Milk Producer - December 2009 - (Page 38)

RUMINATIONS By Blair Murray Precision dairying North American conference set to explore emerging new technology that can help you farm better R obotic automation and information from sensors are leading the dairy industry in a whole new direction as lasers replace labour and electronic imaging replaces human eyes. These new milking, feeding and handling technologies can provide data to let you practise more precise management, achieve higher productivity and provide better cow welfare with what is known as precision dairying. You can see this dairy cow management and robotic technology from around the world first hand at North America’s first precision dairying conference this March in Toronto. You can also hear some of the best minds in research, development and application of precision dairying present their findings, evaluate the technology and generally kick its tires. Robotic milking has been the most obvious precision technology application introduced into dairy herd management. Advancing technology Robotic milking units, like this Lely A3, provide a good example of precision dairying applications already used on farms. and adaptation have made robotic milking units—a novelty 10 years ago—a mainstream option in new barn design and existing facility retrofits. Well-suited to medium-sized freestall operations, robots provide an option to reduce your dependence on labour for routine milking chores. weight while the cow is standing in the stall, and she is fed an individually measured amount of feed. The computer accurately records this information, analyses it and helps you manage each cow on an ongoing basis. Other technology has made its way into mainstream dairying, too. Activity monitors, for example, have been considered an aid to heat detection for breeding cows at the correct time. The technology has now progressed to the point where many breeders confidently time breeding according to results from activity monitor software. Another precision technology application commonly used on dairy farms is automated calf feeding with individual identification from RFID (radio frequency identification) tags. They let Smarter management However, a key challenge for precision management is improving the level of cow management through technological smarts, not just reducing and replacing labour. A simple but highly valuable robotic function is identifying each cow and gathering data about her every time she visits the milking box. In-line sensors measure milk flow and volume, and estimate milk quality. Load cells can measure body Ruminations is prepared by Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs livestock technology specialists to provide information you can use on your farm. 38 | December 2009 | MilkPRODUCER

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Milk Producer - December 2009

Milk Producer - December 2009
Contents
Editor's Notes
DFO Chair's Message
Dairy Update
Industry Roundup
DFC Promotion
Office Management
Seven Issues That Matter
Herd Health
Research
Applied Science
Ruminations
Markets
New 'N' Noted
Back Forty

Milk Producer - December 2009