Increased Production and Profit

Many farmers that have incorporated a Herd Homes® shelter into their farming system have experienced substantial lifts in milk solids production and profitability. Each farming system is unique and individual, so there is often not just one factor that leads to these increases. The key factors which contribute to these increases include:

• Increased Pasture Production
  Pugging, compacting and/or over grazing, can significantly affect future pasture production. Most farmers are fully aware of this but often have to compromise between the health of the pastures and the health of the stock. Looking after one can often lead to issues with the other. Because the Herd Homes® shelter has been developed with both the farm and stock in mind, it is one of the few systems that allow farmers to look after both. Most farmers increase stocking rates to best utilize the extra feed grown and the lowered per/cow winter feed requirement.
  
  

• Ease of Winter Management
  Farmers can be proactive rather than reactive during the winter. Herd Homes® shelters utilised on a routine basis minimise the effects of adverse weather events and winter farm management becomes more predictable.
  
  

• Winter stock performance
  In the winter, Herd Homes® shelters provide stock with shelter from wind, rain, and cold. The winter feed demands of stock using a Herd Homes® tend to be significantly less than those exposed to the weather as less energy is used by stock to keep warm. Research shows that this can be significant at up to 7kgDM per cow per day. For Herd Homes® farmers this means their stock gets through the winter and into the calving period in better condition with subsequent positive impacts on early season milk production and getting back in calve.
  
  

• Increased Summer Production and Cow Comfort
  While winter management of the farm and stock is often a key reason farmers consider a Herd Homes® shelter, some have also identified benefits exist over the summer and autumn. A Herd Homes® Shelter can be designed with a vented roof and/or shade cloth in the ceiling. This assists in cooling during the hottest summer months and has proved particularly effective for cows milking at this time. Use of the vented roof and shade cloth on one farm reduced the temperature inside the Herd Homes® Shelter by up to six degrees Celsius on the hottest days last summer. The owner reported relaxed, happy cows that continued to feed, and were unstressed during the afternoon summer milkings.
  
  

• Self contained Effluent system
  Effluent is caught and stored in the concrete bunkers so there is no need for hosing down, pumping, scraping, or daily effluent disposal. As the expectation for our farming systems to be environmentally sustainable increases, a Herd Homes® Shelter can help farmers deliver this without compromising productivity and profitability.
  
  

• Utilising the Valuable Effluent 
  The storage bunkers in a 60 metre Herd Homes® Shelter hold about 500 tonnes of effluent. At current values this is equivalent to approximately $20,000 of fertiliser. AgResearch studies show the nutrient value of the stored effluent is high, especially in Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium and Sulphur. The long storage capabilities also allow flexibility around when the effluent is utilised to avoid the possibilities of negative environmental impacts often associated with traditional effluent systems.
  
  
• Simplifying the Workload
  Herd Homes® Shelter owners often comment that a Herd Homes® shelter helps to simplify their operation and buffer the extremes of the weather, reducing stress and giving the farmer “peace of mind”.