Danish dairy cows are now producing milk with a higher value content than ever before. The total amount of fat and protein per cow per year has risen to 898 kilos, according to the latest report from VikingDanmark’s Performance Control, as referenced by Landbrugsavisen.
This development is the result of both increased milk volume and a significant improvement in milk quality. Over the past dairy year, the average milk yield has increased by 134 kilos per cow, but when converted into energy-corrected milk (ECM), the gain amounts to a full 338 kilos. This is primarily due to a marked rise in fat and protein content – an increase of 16 kilos of fat and 14 kilos of protein per cow per year.
“The sector continues to prioritise a higher increase in value content rather than producing more water. Achieving 898 kilos of fat plus protein is an impressively strong performance and shows that the focus on value content in NTM* is having exactly the effect we want. It is the largest increase in value content I can remember, says Niels Henning Nielsen, Director of Viking Data & Performance Services, to Landbrugsavisen.
Internationally, there is growing attention on the nutritional components of milk, and Denmark’s leading position provides the sector with an important advantage in meeting future climate and environmental requirements, Landbrugsavisenreports.
*NTM (Nordic Total Merit) is a Nordic total index used in breeding, which weights key traits such as health, production (milk, fat and protein), conformation and functional characteristics.
Photo: Megumi Nachev, Unsplash
