Danish cattle experiences cross Nordic borders

"I hope that I can at least learn something about what not to do from the experiences Danish farmers have made, so that we don't make the same mistakes ourselves," says Torbjörn Lundborg.

Cow and calf together at the expense of milk

At Ellinglund, the Nordic advisors are guided around by the organic farmer Gert Lassen, who owns the farm. Here, the cow and its calf stay together for three weeks before the calves are paired up with foster cows, who each take care of up to three calves.

- It is a challenge. But when we look at the animals that thrive in it, we think they have more fun and a better calf life. This is the motivation and incentive for us, Gert Lassen assures us.

When the calves stay together with the cows for a longer period, it requires more space. This has been solved at Ellinglund with existing buildings and with an extension to a feed barn that has been converted into a stable for the foster cows.

Although there are expenses, savings also occur, which can be difficult to quantify directly in money, Gert Lassen explains. For one thing, he saves calf cabins and does not have to spend time washing calf bowls.

- It also gives back in some ways. I believe that our calves for sale weigh a little more, the foster cows also have a higher value, when they are slaughtered. But it is obvious that when the calves suckle their own cow during the period, it is at the expense of milk, and perhaps also a little of the cows’ peak performance during lactation. “What we gain on the swings, we lose on the carousels" he says.

That it should make a profit to give cow and calf more time together is also not the impression that guests are left with.

- It seems that it is work demanding, very space demanding and therefore also expensive. So, if this is to be a success, farmers need something extra for the milk. Otherwise, it will be difficult to convince them to use it. I'm sure consumers will like it, but farmers need to get paid extra, says Swedish Torbjörn Lundborg.

Courage to improve the system

The Nordic advisors also visited the cattle farm Sommerbjerg north of Brande. Here, a new custom-made stable has been built so the cow and calf can stay together. The stable has 18 group boxes where cows and their calves are moved to when the calf is two to three days old.   Here the cow and calf will be together for four weeks. After the four weeks, the calves will be with the foster cows for the rest of the milk feeding period. The calves stay in the stable during the entire winter season.

"When we have the Organic Day event, the first question we get is: 'How long time does the cow stay with the calf?' And it's kind of hard to say: 'Well, they're staying together for a day.' Then you try to explain why it makes sense, and you think for yourself: 'Well, if there is someone who can make it work, why shouldn't we also be able to?' So, we are trying it and hopefully it’s an improvement for the cow and the calf," says Esben Helms, who together with his father Mads Helms has invested in the farm's new stable system.

He hopes, they can get the system up and running soon and make it work.

"When I take the calf from the cow after a day, I find myself thinking: 'Was that the best thing, we could do for you?' So, I hope it will work when we get started on it. No doubt there will be a lot of trouble with it – the easiest thing is to run the system we have now, explains Esben Helms.

Latvian perspectives

Latvian network participant Silvija Dreijere is convinced that it is only a matter of time before it becomes an EU requirement that the cow stays with her calf for a longer time, and therefore she wants to be at the forefront and gather experience. Silvija works as manager of the livestock department of the Latvian Rural Advisory and Training Centre.

- It is always good to see how the systems work, learn from the good experiences, look at the possibilities and not least hear about the challenges farmers have had, before we start implementing it in our own countries, says Silvija Dreijere.

She explains that more than 17 percent of the milk production in Latvia is organic, often from small, family-owned farms.

- If farms are to survive and continue to earn a profit, they will also have to grow in Latvia. And if they are going to invest in new buildings, they might consider learning from what their colleagues in other countries have developed. It is easier to make the final decisions, when we can see how things can be done elsewhere," she says after the visits to Ellinglund and Sommerbjerg.

Agroforestry in a Danish context

Another topic at the network meeting was agroforestry. Both Ellinglund and Sommerbjerg have gained experience in agroforestry with cattle, where foster cows and calves have access to forest or windbreaks. Advisors Camilla Kramer and Kirstine Flintholm Jørgensen from the Centre for Free-range Animals contributed with data and results from the two farms.

At both places they have looked at the cows' behaviour when they have access to areas with trees, either as windbreaks or forest. The cows were equipped with GPS, and cameras were set up to record their movement and behaviour.

- The results show that the foster cows at Ellinglund primarily use the forest in the morning hours compared to the rest of the day, whereas indications of the opposite were found at the dairy cows in the shelter belt at Sommerbjerg. They primarily use the shelter belt in the afternoon, says Camilla Kramer.

And what are they doing in there? At Ellinglund, cows and calves were in motion or standing when they were in the forest. Much of the time was spent eating from the trees or the ground cover, but they also spent time scratching themselves up against the trees. Only 7 percent of the cows' behaviour could not be determined from the video material.

The fact that the cows scratch themselves up against the trees is a significant challenge to new forests, say both farmers from the two farms. The cows can damage the trees. Therefore, the trees must have achieved a certain robustness to resist being treated as backscratcher for the cows, and this takes time. Therefore, agroforestry is not necessarily something you decide to practice one day and then carry out the next. It takes time unless you already have a suitable piece of forest for the purpose and do not need to establish a new one.

Leaves have different feed value

The cows also spend a lot of time eating leaves. Kirstine Flintholm Jørgensen has studied the feed value and mineral content of leaves from all tree species harvested in the period May-August.
 
The digestibility of organic matter in laboratory experiments varies quite a bit, with the highest digestibility at the end of May varying from 50 percent to just under 70 percent between species, and the lowest digestibility of 30 percent to 50 percent in July. Also, the measured protein levels vary. Siberian pea tree stands out by matching clover grass, while the other species such as aspen tree, birch and hawthorn contain around 13 percent crude protein of dry matter.

Nordic network strengthens knowledge

The programme for the network meeting was made up of practical visits and presentations from professionals. In addition to agroforestry and cow-calf contact systems, biorefining and perspectives on the use of the residual product from grass protein, grass pulp, as cattle feed were also on the programme.

And as an important part of the two days, the Nordic participants had time and opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience within organic farming.

- Discussion and exchange of experience across countries is a key element in the network meeting, where we also have time to discuss the status of organic farming and organic milk production in our different countries, so we can learn from each other's knowledge and experiences," says Ann-Sofie Andreassen.

She is advisor at Innovation Centre for Organic Farming and helped plan this year's network meeting, which was the eighth of its kind.

The network consists of organic dairy advisors from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Latvia and Denmark, who hold an annual network meeting. This year the title was "New solutions for organic milk production - agroforestry, cow-calf and biorefinery". Last year, the network met in Finland and exchanged experiences under the theme "Boosting own feed production", and next year the network meeting will take place in Sweden.