Abstract
Milking 3 times in 2 d (3-in-2) could enhance the attractiveness of the dairy workplace relative to twice-a-day milking (TAD) by reducing labor requirements for milking and increasing workforce flexibility. The objective of this study was to quantify the farm system interactions associated with milking 3-in-2 at 3 stages of lactation, with the aim of providing guidance to pasture-based dairy farmers and advisors on the likely consequences of adopting 3-in-2 milking on farm productivity and business performance. Seventy-nine multiparous and 37 primiparous cows were randomly allocated to 4 experimental farms stocked at 3.5 cows/ha. One herd was milked TAD for the whole lactation (August 2019 to May 2020), with the remaining 3 milked 3-in-2 for either the whole lactation, after December 1 when cows were an average of 101 d in milk, or after March 1 when days in milk averaged 189 d. Milking intervals over 48 h were 10-14-10-14 h for TAD and 12-18-18 h for 3-in-2. Animal, pasture, and farm system data were analyzed by linear regression, with the dependent variable being the annualized value of the performance metric of interest, and the number of days in the lactation milked 3-in-2 as the independent variable. For the proportion of the season milked 3-in-2, there was a significant effect on milk (-11%), protein (-8%), and lactose (-12%) yield per cow per year, but no effect of fat. Additionally, there was a positive effect (+6%) on body condition score before dry-off and the energy required for liveweight change (+26%), and a negative effect on the energy required for walking (-30%). There were no differences in estimated feed eaten, or pasture herbage accumulation, composition, or quality. Therefore, pasture management and feed allocation under 3-in-2 should be similar to TAD. On commercial farms, the degree to which reduced milk income can be offset by lower costs will be highly farm-specific, but opportunities for savings were identified in the results. The short walking distances on the research farm and potential to improve farm management using the time saved from fewer milkings suggests better production may be achieved with 3-in-2 milking on a commercial farm.
Highlights
Increasing the attractiveness of dairy farm workplaces is a challenge for many major dairy nations (DairyNZ et al, 2017; Teagasc, 2018)
Milking has a strong influence on 2 aspects of the workplace in pasture-based dairy farm systems where cows are typically batch milked twice a day (TAD)
There was no effect on lactose %; there was a 12% decrease in lactose yield
Summary
Increasing the attractiveness of dairy farm workplaces is a challenge for many major dairy nations (DairyNZ et al, 2017; Teagasc, 2018). Milking has a strong influence on 2 aspects of the workplace in pasture-based dairy farm systems where cows are typically batch milked twice a day (TAD). This milking frequency is likely chosen over more frequent milking used in other production systems or with robotic milking because the cost of the additional milkings are greater than the additional production (Culotta and Schmidt, 1988). Batch milking cows TAD requires significant time in the work day, with estimates of 30 to 34% of annual labor hours in Ireland (Deming et al, 2018). Widespread adoption of alternatives to TAD, with fewer milkings, have been limited by farmer concerns primarily related to milk production and profitability (Edwards, 2018a)
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