Animal manure has been used for centuries as a fertilizer and a soil builder because it contains nutrients and organic matter. However, as animal production shifts toward fewer but larger operations, the number of confined animals has increased in some geographical locations, resulting in more manure produced than can be assimilated by the available farmland where the animals are raised.

Dairy farmers are usually subject to net income fluctuations due to volatility in both milk and feed prices. Risk management tools, such as hedging milk prices in the futures market, may be used to protect dairy farmers against milk price volatility. Alternatively, dairy farmers selling milk in Virginia can buy Virginia milk commission base (MCB) to obtain higher milk prices and, therefore, sustain or increase net cash flows.

This video intends to help stakeholders improve their silo face management practices, prevent spoilage and waste! Learn to properly face bunker silos.

This video intends to facilitate the learning process about newborn calf management by Hispanic employees. The video is narrated in Spanish and subtitled in English so that English-speaking employers can also improve communication with their labor force.

Typically, feed costs are directly related to milk production, so the more you feed, the more you produce. However, milk production is not necessarily related to profitability. Production-oriented management, which focuses on maximizing outputs (i.e., milk yield) through increased utilization of inputs (i.e., feed), does not necessarily ensure the dairy business will be profitable.

The price of milk in the global market has been decreasing substantially during the last year. The last bid from Global Dairy Trade resulted in a price for whole-milk powder equal to $1,590 per metric ton. This price is 13 percent lower than the minimum price for whole-milk powder reported by Global DairyTrade in 2009.

The consumption of raw milk has gained considerable popularity in recent years, yet still remains a source of great debate regarding the potential health impacts. The Food and Drug Administration as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report the well-known risk for contracting foodborne disease from the presence of human pathogens in raw milk. A recent review article goes into great detail about the history of pasteurization, the prevalence of foodborne pathogens in milk and the claims associated with the consumption of raw milk (Lucey 2015). Pasteurization was developed over 100 years ago to reduce the transmission of disease through milk, in particular, tuberculosis. In 1938 it was reported that 25% of all disease outbreaks related to food/water were from milk, compared to less than 1% today and now tuberculosis is not of concern due to the implementation of pasteurization.

Now that most crops are in storage it’s time to plan the forage utilization for the coming year. It is tempting to rely on previous experience in determining forage needs. However, this can lead to some costly management mistakes.

Matching nutrient requirements with nutrient supply is essential for maximizing feed efficiency in dairy farming systems. To accomplish this, feeding a consistent and homogeneous ration is critical. In Summer 2015, the variation of the composition of total mixed rations (TMR) was monitored on 7 dairy farms in Franklin County, Virginia.

Milk fat depression is one of the more complex nutritionrelated issues dairymen and their nutritionists face. Dr. Tom Jenkins of Clemson University is one of the foremost experts on this subject. He suggests that five main nutritional factors impact fat test results including: dietary fat amount and source; dietary starch level; amount of fiber, particularly from forages; yeast and mold contamination; and diet management.

Traditional calf feeding programs have fed calves 2 quarts of milk or milk replacer twice daily with weaning sometime between 6 and 12 weeks of age. This is based upon the concept that limiting energy from milk stimulates early intake of dry feed which favors earlier weaning and lower cost. However, this practice is unique when compared to feeding behavior of all other mammals in which the young consume milk at will from their dam. More liberal milk or milk replacer feeding programs for preweaned dairy calves have gained favor with the adoption of acidified free choice and computer controlled autofeeders. With the acidified free choice milk feeding systems there is no limit to how much calves can consume. However, there is a tendency for other feeding systems to gradually increase the liquid diet over days or weeks. The concern is that allowing the calf to consume large quantities of milk or milk replacer will cause digestive stress and diarrhea.

It’s 6:00 p.m. A farmer is finishing chores on the dairy and is about to head in for the night, when he/she notices 1157, a heifer that looks like she’s close to calving. The farmer decides to check on the heifer in a few hours to monitor her progress. At 9:00 p.m. the farmer checks 1157 again, but there are no new developments, so he/she decides to come back at midnight. But yet again, when the farmer checks 1157, there’s still no progress. Now, tired, sleep deprived, and frustrated, the farmer decides to head to bed and check her in the morning.

Virginia has seen an abnormal winter with heavier than normal rain, blizzards, and even tornadoes. While your children may be enjoying puddle jumping parties on the farm, your cows do not fancy mud. Excessive rain on the farm can have serious effects on your cows affecting their health, milk production, and reproduction. Dairy cows are not like pigs they do not love bathing in mud! While rain is important for growing crops and greening-up pastures, the side effects of too much rain can lead to costly problems on the farm, some of which may be initially over-looked.

Milk prices have shrunk substantially in the last year. Because forages are much cheaper than concentrates, increasing the inclusion of forages in rations for dairy cows can help sustain margins and profitability. On the flip side, forage stocks could decrease faster as the inclusion of forages in dairy rations is increased. As a consequence of the limited forage stocks observed after drought seasons, increasing interest has emerged to replenish forage stocks of corn silage faster through greater corn planting population rates. Previous studies have shown that under non-extreme weather conditions forage biomass of corn for silage increases or does not change when planting population increases.

Virginia has seen an abnormal winter with heavier than normal rain, blizzards, and even tornadoes. While your children may be enjoying puddle jumping parties on the farm, your cows do not fancy mud. Excessive rain on the farm can have serious effects on your cows affecting their health, milk production, and reproduction. Dairy cows are not like pigs they do not love bathing in mud! While rain is important for growing crops and greening-up pastures, the side effects of too much rain can lead to costly problems on the farm, some of which may be initially over-looked.

It is known that providing high quality colostrum is important for ensuring a calf receives a solid foundation for building the immune system. How we usually check colostrum quality, as well as failure of passive transfer of immunity in calves, is by measuring IgG or protein of the serum or plasma concentration (either directly or indirectly). And while IgG (antibodies) are an important component of the immune system, they are only one part of the immune system, which means there may be other aspects of colostrum that are important for calf immunity that are being ignored. For example, researchers have identified immune cells in colostrum and have looked into their ability to help the calf fight disease as well.

Last March, Dr. Wayne Coblentz, a forage scientist from the USDA-Dairy Forage Research Center (Marshville, WI), updated us about baleage technology during our 2016 Area Dairy Conference.

As I reflect upon my career I find that the most important things have been the people during my 40+ years in Blacksburg. It seems like yesterday that I arrived at Virginia Tech to begin my graduate studies.

Almost every farm has at least one heifer at the bottom of the pecking order and last to eat at the feed bunk. The sub-par performance of these heifers results in a delay to breeding weight, and in turn, an increase in age at first calving. Recent research has shown that changes in calf management may help improve feeding and social behaviors. You may have heard of this system before—the buddy system and it works for calves!

The importance of getting calves off to a good start is not a new concept. Because calves are an investment in the herd for years to come and the heifer enterprise accounts for 15-20% of the cost of milk production, it is critical to allocate the time and resources for them to thrive.

Like most things in life there is a fine line between protecting your farm from biosecurity risks and letting people know what you do. Should you gate the entrance of your farm to keep everyone one out or do you invite the general public onto the farm on a regular basis? In addition to the daily grind of dairy farming, every producer needs to ponder the ramifications of these decisions.

Milking equipment function can have a profound negative impact on teat end health and overall milk quality. On the flip side, if we properly maintain equipment function we can positively impact the bottom line, udder and teat health, bulk tank somatic cell count and ultimately milk quality. It is important to remember that the goal of milking is to harvest as much milk as possible as efficiently as possible. However, this is a careful balancing act between efficiency and teat end health. Vacuum improperly set may have a negative effect on udder and teat health, but when properly balanced with pulsation, we can optimize milk harvest while minimizing the damage.

In a few past issues of the Dairy Pipeline, I reported the initial stages of a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) project of the Department of Dairy Science, and funded by Natural Resources Conservation Services, in which we were comparing the nutritional quality of different winter crops for silage.

Biosecurity on a dairy farm requires a plan to minimize the risk of disease outbreak. Some farms consider themselves to be “closed” herds, but even these herds need to take steps to reduce the risk of an outbreak. Unless no people, wildlife or vehicles ever enter the farm, it’s not truly a “closed” herd. Farms that do not regularly bring in outside animals are still at risk.

In a few past issues of the Dairy Pipeline, I reported the initial stages of a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) project of the Department of Dairy Science, and funded by Natural Resources Conservation Services, in which we were comparing the nutritional quality of different winter crops for silage.

The past year has seen some interesting, and frankly troubling, developments in the world of commodity pricing. Ordinarily, when one commodity is down another is trending upward to help soften the blow, but now it seems that most every Ag commodity is suffering a downturn.

Several years ago, another dairy extension specialist and I were conducting a DHI herdbook clinic for a dairy farmer in the state. During the records analysis, we noticed that somatic cell scores (SCS) at the beginning of the 12-month testing year were very desirable and that the herd was likely receiving milk quality premiums.

A heart monitor that “flatlines” indicates impending death if something isn’t done quickly. Dairy managers may be tempted to stagnate in the status quo, and that can spell trouble for the dairy operation’s future. Don’t let your management benchmarks ‘flatline’!

Farm debt needs to be monitored closely so that it does not become an unmanageable snow ball. There are different ways for monitoring debt status. One of them is the debt to asset percentage. To calculate your debt to asset percentage, simply get your last balance sheet and divide your total debt (or total liabilities) by the total assets and multiply by 100. A debt to asset ratio of 35% implies that for every $100 of assets the farm owns, the farm still needs to pay $35 to a lending source. In general terms, a good debt status implies a debt to asset percentage below 30%, whereas a poor debt status implies a debt to asset percentage above 70%.

How can dairy producers protect their animals, businesses, and the surrounding community? By following best management practices (BMPs) for manure management! Animal waste can contain both pathogens and chemical contaminants that can cause sickness and even death. Not all pathogens are created equal. Survival is dependent on temperature, manure processing, and environmental conditions. How you handle and process the manure on your farm matters! Every day the average dairy cow produces approximately 120 lbs. of wet manure making manure management a critical aspect of dairy farming.

The Dairy Pipeline is published once per month by the Department of Dairy Science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech.

In October 2016, I attended the International Dairy Federation World Dairy Summit held in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Over 1,200 participants from every continent attended including many heads of government agencies, research institutes and national dairy organizations… seven percent were dairy farmers…few were American. Presentations addressed a wide range of topics important to the dairy industry ranging from animal well welfare, food safety, economics, nutrition, marketing, environmental challenges and sustainability. Not surprisingly, the issue of environmental quality was a “hot” topic of great interest.

The Dairy Pipeline is published once per month by the Department of Dairy Science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech.