SKIM THE CREAM OF OUR UNIQUE CATTLE KNOWLEDGE

SKIM THE CREAM OF OUR UNIQUE CATTLE KNOWLEDGE

TEAMWORK WITH EXPERTS Customers are much the same everywhere: They expect their advisers to be second to none when it comes to optimising the operation, the economy and the viability of their dairy herds. To keep in the forefront, please take a few minutes to contemplate the messages presented on the following pages. Danish experts on cattle and dairy herd management offer you the opportunity to share their knowledge and knowhow on your home ground. We serve farmers that are second to none when it comes to substainable dairy farming, based on modern housing systems, professional management and animal welfare. The result is world class milk quality at a minimum consumption of antibiotics. Supplementing the above, Danish production and distribution of feed meet high safety standards. And the feed is compounded according to ongoing tests carried out on farms. If you choose to cooperate with us, we can offer you the best from dairy herds that are unsurpassed. And to top it all off, we are the link to knowledge developed by other great operators in the cattle and dairy trade: Achievements from our collaboration with Viking Genetics and Arla Foods will be at your disposal as part of a close partnership with SEGES. Our offer covers five vital fields: Health Breeding Milk Quality Feed Management Whatever your requests are, you can be sure that we will pass the high level of our customers on to you and thus to your customers. Please contact our experts and let us start teamworking! 2 SKIM THE CREAM OF OUR UNIQUE CATTLE KNOWLEDGE is published by SEGES Danish Agriculture & Food Council Agro Food Park 15 DK 8200 Aarhus N Contact Steffen Gammelgaard stega@seges.dk +45 8740 5342 January 2017

HEALTH FIGHT DISEASE ALL THE WAY Diseases are a lurking threat to any dairy herd. You can help your customers be at the cutting edge of this menace by utilising our comprehensive On Farm Diagnostic service, ensuring a.o. these benefits: Animals must have a diagnosis before treatment and are only treated if it pays (ROI) The effect of the treatment is evaluated The consumption of vaccines and antibiotics is reduced likewise the risk of residual inhibitors and resistance The choice of drug supplier is facilitated. FAREWELL TO INFECTIONS A VAST GAME CHANGER Imagine dairy herds with infections eliminated or brought to an absolute minimum. Immediate effects would be higher yield, improved utilisation of feed, more successful reproduction, reduced consumption of antibiotics and increased food safety just to mention a few. Our concept for infection prevention and sanitation developed together with Danish farmers can help you and your customers experience a staggering change in production conditions. The program controls: BVD (bovine viral diarrhoea) minimising vaccination costs and facilitating the trading of live animals Paratuberculosis increasing milk yield substantially and reducing cases of fatal diarrhea (Johne s disease) Salmonella Dublin reducing diarrhoea, respiratory diseases, joint inflammation, abortions and milk loss To get a healthier industry we offer to make you a customized program together with our specialist. Our specialist work both at farm level and on a more regional/national basis. 3

In VikingGenetics which is a Danish, Swedish and Finnish AI Company, we have during several years used breeding values from Nordic Cattle Genetic Evaluation (NAV) as background for our selection of AI bulls. Like our farmers we are extremely pleased with the results we have obtained. A high producing, healthy and functional cow making a profitable dairy production. The reason that it has been possible is the uniqe level of registrations done by Nordic Cattle farmers and stored in the central cattle database. Today we and our farmers would not live without the info we get from NAV evaluation on traits like hoof health, udder health and metabolic diseases. Lars Nielsen, Avlschef Head of Breeding 4

BREEDING IMPROVE MANAGEMENT AND BREEDING CONFORMATION DATA IS READILY AVAILABLE If you want to benefit from using conformation data to improve herd results, achieve better mating plans and more genetic progress, we can help you with our unique classification software. Among the strengths of the program can be mentioned: Easy and fast to use in your own language Can be tailored for your own traits Communicates with national databases Runs on all smartphones, tablets etc. (HTML5) Training and in-service training available The classification software can be used for registering both dairy and beef breeds. BENEFIT FROM MORE RELIABLE BREEDING VALUES A high genetic level results in cows that are more productive, healthier and more fertile, i.e. more economic. A cornerstone in achieving this is the option to select the best females as bull dams, for flushing or to choose the best females in the herd. NAV, who is partly owned by SEGES, offer breeding values for females on the Nordic scale for all Nordic traits. The breeding values are based on genomic tests, and the evaluation system follows the highest standards. Breeding values are estimated for a broad range of economically important traits, e.g.: Yield Growth Fertility Calving Udder health Other health traits Conformation Temperament Longevity 5

FEED WEAK POINTS IN THE FEEDING SYSTEM? BRING IN THE TROUBLESHOOTER! Any suspicion that a dairy herd does not yield to its full potential should be met with meticulous investigation into the following matters: The composition of the feed ration The organisation of the feeding The entire supply chain from field/grain handler stock cow We can offer you a visit by an expert who will troubleshoot the feeding system. Thus you will be able to optimise feeding and management, take the yield to higher levels and eventually increase the revenue of your customer. FEEDING THE SMART WAY Would it be interesting to your customers to consistently feed their cows with optimum utilisation of the nutrients at minimum cost? While in addition being able to check the feed ration consumed compared to production? We reckon it would. That is why we offer you the opportunity to share the NorFor Feed Ration Optimizer with us. This software was co-developed by the cattle organisations of the Nordic countries, yet is useful and accessible outside their borders. The core features of the program are: Evaluation of feedstuffs in relation to the requirements of the cows Optimization of feed rations quickly and easily conducted Impact study of feed rations adjusted to the actual farm Efficiency calculation of feed rations (the ratio between feed and yield) 6

FEED KEEP A CLOSE WATCH ON LIVESTOCK FEED The quality of the feed is sine qua non for success in milk production. Consequently, your customers will benefit greatly from systematical monitoring of the feed. We can show you how to: Analyze feedstuff delivered to the stock Establish an infrastructure for monitoring the quality of the feed Operate and calibrate the laboratory equipment needed Report results to the farmers Utilise the results to the max Your customers gain is homogeneous feed, thriving cows and high milk yield, based on exact knowledge of the composition of the feed. Such benefits of your services will be greatly appreciated. TRUE TMR IS COMPACT TMR You know that dairy cows perform optimum when fed homogeneously. We know how to mix compact TMR which: Makes sorting into components impossible Makes it a ration concept targeting cows behaviour nutrition and precision This feeding method has shown substantial increase of milk yield and will without a doubt be of great interest to your customers as well. Since we started using compact feed, it has only gone one way with the milk yield: upwards. During the first year, we increased yield with 700 kg ECM per cow, so we are heading towards 12,000 kg ECM. The increase came very suddenly, when we started with the compact feed. Whether it is the sole reason for the extra performance, one cannot say, but there are indications of this, because we have not changed anything else. Now we send a feed sample in along with the performance monitoring. It does not require additional effort but provides a much better feel with and knowledge of what the cows are eating. Every time we get it checked, we can adjust the mixture. Helge Nielsen, organic farmer 7 7

MILK QUALITY HELP YOUR CUSTOMERS PRODUCE WORLD CLASS MILK Our experts have decades of experience advising farmers to optimise the quality of milk. Now we are ready to share our knowledge and knowhow with you. Our offer includes e.g.: An analysis of your current activities, challenges and potentials Help to design an adequate and efficient organisation for advising customers on milk quality Ongoing practical support Help to obtain ISO Certification Audits Utilising our experience, you escape beginner s error, while still achieving a setup customised to your needs and requests. Moreover, adding advice on unsurpassed milk quality to your services will enable you to serve your customers even better thus improving your business substantially. MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR ADVISING WITH IN-SERVICE TRAINING Whether your advisory service has been designed together with SEGES or not, you can greatly benefit from making use of our in-service training. Among the subjects we offer can be mentioned: An inquiry and updating of your present organisation Knowledge sharing e.g. by means of mutual visits Training on using new measuring equipment Your place or ours? We offer both. Either way, we assure that you will be able to manage harder tasks faster, that your customers will repay with greater satisfaction and that work will be more fun. UDDER HEALTH IMPROVE PARLOR OUTPUT More milk delivered, by the most skilled employees of your staff, performing their maximum quantity (kg milk/working hour). Probably nice music to your ears. And you can play it by utilizing our milking management concept. Based on e.g. improved udder health, monitoring of the milking as well as benchmarking you will experience steps forward like: Improved udderhealth More efficient working procedures More cows milked per hour 8

Since 2013, Arla Foods Consumer International Business Unit China has used SEGES as adviser and instructor in various projects in China, facilitated by our China-Denmark Milk Technology Cooperation Centre in Beijing, established together with our Chinese business partner Mengniu Dairy Group, China s largest dairy company. The projects have focused on dairy production, where the training subjects have been establishment of stables, milk hygiene, animal welfare, disease prevention, milk quality, food quality, etc. on farms related to Mengniu. Standard Operational Procedures (SOP) has been transformed from Danish to Chinese context, including customized to Chinese law SEGES has also participated in the annual meetings with Chinese experts, authorities, etc. The cooperation with SEGES has worked really well. There has been a considerable flexibility in relation to accomplish the tasks and projects a relationship which is important and essential when cooperating with China. The right people have been connected to the tasks, and with good results. Niels Juul Mortensen, Head of Technology, CIN BU China 9 9

MANAGEMENT CONSISTENT MANAGEMENT IT S IN THE DRAWINGS Successful dairy herd management depends on employees doing their job flawlessly and without individual divergences. Our SOP (Standard Operational Procedures) concept is excellent for this purpose, communicating via laminated sheets in relevant locations on the farm. With brief texts (in English) and instructive drawings, covering the vital tasks of management, it ensures: Proper, effective and uniform execution of all daily routines no matter by whom Careful instruction of new employees even if not well versed in your language The possibility to adapt the material for individual farms You will reduce errors, standardise procedures and save time for runningin new members of the staff. A CONCEPT YOU CAN LEAN ON As farms grow into companies, the requirements for management consulting change undoubtedly complicating matters further. We can help you face this challenge by sharing our Lean experience with you, including: Help to build up an organisation, including Lean certification with exam if wanted A one week training course, connecting theory and practice Introduction of relevant tools (waste types, boardmeeting, value stream analysis) and skills necessary to lead a Lean process Support for maintenance and development of the concept While learning from us, you will be free to include your own experiences, requests and ideas of extent. We facilitates with humor, small games and bring energy in your training. 10

MANAGEMENT A HELPING HAND TO THE FREEDOM OF CHOICE The sky s the limit to the number of options offered as for farming equipment, methods and products. Don t you think your customers would welcome some sound and unbiased guidance to make their next investment a profitable one? Meet their requirements by implementing our Farm Test concept: Various products, methods or technologies are tested and compared in practice on farms Personnel involved is perfectly neutral A broad range of parameters is considered, not least finances. We have 10 years of experience. Thus presenting and rating tools for everyday use, you enable your customers to invest at a profit. FROM RAW DATA TO OPERATIONAL DAILY MANAGEMENT On modern dairy farms the owner has to be a good manager of both animals and staff. Because of the increasing number of cows and employees, the manager needs to have real-time knowledge and overview of production efficiency of milk production, reproduction, health and feeding. This overview can be found in the Dairy Management System (DMS). DMS includes modules for: Animal registration and management, Feed ration planning and optimization(norfor) Production and economic planning, Production follow up on day to day and quarterly level, Prognosis tool for future predictions. Contact us to get more information about the program Dairy Management System (DMS) and how to collect data to get an overview of the production. Topic Status Key figure (unit) Achieved Alarm limit Reporting period Milk ECM delivered (kg/day) 11,713 Min 10,942 Latest measurement Milk delivered (kg/day) 11,131 Min 10,597 Latest delivery Milk yield per lactating cows (kg ECM/day) 37.1 Min 35.1 Latest measurement Milk quality (numbers of deductions) 1 Last 7 days Reproduction Inseminations of cows (numbers) 14 Min 4 Last 7 days Inseminations of heifers (numbers) 1 Min 2 Last 7 days Not pregnancy examined cows (numbers) 0 Max 0 Last day Not pregnancy examined heifers (numbers) 0 Max 0 Last day Health Disease treatment, cows (numbers) 5 Max 5 Last 7 days New infection, lactations (%) 6 Max 10 Last milk recording New infection, dry period (%) 17 Max 18 Last milk recording Over conditioned dry cows (%) 0 Max 20 Latest evaluation of condition Dead animals (numbers) 0 Max 0 Last 7 days Feeding Energy efficiency (%) 103 Min 93 Last feed control Milk minus feed cost (kr/kg ECM) 1.15 Min 1.20 Last feed control 11

SEGES Danish Agriculture & Food Council F.m.b.A. Agro Food Park 15 DK 8200 Aarhus N +45 87 40 5000 info@seges.dk seges.dk