that with the introduction of Nedap Nedap COWControl™ with Heat Detection, fertility can easily be managed by just one person, even with 500 cows and 600 young stock.
The farm also has 1,000 hectares of land. In addition to corn and grass, they raise wheat, barley and sugar beets. Since they took it over in 2014, the farm has been run by the two brothers, who in addition to the dairy and crop farm also run a bio-gas plant.
Milk Yield Recording
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