Business & Economics
You want to improve the profitability and performance of your dairy operation, but you don’t know where to start? Every business is different and so are your goals and priorities.
At a glance, our analysis, based on your actual data, allows us to identify the potential dollar benefits for 7 important dairy production sectors.
Analysing potential gains to increase the profitability of your dairy farm
To help you find the best technical and economic improvement opportunities for your dairy farm, our advisors offer you the Potential Gain analysis services.
This exercise allows you to step back and look at your dairy farm globally to determine the potential for improvement that best combines with your goals. With your advisor, you can define the annual goals specific to your farm and establish a specific course of action to achieve them. The objectives are linked to performance indicators and everything is entered in the tool to facilitate continuous monitoring of your results. The tool converts your data into dollars and compares the results of your herd to the performance of other Quebec dairy farms who rank at percentiles 50, 75 and 90. Your advisor will closely monitor the situation and may adjust the plan, as necessary.
Feed margin and tracking of your costs of concentrates
Best rations are those that allow your cows to perform at a low cost. We can help you reduce your production cost by making each dollar spent on your cows’ feed profitable. Our advisors are able to assess the feed margin of your herd and track your concentrate costs on a daily basis.
If there are opportunities for improvement, the advisor will offer you possible solutions by analyzing many factors such as the ration formulation, feed bunk management, animal comfort and many others. A little help for a big profit!
How we calculate the feed margin of your dairy cows
We calculate your concentrate costs from the feed you purchase and your milk deliveries. More specifically, we use the information provided on your supplier purchase reports or accounting reports.
For feed produced on the farm, we use the market value. The milk value is directly collected from our database, if you had agreed beforehand to share this information with us. Then you will be able to compare yourself to the average of all farms in our system.
Calculations can be made for the cow and heifer feeding, for a day or for a given period.
Dairy planning
Milk quota represents the greatest part of your farm’s market value and is directly related to profitability. The objective of planning is to maximize your dairy production in compliance with dairy quotas, while taking advantage of loaned margins and additional days allowed during some periods of the year. With the Plani-Lacta software, your Lactanet advisor is well equipped to plan your dairy production.
Since most of the calculations are based on animals moving in and out of the herd, we need the most recent information regarding planned calving dates and bred heifers. The software compiles and uses the results of your milk recording tests and milk deliveries.
The advisor will give you a precise estimate of the total dairy production for the upcoming months and, together, you will be able to foresee any issue before it happens and find solutions. At each visit, your advisor will update the dairy production by making the necessary adjustments according to the changes observed.
Time management and labour costs in dairy production
It’s possible to save time in the barn in order to maintain an interesting quality of life while complying with the profitability requirements of your dairy production. There are various opportunities for improvement, but to determine them, we first need to assess the situation. This is exactly what we can do with you: Analyze the time dedicated to each task associated to your different animal groups in your dairy herd.
We review your work day and help you optimize the planning of your daily tasks: sequence of operations, labour division between workers, new equipment or adjustments, tool sites, etc.
At the end of this process, your specialized time management advisor will give you a detailed report that compares your results with those of similar farms and will help you explore possible solutions adapted to your situation. He or she will also explore possible solutions with you adapted to your situation.
Efficiency Express option for a quick overview of your time management
Not yet ready to invest in a detailed assessment, but still want to have a quick overview of your current situation on the farm? The Efficiency Express option offered by our technicians and advisors only requires 20 minutes of your time. An excellent start to target opportunities to improve your time management in the barn, reduce your labour and production costs and, more importantly, to use your time for what really matters to you.
The Efficiency Express option also allows to collect the necessary information to assess your potential gains by improving your time management.
Work time on the farm is a key element of your dairy production costs: 75% of your work is made in the barn.
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