DairyCo
Welcome to DairyCo
Scotland
Introducing the Extension Team in your area
An important part of being an extension officer is understanding
farmers' needs and helping to identify practical and realistic
tools to assist your farming business.
Our team covers areas like herd health and welfare, working with
different groups and demonstrating tools such as the heifer rearing calculator,
and increasing awareness of different control strategies that are
available.
What's coming up?
- Herd mangers Training day
Wednesday 25 April, Barfil, Crocketford, Dumfries DG 2 8RW
Managing Staff & Building A Team- this event is for you if you employ staff, work with family members, or are a paid herd/farm manager
It is hoped you will all be able to attend. To book your place please or find out more
contact me Heather Wildman: 07876 706391 or e: heather.wildman@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk
- Milkbench+
Milkbench+ collections and feedback sessions are occurring across the country this spring; a number of groups who used this service are in the midst of their annual feedback sessions as a group.
Whether you simply want to find out about your individual cost of production or are part of a discussion group of any kind then Milkbench+ can help you drill down into milk production costs, shown in pence per litre/ acre/ cow and highlight areas for attention.
This is a completely unbiased levy funded service with no additional cost to you and on farm data collection to save you the headache of inputting data. If you are interested in finding out more about dairy benchmarking through Milkbench+ and what it can offer to you and your business please call Mary on 07581 382242
- Heifer Rearing
Tuesday 24 April 2010, East Pitforthie, Brechin, Angus DD9 7PQ
The first meeting of the 3rd and final year as a Monitor Farm for the Milne family at East Pitforthie.
Join Chris Coxon from DairyCo on heifer costing, achievable targets for the team at Eats Pitforthie and heifer integration. Alongside Chris will be Archie Leitch from Almins, on the heifer feeding protocol and any advances in heifer nutrition.
To book a place please contact Sophie Kinnear on 07717500877 or sophie.kinnear@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk
- Grass
Let's not worry about last weeks flurry of snow… turn out is upon us.
We hope this season's weather is an improvement on last year. The first meeting of the Aberdeen and Lothian grazing Impact groups looking at maximizing grazing potential have been and gone. To find out more about future dates this season please Sophie Kinnear a call 07717500877 or drop Sophie an email Sophie.kinnear@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk
What's been happening?
- Youngstock Meeting
Harbro and DariyCo held a joint youngstock meeting kindly hosted by Gregor Colquhoun and family at Dendoldrum in late March. The weather was cracking but that did not deter attendance to the purpose built unit near Inverbervie. Informative talks were heard cover the four steps to longevity.
- Grass
Let's not worry about last week's flurry of snow… turn out will surely be upon us soon.
We're still hopeful that this season's weather is an improvement on last year. The first meetings for the Aberdeen grazing and Lothian grazing Impact groups looking at maximizing grazing potential have been and gone. We have scheduled the second group visits to be mid grazing season to assess how things are going to date and to allow the groups to help each other in the art of getting more from grass in the East of Scotland!
To find out more about the groups please give Sophie Kinnear a call 07717500877 or drop me an email Sophie.kinnear@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk and I'll be sure to fill you in.
- Young Dairy Group- on tour…..
Andrew and Ewan Lawrie kindly had the group on farm to see round the new build slurry store, parlour and additional cubicle housing. Slurry was the main focus of the meeting with aims to look at the value of a tanker of slurry, the best method of spreading at Grangehall and how different slurry analyses out and what the implications of this are for crops, silage and grazing ground.
Our next get together will be 13-14 June where we will be meeting up with a similar young dairy group from Essex; we have a trip to Yorkshire planned which is the midway point to meet. If you are interested in being involved with our 2012 programme or have ideas of interesting places or intriguing business to visit please get in touch at sophie.kinnear@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk or on 07717500877
- Succession- get it sorted
The first week in April across Scotland was dedicated to looking at the stigma that is Succession. We had Sian Bushell from Bushell associates on succession planning alongside Alistair Dale, from McSherry, Halliday, Dale & Marshall, Galston providing the legal support needed. Succession proved to cover all aspects of family and business life, mainly looking at planning for the future and more importantly the unexpected. Most covered was ensuring that the farm business is left in a stable position to remain successful no matter the situations encountered. This was a subject approached with care and confidentiality in mind, as it can be very sensitive and emotional depending in individual experiences. A lot of ground was covered and many questions answered both to confirm plans set in place were sufficient, but it also helped to get people on the right track to ensuring a successful transition from generation to generation in the minefield that is succession.
If you are interested in accessing any of the information or key points discussed over the Succession topic them please feel free to get in touch on 07717500877 or Sophie.kinnear@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk