Jerseys key to Hasties' milk contract

Dairying has long been in the Hastie family's blood, ever since Gordon's father bought Alderston Mains along with his brothers back in 1958. Here, they started up a contract gardening business and the dairy herd followed in 1961 to supply homes in Edinburgh with bottled milk.

But the main focus at Alderston has changed over the years as what was once a mixed arable farm now hosts 340 cows, with 300 milking at a time to supply the year-round contract, on 400 acres with further land rented for summering youngstock.

"My dad started dairying with 40 Jerseys back in those days so there's always been Jerseys at Alderston, and for our Graham's contract it's got to be 100% Jersey milk - even if we had a single non-Jersey dairy cow it would affect our contract" explained Gordon.

"We've been with Graham's a long time and they're expanding the 'Gold' range from Jersey milk too, so we're fairly lucky in the respect that we're supplying a niche market that will, touch wood, always be in demand."

As the herd has grown over the years, the grain and tractor sheds have been adapted so that now there is a 136-cubicle shed using mattresses and sawdust as bedding for the high yielding portion while the lower yielders are housed on straw bedding.

Both sons, David and Andy, have degrees in agriculture under their belts and David spent a while milking in Australia, which has boosted the family's skill set and enabled them to keep all management in house, with outside help called in only for pregnancy diagnosis work.

It's up to Andy to do the majority of semen selection for the herd and while sexed semen would be preferable, the Hasties have found using such semen compromised the herd's conception rate - from the current, acceptable, 51% down to 30%.

So, instead, small batches of straws from multiple sires on the genomic proofs (which offer a far greater gene pool than the proven sires) are selected, most of which are of Danish or American breeding.

"I'm not so fussed on what a bull looks like, although obviously I don't want them too big as we'll start to lose the benefit of the low costs involved with Jerseys," pointed out Andy.

"The main attribute I look for is a good Profitable Lifetime Index followed by good scores for udder and somatic cell counts. Once I've picked a bull we'll maybe store 100 straws or so and use it as we go as it allows us to be a bit more selective with the bulls that go on to be proven sires."

Furthermore, some 100 of the lower yielders in the herd are crossed with a British Blue bull to increase the value of the calves which are sold on at eight weeks of age.

While Andy takes care of the genetics, David tends to another key component of milk production - feed intake.

David explained: "The ration is extremely important in the dairy cow as there are two major factors to improving yield - first of all the genetics and, secondly, the feed to enhance what the cow is already capable of.

"All the rations are worked out by ourselves which means we can keep tighter control on what exactly goes in to the herd's feed intake. It also allows us to adjust to the slightest margins if, for example, the cows aren't doing so well as we move through different crops of silage we can boost their intake elsewhere."

Cows are fed through a total mixed ration Keenan feeder and, currently, the two rations for the high and low yielders are very similar.

The main difference is a slightly higher density ration for the high yielders which supplements them with a higher dry matter intake and, consequently, higher intakes of crude protein, starch and sugar.

David added: "It's important to make as good a forage as possible to keep rationing straight forward as it's very expensive to supplement with feed when you have poor quality forage. It's something we're constantly trying to improve as the better the forage the more you have to offer your cows and the more milk you get in return."

The Hasties are currently taking three cuts of home-grown silage which is stored in Ag-Bags, but have planned the construction of three pits with a combined capacity of 3000 tonnes, all before this year's silage harvest commences!

"The Ag-Bags make very good silage but, on our site, it can be difficult to get out and

too much is wasted in these wet winters. They can also vary greatly depending on which field, or even which trailer load, so we like to keep on top of the analysis and complete them regularly so that we know exactly what we're feeding our girls," added Gordon.

During the summer months, the low yielders are out at grass day and night while the high yielders are out on pasture during the day, so some of the dry matter from silage is supplemented through grazing.

This summer grazing system saves the Hasties £1 per day per cow for the low yielding group, as well as the saving on reduced straw bedding, while the high yielders save 40p per day per cow when grazed during the day.

"Plus, they really respond to getting the sun on their backs - you even see them move from one side of the shed to the other to enjoy the sunshine when eating their ration during the winter," added Andy.

It's through these constant analysis and adjusting of the ration that enables the Hasties to get the most out of their cows. This has resulted in an average yield of 7500 litres at 5.5%BF and 3.85%P in the 24-stand Dairymaster swing over parlour which is used twice daily by the six-strong team of milkers, including the Hasties and a further three full and part-time milkers.

"The Jersey cow is capable of producing up to 7% BF, but our aim is to produce as many litres as we comfortably can within the 5% BF mark required for our contract. They could easily be fed to produce more litres but as you increase the litres the constituent percentages that are so important for our contract tend to fall," pointed out Gordon.

Heifer management is another aspect which has been closely looked at recently, and the aim is to summer graze more youngstock on pasture at home instead of renting ground further away.

Andy explained: "We currently have 70 heifers out on kale which is great for their hardiness and also saves us some space in the shed until they're ready to come in and calve. We find that this gets them used to grazing and makes them keener to do so when it's raining, making it easier to keep up their forage consumption when out at grass in the summer."

With access to feed trailers all year round to mineralise the diet, keep on the condition and improve growth rates, this improved management is projected to boost heifer yields by some 500 litres.

David continued: "Our 400-day calving interval may be greater than the optimum 365 days, but the lactation curve of a Jersey cow doesn't have a huge peak and remains fairly constant so we find that 400 days works well for us, but, it's all about doing what suits you and your cows.

"Plus, it can sometimes prove too much for our Jerseys to dry off any sooner with all that milk still being produced."

The herd is producing so well that Alderston Mains has been picked as one of the stop-off points on the upcoming World Jersey Cattle Bureau tour of the UK and Ireland. During the visit, delegates with take part in a classification work shop in the herd which features many females in the top few classifications.

So while the dairy industry may be facing severe difficulties in recent times, the Hasties remain positive for the future and have everything in place for further expansion should the industry, or their milk buyer, demand it.