The study investigates the role of co-operatives in smallholder dairy production and marketing in Swaziland. The study was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of cooperatives in improving production and marketing as well as in minimisation of transaction costs. Expectations were that co-operative members perform better than independent farmers in terms of production and productivity, have larger herd sizes, generate a higher income, and also incur lower transaction costs indicated by a higher quantity of milk sold. Results of the survey indicate that co-operatives play a positive role in production and marketing activities of smallholder dairy farmers, although certain developments such as provision of support programmes need to take place in order for them to make a more significant contribution. Co-operative members produce and sell higher quantities of milk (19.3% higher and 24.5% higher respectively), which is mainly attributed to provision of technical inputs. Co-operatives also provide farmers with a reliable market, although price paid is lower (35% lower) compared to that of independent farmers in the same areas. Low income is compensated by the fact that co-operative members incur lower transaction costs indicated by the lower transportation costs per unit of output, adequate access to market information through frequent visits of extension officers and regular training, as well as a lower percentage of losses incurred compared to independent farmers. Results of the study confirm the hypothesis that co-operative members perform better and incur lower transaction costs than independent farmers. Results of the regression model indicate that distance, access to market information, milk output and co-operative participation significantly influence the quantity of marketable milk, and hence contribute to lower transaction costs incurred. The results show that co-operative farmers incur lower transaction costs although they sell their milk at a lower price. Nevertheless, the fixed price effect renders co-operative farmers not susceptible to price fluctuation risks that independent farmers are faced with because of their volatile prices. The study suggests that there is a need for support programmes that will help motivate individual farmers and strengthen co-operatives, as their contribution to smallholder production and marketing is still marginal. Support programmes include provision of a supportive policy environment, infrastructure development, access to financial and credit facilities and improvement of training and extension to provide more extensive dynamic opportunities to farmers. In terms of further research, the study recommends that a similar study be undertaken in other areas of Swaziland so that the study is representative of the whole country. In addition, further research is needed on performance of dairy cooperatives to enable replication of successful co-operatives in the country which will go a long way in improvement of the dairy industry as a whole. / Dissertation (MSc(Agric))--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted

Production records for dairy cows were first based on the yield of butter for a seven day period any time during the lactation. Later, 365- day records based on production for one day in each calendar month came into general use. The records preferred at present are 305- day records based on monthly test day production, but calculated using the centering date method. The centering date estimate is based on milk and butterfat production from two consecutive milkings per month. The sampling day is centered as nearly as possible in the test month period which need not coincide with the calendar month. The reason for the general acceptance of the 305- day records is the desire of the dairyman to freshen the dairy cow annually, which means milking for ten months and dry for two months. Records calculated by the centering date method more nearly represent actual production than records calculated by other methods that have been used. It is generally accepted that if the present testing program is used properly it can be of great value to the dairy farmer from the standpoint of herd improvement and for selecting animals for a breeding program. However, only a small percentage of the dairymen take advantage of a testing program. One of the limiting factors has been the cost of testing and record keeping. It has been suggested that bimonthly or trimonthly test periods might provide as much information as the monthly testing interval and at the same time reduce the cost to the individual dairymen. It is reasonable to speculate that with reduced costs there would be an increased number of herds tested. This would help compensate the testing supervisor and data processing center for lost income resulting from less frequent testing, and at the same time provide more information for national sire proving programs. However, bimonthly or trimonthly testing have not been accepted because of the possiblilty of larger error being involved in individual records. This larger error occurs because the curvelinear shape of the lactation is not taken into account and a cow is given credit for the same production over the entire testing period, resulting in either under or over estimation of the record. Tho objective of this study is to measure the relative accuracy of estimating 305- day production of dairy cows by using different testing intervals and different methods to estimate production. Monthly, bimonthly, and trimonthly intervals are studied. Methods include the centering date method and three methods using factors designed to extend production from each test day to a 305-day estimate with the test day estimate averaged to determine the final estimate of production for 305 days.

No description available.

Virginia dairy producers are considering intensive grazing as a profitable and ecologically viable alternative to confinement dairy production. The objective of this study is to compare financial performance for pasture-based dairy farms relative to similar resourced-based confinement farms. Comparisons are based on the recommended financial and profitability measures of performance provided by the Farm Financial Standards Council. Primary and secondary data plus simulation of daily pasture supply and animal demands are used to develop 100 and 200-cow farms with a land base representative of the Ridge and Valley regions of Virginia. Representative farms were developed to explore financial performance based on the intensity of pasture use, from total confinement to seasonal farms using intensive grazing (in which pasture, hay, and energy supplements are the only sources of nutrients for all dairy animals on the farm). Results of the analysis demonstrate that pasture-based seasonal production is more profitable and has a higher level of repayment capacity and financial efficiency than all other production systems in this study. Greater financial performance by the seasonal farms is obtained even though such farms obtain lower average annual milk prices and 10 percent less milk sold per cow than the similar confinement farms. Pasture-based farms that feed a partial total mixed ration during the summer (25 percent of ration dry matter and 45 percent of ration dry matter from pasture) have fewer financial advantages than the seasonal farms. However, their performance exceeds that of the confinement farms and intensive pasture-based farms milking year round. The intensive pasture-based farms milking year round are the poorest financial performers. Additional conclusions for this study are: 1) the 100-cow farms exhibit insufficient financial performance to provide for family living, debt service (at 40 percent debt to equity ratio), and a cushion for events such as droughts or declines in milk prices; and 2) financial performance of the 200-cow dairies is better, yet the added income from a member of the farm having off-farm income will provide a cushion against unforeseen production and financial risks. Follow up research should address the interface of three issues; stocking rates, farm profitability, and environmental compliance. / Ph. D.

The relationship of quantity and quality of feed to milk production has been studied for many years. Feeding standards have been developed to systematize feeding of dairy cows according to their requirements. Recently, interest in efficiency of cows in converting feed nutrients into milk has increased.

Extensive studies have been done in the various fields of dairy production such as, reproduction, herd and animal health, feeding and nutrition and the economics of milk production. This study aims to incorporate the standards or benchmarks set out in these studies, in order to identify different technical and financial benchmarks that can be used as management tool by intensive milk producers. Benchmarking can be described as a process whereby a firm (farm) compare its processes, results or actions against that of competitors with the best practice in the industry. To become competitive a farm business must have the ability to compare (benchmark) itself against others, and preferably against others that perform better, but also make adjustments according to the comparison. Benchmarking is therefore a continuous process of comparing and adjusting where necessary. The dairy industry in South Africa changed dramatically since deregulation in the early 1990’s. The industry went from a highly regulated one-channel market to a completely free-market system. This meant that farmers had to become more competitive, both locally and internationally. Three different types of production systems are used in the six production regions in South Africa. These production regions can be divided into two main regions: the coastal regions and the Highveld region. Production in the coastal regions is normally pasture-based, with additional concentrate feeding in some cases. On the Highveld and in the Western Cape, production is based on a total mixed ration (TMR), where cows are fed the complete ration in an intensive production system. Benchmarks were identified for herd health and reproduction, feeding and nutrition and economic and financial performance. Lastly, some additional general benchmarks were defined for bio-security and capacity utilisation. Herd health and reproduction can be divided into the three main areas of fertility performance, udder health and general herd health. Nutrition and feeding can be divided into benchmarks for: intake, nutrient requirements, body condition scoring, calf and heifer feeding, and additional general feeding benchmarks. The economic and financial performance of the dairy farm business can be evaluated against benchmarks for costs, solvability, liquidity, profitability, debt repayment and capital efficiency. It is very important to note and remember that when a dairy farm is evaluated, all the norms or benchmarks must be seen in a holistic way. All the parameters, and therefore every benchmark, are interrelated and cannot be judged or applied individually. Feeding will have an impact on production and reproduction and therefore on financial performance. This study focuses only on benchmarks for intensive milk producers, but it is recommended that it can be extended to include benchmarks for milk production in the pasture-based production systems as well. Since the dairy industry operates in a free-market system and South Africa is an open economy, it is important to be globally competitive. This can only be achieved if local producers benchmark themselves against international standards. Benchmarks can only be used if they are quantified. It is therefore recommended that benchmarks are published for the dairy farmer to use in his evaluations. The Nominal Group Technique worked well to establish the parameters and their benchmarks and farmers can also benefit from this technique. All related parties to the dairy farm, such as the financial consultant or agricultural economist, animal nutritionist, veterinarian and other input suppliers can form a specialist group to evaluate the performance of the dairy together with the producer or herd manager. This specialist group can then recommend adjustments to be made, after discussing the effects on every aspect of production. / Dissertation (MSc (Agric): Agricultural Economics)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / MSc(Agric) / unrestricted

Production of dairy cows is influenced by many factors, among which are: genetics, nutrition, management, disease and age. Most of these factors can be modified to maintain a high level of production. Age, however, is beyond the influence of mankind; therefore, it is important to understand the effect of age on milk and butter-fat production.

The purpose of the report was to enhance the understanding of logistics within dairy production by investigating if theories of logistics concerning inventory functions and inventory management methods can be applied to dairy production, and if those theories can be used to analyze the costs for materials management. The research question was: What kind of inventory functions and inventory management methods are used within dairy production? The objective of the report was formulated as: To investigate if logistics theories concerning materials management can be used to analyze the costs of fodder inventory? Theories concerning inventory functions and inventory management where collected. To see if these theories could be applied to dairy production four interviews were conducted with different dairy production producers. From those four, two were selected for further research. At those two producers more interviews were held and the authors complemented the interviews with document studies. The gathered data where calculated and analyzed. Both inventory functions and inventory management methods were identified and therefore a cost analysis of the warehouse could be made. The findings of the report shows that it is possible to use the theories presented and that they should be used to develop dairy production.

Submitted by Marcos Anselmo (marcos.anselmo@unipampa.edu.br) on 2017-06-09T17:56:41Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) CAROLINE ALVARES SILVA.pdf: 1028707 bytes, checksum: a2d589df5106df1027902b88897041a3 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marcos Anselmo (marcos.anselmo@unipampa.edu.br) on 2017-06-09T17:57:00Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) CAROLINE ALVARES SILVA.pdf: 1028707 bytes, checksum: a2d589df5106df1027902b88897041a3 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-09T17:57:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) CAROLINE ALVARES SILVA.pdf: 1028707 bytes, checksum: a2d589df5106df1027902b88897041a3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017 / Com o avanço da ciência, diversas informações técnicas e tecnologias disponíveis para a atividade leiteira são geradas, todavia, não aplicáveis a todos os sistemas de produção. A recomendação das tecnologias e informações mais aplicáveis a uma determinada região ou propriedade é um dos grandes desafios enfrentados por quem trabalha no setor leiteiro com essa missão. Nesse cenário, estudos que mensurem as características produtivas permitem uma visão sistêmica dos sistemas de produção pecuários, a qual contribui para a orientação de profissionais que atuam nas ciências agrárias e sociais, norteando decisões produtivas locais ou de políticas públicas e privadas voltadas ao sistema agroindustrial. Com o objetivo de tipificar os sistemas de produção, através da caracterização dos perfis produtivos das propriedades que desenvolvem a atividade leiteira no município de Alegrete no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, desenvolveu-se esse trabalho. O estudo foi conduzido em 43 propriedades distribuídas em 22 localidades do município. Como critério de representatividade das propriedades, foi priorizado o volume diário de leite, onde os sistemas de produção foram ordenados de acordo à produtividade. A coleta de dados referentes aos sistemas de produção foi realizada através de visitas às propriedades, utilizando um questionário guia semiestruturado, abordando informações sobre os dados cadastrais, caracterização do proprietário e da propriedade rural, da produção leiteira e do rebanho, manejo nutricional, manejo de ordenha, manejo reprodutivo, controle sanitário e finalizava abordando as estratégias de comercialização do leite. Os dados obtidos com os questionários foram tabulados e com o auxílio do IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0 software, por meio da estatística multivariada foram submetidos à análise de componentes principais (ACP) e análise de clusters hierárquicos (CHA), para dividir as 43 unidades de produção em grupos homogêneos. As variáveis estudadas foram sumarizadas por meio da ACP em dois componentes principais (1 e 2), os quais explicaram 71,531% da variância explicada. A partir da análise de classificação hierárquica, o conjunto de dados das 43 propriedades estudadas foi reduzido em seis grupos (G1, G2, G3, G4, G5 e G6). Os quadrantes obtidos a partir da inserção dos eixos dos componentes principais 1 e 2 permitiram a interpretação dos grupos de sistemas, de acordo com as características relacionadas à produção de leite. Os aspectos produtivos que definem as características dos sistemas de produção de leite no município foram relacionados 8 com a estrutura do rebanho, área de pastagem, produção diária, critérios de descarte e manejo de ordenha, sugerindo que as ações de assistência técnica e extensão rural nos sistemas de produção leiteiros no município de Alegrete devem ser direcionadas de acordo com os gargalos de cada sistema. / As the science advances, many technical and technological informations available for dairy activity production are generated, however, not all applicable to all production systems. The recommendation of technologies and information more applicable to a particular region or property is one of the great challenges faced by those who work in the dairy sector with this task. In this scenario, studies that measure the productive characteristics allow a systemic view of livestock production systems, which contributes to the orientation of professionals working in the agrarian and social sciences, orienting local productive decisions or public and private policies focused on the agroindustrial system. With the intention of typify the production systems, through the characterization of the productive profiles of the properties that develop the milk activity in the city of Alegrete in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, this study was developed. The study was conducted in 43 properties that are distributed in 22 localities of the municipality. As a criterion of representativeness of the properties, the daily milk volume was prioritized, where the production systems were ordered according to productivity. The data collection was made by visiting the properties, using a semi-structured questionnaire guide, informations about registration data, characteristics of the owner and of the rural property, dairy production and cattle, nutritional management, milking management, reproductive management, sanitary control and concluded by approaching the milk marketing strategies. The obtained data by the questionnaires were tabulated and by the IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0 software, using the multivariate statistic submitted to the main component analysis (MCA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (CHA) to divide the 43 units of production into homogeneous groups. As the studied variables were summarized through the MCA in two main components (1 and 2), which explained 71.531% of the variance explained. From the hierarchical classification analysis, the dataset of the 43 properties studied was reduced in six groups (G1, G2, G3, G4, G5 and G6). The results obtained from the insertion of the axes of the main components 1 and 2 allowed the interpretation of the groups of systems, according to the characteristics related to milk production. The productive aspects that define the characteristics of milk production systems in the studied area were related to the structure of the cattle, pasture area, daily production, disposal criteria and milking management, suggesting that the technical assistance and rural extension actions in the dairy’s system production in the municipality of Alegrete should be directed according to the bottlenecks of each system.

A produção de leite é uma das principais atividades geradoras de renda em regiões onde a agricultura familiar ocupa grande parte dos estabelecimentos familiares, como é o caso do município de Rolador-RS. Todavia, o universo de agricultores que produzem leite apresenta certa heterogeneidade e, por conta disso, configura-se diferentes sistemas de produção de leite. Essa diversidade de sistemas de produção de leite influencia de forma diferente a sociedade na qual estão inseridos. Assim, o objetivo desta dissertação é realizar uma análise da agricultura de Rolador com foco na autonomia e na transferência de valor agregado dos sistemas de produção de leite. Para isso, utilizou-se da Teoria dos Sistemas Agrários como base teórica e metodológica. Como resultados, foram identificados dois sistemas de produção de leite com diferenças significativas entre si (Familiar Leite Mecanização Completa – FLMC – e Familiar Leite Mecanização Incompleta – FLMI). O primeiro é caracterizado por uma produção mais intensiva e especializada, enquanto o segundo possui características que o aproximam de uma produção mais extensiva. Além das diferenças técnicas, observou-se o que o FLMI é consideravelmente mais autônomo do que o FLMC, visto que utiliza mais sua própria base de recursos e está menos relacionado com o mercado do insumos e agentes externos. Além disso, tem ocorrido um intenso processo de concentração produtiva, que se traduz no incentivo, por parte das empresas, à sistemas de produção similares ao FLMC. De acordo com os dados deste trabalho, uma política com estas orientações é incoerente com uma noção de desenvolvimento rural baseada num processo equitativo e inclusivo. / The milk production is one of the main income generating activities in regions where family farming occupies a large part of family establishments, such as the case Rolador-RS municipality. However, the universe of theses farmers show some heterogeneity, and in reason of that, there are different configurations of milk production systems. This diversity of milk production system influences differently the community where are inserted. Therefore, the aim of this Master Thesis is conduct an analysis of Rolador agriculture focusing on autonomy and value transfer of milk production systems. For that, the methodology and theory used as study basis was the Theory of Agrarian Systems. As results, two milk production systems have identified with significant differences between each other (Family Milk Full Mechanization - FMFM - and Family Milk Incomplete Mechanization - FMIM). The first one characterizes per intense and specialized production, while the second has extensive production as a characteristic. In addition, to the technical differences, it has observed that the FMIM is considerably more autonomous than the FMFM, since this one uses more of its own resource base and is less related to the market of external inputs and agents. Moreover, there has been an intense process of productive concentration, which displays into the incentive by companies to production systems similar to FMFM. According to the data of this study, a policy with these guidelines is inconsistent with a notion of rural development based on an equitable and inclusive process.