cow power (kracht van koeien)

7/30/2019 Cow Power (Kracht Van Koeien)

1/27

Cow Power

Designs orSystem Innovation

Stepping stones towards sustainablelivestock husbandry

How animal welare, the environment andeconomy may ortiy each other in dairy husbandry


2/27

This brochure is one o the results o the Cow Power (Kracht van Koeien) project, realised bythe Animal Sciences Group o Wageningen University and Research Centre (Wageningen UR)

and commissioned by the Dutch Ministry o Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality within the

ramework o the research programme titled Towards Sustainability in Production and Transition

(Verduurzaming Productie en Transitie) (BO-07-009-005).

Learn more about the project and subsequent activities at

www.krachtvankoeien.wur.nl

editor: Marieke Mittelmeijer

drawings: JAM / Visueel Denken

graphic design: Wageningen UR Communication Services

Slightly edited version 1.1 23 March 2009

Copying text and data and quoting rom this publication is permitted provided with complete and

correct acknowledgement o sources

A.P. (Bram) Bos, Jessica M.R. Cornelissen and Peter W.G. Groot Koerkamp (2009)

Cow Power Designs or system innovation. Wageningen Lelystad, Wageningen UR,

ISBN 978-90-8585-486-9

ASG Animal Sciences Group o Wageningen UR, Lelystad

PreaceStepping stones towards sustainable livestock

husbandry

Livestock armers and others are increasingly moving towards

sustainable livestock husbandry. A husbandry system uniting the

needs o animal, environment, consumer and entrepreneur. I it was

up to the Dutch Ministry o Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality

(LNV), sustainability is the uture. The Minister o Agriculture has

dened unambiguous ambitions: in 2023, livestock husbandry in the

Netherlands will be 100% sustainable.

Realising sustainable livestock husbandry is a practical quest in the end. Many

parties and initiatives are already aiming at sustainability in dairy husbandry.

In interaction with livestock armers, trade and industry, and policy makers,

the Animal Sciences Group o Wageningen UR has produced designs or our

completely new husbandry systems that will contribute to making Dutch dairy

husbandry more sustainable by leaps and bounds.

We are convinced that a sustainable uture requires a turnaround in thinking

and acting: a system innovation. That is why the designs o Cow Power (in

Dutch: Kracht van Koeien) leave t he well-trodden path: they bring new promises

and in some cases they are unorthodox. But they also clearly represent the

wishes o the stakeholders: the armer, the environment and the citizen as well

as the cows.

The design concepts break with a number o generally accepted ideas, but

that also means they hold great promise. A promise that can be ullled in the

not too distant uture. In this respect the designs must be seen as sources o

inspiration, certainly not as blueprints.

And we shouldnt rely on just the armers to realise that promise. It requires

an eort rom many dierent parties. Ater all, the social benets are not only

or the armer or the animal either. Thereore, we hope you will consider them

with an open mind and that you will use them to contribute to a sustainable

development o Dutch dairy husbandry. At the end o this brochure you will nd

inormation on how to respond and how to take initiatives. We look orward to

hearing rom you.

Bram Bos

or the Cow Power (Kracht van Koeien) Project Team

Animal Sciences Group Wageningen UR (March 2009)

Table o contents

1. Cow Power in a nutshell

2. Sustainability is the uture3. Everyone has his wishes

4. Think dierently, act dierently

5. Design concepts or sustainable

dairy husbandry

6. In conclusion

7. The next steps

8. Response

3


3/27

Cow Power

in a nutshellDairy husbandry in the Netherlands could be much more sustainable than it

is now. It seems dicult, but it is certainly easible: dairy husbandry where

cows have a good lie, where the armer makes a good living, a husbandry that

cares or the environment and, on top o all that, caters or the wishes o the

citizen. This ambition is the starting point in Cow Power as well as the objective

o the designs. In this way we can ensure that it is not in the rst place the

milk, but dairy husbandry itsel that can be kept or a long time.

Cow Power shows that a number o paradoxes and conficts such as between animal

welare and environment or between environment and economy are not laws o nature.

They are the consequence o the way dairy husbandry in the Netherlands has developed

over the past decades. Parting with certain standards and accepted operations will

make it possible to overcome such paradoxes. That will not happen overnight.

It requires a turnaround in thinking and acting. A system innovation.

Dairy husbandry is an intricate system where

armer, animal, soil, crop, capital, energy, and

nutrients are interconnected in many ways.

Pulling one string will have consequences

elsewhere - in unexpected places. This is why

system innovation is necessary: a turnaround

in thinking and acting. We have based Cow

Power on the conviction that this way will allow

animal welare, environment and economy to go

excellently hand in hand.

Peter Groot Koerkamp, co-projectleader Cow Power

But what is perect dairy husbandry?

First o all, we investigated what the ideal

situation is or armers, cows, citizens

and the environment. These ideals seem

at odds in many cases. Then we went

on to trace the main bottlenecks in the

current dairy husbandry system that

obstruct reconciliation o these ideals.

Removing these bottlenecks requires

major turnarounds in thinking and acting.

These turnarounds are not really new

in themselves. Elements o them have

been devised and tested here and there

by pioneering dairy armers, ellow

researchers and other stakeholders

in the sector. Combined, they are t he

starting points or the our design

concepts or dairy husbandry systems.

Turnaround in thinking,turnaround in acting

A. Satisy the cows every need rather than

giving her what happens to be let over

Give the cow much more space, quietness, and

exercise. Throughout the year.

Take cow power as starting point, rather than the

power o eed concentrates.

Consider housing, outdoor range and pasture as

one entity.

B. Consider minerals as a resource rather than

waste

Keep aeces (dry manure) and urine separate.

Substitute articial ertiliser and apply new

ertilisers dierently.

Process aeces and urine sub fows and apply

them with precision.

Do not use eed concentrate rom araway

countries.

C. Share capital and labour with others instead

o dividing them over more cows

Save labour and cost by sharing capital assets.

Cooperate between arms.

Combine energy production with cheap shelter or

cows.

Use land or multiple unctions and share land

ownership.

D. Consider the soil a productive ecosystem

instead o a dead substrate

Treat soil as a live organism.

Minimise soil tillage, prevent compaction.

Apply intensive and extensive (low-input) arming

practices at the same time.

Increase the soil production by precision

ertilisation and irrigation.

ImprovementsWe have combined these turnarounds

in thinking and acting in our design

concepts or dairy husbandry, resulting

in the ollowing main improvements:

For the animal: much better animal

welare, better health, more physical

exercise, need-based eeding

and, consequently, a longer lie

expectancy o up to an average o

nine years.

For the environment: a reduction

o ammonia emissions by 75%,

a reduction o greenhouse gas

emissions by 50-75%, a reduction o

eutrophication by 75%, the possibility

o climate neutrality through green

energy production, a smaller

ecological ootprint o odder and

eed concentrate production, and an

increased biodiversity on the arm

and in the surrounding area.

For the armer: labour savings

through automation and a system that

is easier to manage and requires less

intervention. More fexible labour by

sharing capital assets and an equal

or better prot, also when producing

regular milk.

For the surroundings and society:

socially desirable dairy husbandry that

is visible and incorporated in other

spatial and social unctions, such

as nature and urban development.

Suitable in Natura 2000 areas.

Veriable good animal welare which

is visible and recognisable.

5


4/27

In this brochure we present our design concepts o sustainable dairy

husbandry. Our main objective is to show that a much higher degree o

sustainability in dairy husbandry is easible. The designs are not technological

panaceas nor are they blueprints. Some innovations require more development

and testing and that takes time. Other innovations are not concerned with

technology, but with dierent methods o operation and collaboration. The

designs show how it could be done, not how it has to be done; dierent roads

lead to sustainability.

We are aware o the act that armers come in all types and sizes. That is why we have

made dierent designs that may be attractive to dierent entrepreneurs. Every dairy

armer can benet rom them, pick out elements and modiy them to suit his own arm.

But they are just as much a challenge to system designers and governments to examine

their own role with dierent eyes. And last but not least, the designs will require room

or entrepreneurs to make riskul investments in sustainable systems. Consequently, it

is the duty o local, regional and national authorities to provide that room.

Substantial gainspossibleCow Power presents great promises.

Within ve years it can be possible to

considerably increase animal welare,

reduce environmental load, and still

maintain protable operations at a dairy

arm. However, it is vital that we do not

stubbornly stick to our old ways and that

we are prepared to consider things we

once thought impossible. Our designsdemand fexible thinking on the part o

armers, consultants, policy makers,

researchers and citizens, and the

willingness to develop and enrich them

on the basis o their own needs.

Sustainability is

the utureA Dutch landscape without cows is inconceivable. For tourists, and certainly

or the Dutch themselves. We have been keeping cows in the Netherlands or

thousands o years. We have grown together. Over the past decades, improved

breeds, new technology and strong dairy cooperatives have made it possible

or the Dutch dairy branch to develop into a leading global exporter o milk,

milk powder, cheese and butter. But will it stay that way? Cow Power shows

that integrated, sustainable dairy husbandry has a uture in the Netherlands.

Dutch dairy armers are acing exciting times. Land and labour are relatively expensive,

while prices are increasingly being liberalised and EU product subsidies are being

phased out. Substantial increases o scale seem unavoidable, though many wonder

whether such strong growth is actually cost-eective. At the same time, the environment

and animal welare are a growing ocus o attention. All these issues will not solve

themselves. The dairy branch ears that autonomous developments will increasingly

orce dairy husbandry towards actory (intensive) arming. Preventing this will require

system innovation, a turnaround in thinking and acting.

To many people, a Dutch

landscape without cows is

inconceivable.

The Cow Power designs are not

blueprints, but they do show that animal

welare, environment, and the economy

can be congruent in dairy husbandry.

What people will think o the design concepts?

I guess that many will show scepticism, while others

will be surprised by the possibilities. We hope the

designs will the topic o conversation.

I expect that ambitious and progressive armers,

consultants and parties o the agri- and ood

business will steal a glance at the designs and make

a practical conversion to their own arm or work.

Bram Bos, co-project leader Cow Power

7


5/27

Dutch dairy husbandryLet us start with the gures. In 2007 there were 21,313 arms in the Netherlands with

a total o about 1.4 million dairy cows. The total milk production amounted to 10,800

million kilos o milk; the average milk yield per cow was 7,879 kilos per year. Forty

percent o the arms had 70 dairy cows or more. Out o the total armland area in the

Netherlands (1.9 million hectares), some 1.0 million hectares were in use as grassland

(53%). In addition, 221,000 hectares were used or green maize (12% o the total).

Only a relatively limited share, that is some 10%, o the milk produced is consumed

as resh milk and dairy products. The rest is processed into cheese, butter, condensed

milk, and milk powder. It takes 10 litres o milk to make one kilo o cheese and as much

as 25 litres to make one kilo o butter. More than 80% o these processed products are

exported. In addition, all specic types o proteins, sugars and ats rom the milk are

used or special applications. For that purpose the milk is cracked.

Production

(*million kg)

Export total

(* million kg)

For fresh consumption

Cream 11.9

Milk and milk products 1445.1

Whole milk and cream 406.7

Milk processing products

Cheese 714.0 562.6

Butter 125.2 112.5

Butter oil 41.5

Condensed milk 308.9 274.1

No n-skimm ed milk po wder 105 .6 13 8.2

Skimmed milk powder 48.9 42.9

Whey powder 264.0

Source: PZ/CBS. The total number o kilos in this table is lower than the 10,800 million

kilos o milk that are produced, because 1 kilo o cheese or butter requires many more

kilos o milk.

Environment and animalwelfareThere is a lot o economic pressure on

dairy arming these days and thereore

attention or other sustainability

aspects such as animal welare and the

environment will not come naturally.

Lets rst scrape a living, then we can

start worrying about the rills, is what

many think. Fortunately, many other dairy

armers realise that this is not the way

orward. The milk quotas may b e repealed,

but in their place environment and animalwelare will increasingly be preconditions

or growth and development. So you

better make sure you are prepared.

And that is what happens throughout

the Netherlands. There are numerous

networks o armers and consultants

who are experimenting with pasturing

(or instance PureGraze, Koe & Wij),

animal health (Vetvice), minerals (Koeien

& Kansen, Vel & Vanla), space or cows

(oil arch dairy housing (serrestal), loose

housing (vrijloopstal)), cooperation

(Ecolana), agrobiodiversity (numerous

agricultural nature conservation

associations), labour eciency (EDF), and

mutual learning (Melkvee Academie). So a

lot is already happening in specic areas.

We think it takes more to achieve

integrated sustainable dairy husbandry.

Why? First o all, because a specic

solution to one problem in dairy husbandry

will oten and easily have unwantedconsequences or a dierent aspect.

Secondly, because the responsibility or

sustainable dairy husbandry will usually

end up on the dairy armers plates. At the

same time parties such as consultants,

dairy cooperatives, banks and

governments have a major infuence, both

directly and indirectly, on the opportunities

and scope or dairy armers to improve

their operations. And thirdly, because

the eects o improvements on specic

aspects may easily evaporate under the

pressure o autonomous developments

such as continuing increases o scale and

increased production per cow.

Sustainable base:The power of cows

Denitions o sustainability are

innumerable. Usually it is no problem

to agree on the general idea: that

eventually our welare should not harm

others people elsewhere on the planet,

animals, the environment and nature, at

the present or in the long term. However,

as soon as we talk about sustainability

in more concrete terms, it is harder to

give an agreed and practical denition o

sustainability. People may undamentally

dissent on livestock husbandry regarding

the question whether using and killing

animals can be sustainable in the rstplace. In this brochure we assume animal

production can basically be sustainable,

even i we keep animals locked up and

eventually even kill them. This is a value-

based starting point, not a scientic

argument. A starting point however, that

links up with the vision o our client, the

Minister o Agriculture o The Netherlands.

In 2008, in her Toekomstvisie Duurzame

Veehouderij (her uture vision on

sustainable animal husbandry) she

portrayed the ideal o an in all aspects

sustainable husbandry, with broad public

support.

In addition, it is our opinion that

dairy husbandry in the Netherlands

can have a legitimate and sustainable

uture as ood supplier. The power and

capacity o cows lies in their skill to

convert low-grade vegetable products

such as grass and residual fows into

high-grade oodstus. Those low-grade

products and residual fows are amplyavailable in the Netherlands and much

armland is not even suitable or anything

but grass production. Moreover, we

have a avourable climate or animals

and sucient reshwater. In addition,

the development towards a bio-based

economy means that new classes o

residual fows become available. Dairy

arming and livestock husbandry in general

can play an important role in a cascaded

conversion o these residual fows into

valuable resources.

In short: dairy husbandry which is primarily

based on what is locally available has a

perect place in this region. It does mean

a shit in the purpose o dairy husbandry:

rom just milk production to putting

to value regionally available low-grade

vegetable products and residual fows.

This also sets a maximum on the volume

o dairy husbandry in the Netherlands.With the entire package o changes

that we propose here, we think that

the volume will mainly be limited by the

regional availability o residual fows. I

as expected this availability increases,

urther growth o dairy husbandry in

the Netherlands can be compatible with

integrated sustainability o that branch.

Yet it will be a completely dierent type o

dairy husbandry.

Economic pressureincreasesTo many dairy armers, 2015 will be

a magic year. That is the year the EU

milk quota regulation will be repealed.

This means there will no longer be a

xed maximum o milk production per

arm. Since the EU agricultural product

subsidies will be phased out at the same

time, many dairy armers eel orced to

increase their arm size substantially. It

seems the only way to keep the amily

income up to the mark. For a large groupo armers this will mean more credits

and even harder work, in a market o

fuctuating milk prices. On top o that,

the cost price o a litre o milk is already

higher than the revenues apart rom

exceptions such as in 2007. Dairy

armers compensate the dierence with a

lot o unpaid labour. Ater all, to many o

them dairy arming is not just or prot - it

is their way o lie.

Given the current growth o scale in

dairy husbandry, this situation can not be

maintained orever. Eventually, armers

will have to start hiring people to do the

extra work, and they will have to pay

those employees. Furthermore, there is

a limit to mortgaging the land to nance

additional investments. As a result, dairy

husbandry will increasingly be cost-price

driven, at least as long as this milk will

have to compete on the world market as

high-grade, but anonymous raw material.

In our opinion dairy

husbandry in the

Netherlands has a

legitimate and sustainable

future as global food

supplier.

To many dairy farmers, 2015

will be a magic year. That is

the year the EU milk quota

regulation will be repealed.

Since the EU agricultural

product subsidies will be

phased out at the same time,

many dairy farmers feel forced

to increase their farm size

substantially.9


6/27

Everyone has his wishesSustainability means preventing that the costs and side eects o our

prosperity are passed to others, Herman Wijels, a reknown Dutch banker and

visionary, stated. In order to make a design that shits as little expense onto

others, we must rst nd out what those involved want. In this case at least:

the armers, the citizens, the environment and o course: the cows.

I it were up to the cowI it were up to the cow, she would have space. Cows are happy when they

are healthy, when they can choose between being indoors or outdoors, when

they have a place to rest and can display social behaviour within their own

amiliar herd. This is what the brie o requirements o the dairy cow, the BoR

Dairy Cow, shows. But what does this mean in practice? The Cowel model

that we developed shows the relative importance o dierent environment

characteristics or a good lie o the cow.

Animal welare and health are important. Not only or the animals themselves, but also

or the dairy armers. I the cows needs are not ullled, this may lead to abnormalbehaviour, weakness, pain, stress, illness or even death. In addition to the ethical

objections this raises, it also costs money. Cows in the Netherlands do not live as long

as we would like and this has economic consequences. They are replaced at a relatively

young age because o claw disorders, mastitis and, due to the ocus on production and

lack o space, problems with conception. And the latter is still what starts lactation. O

course we can try to adapt cows to their environment through breeding. But why not

look at it rom another angle: what adaptations does the cow ask rom her surroundings

or maximum welare and good health?

Focus on the cowsrequirementsWe assume a maximum welare and good

health or the cow is guaranteed i all her

needs are met. Thereore, she should

be able to perorm all activities and

behaviour necessary to ull those needs,

without limitations. We have laid this

down in a list o requirements the cow

imposes upon her surroundings: the brie

o requirements (BoR) o the dairy cow.

These requirements have been classied

per need and they have been worded

solution-ree. This means the way a

requirement is met in practice is open or

various solutions.

BoR Dairy Cow: depicts the cows

requirements to satisy all her needs. It

is based on some ve hundred, mainly

scientic, articles and on experiences o

experts in welare and behaviour.

Cowel: indicates what impact an

environment characteristic has on the

dairy cows welare i this characteristic

does not comply with the ideal.

You can nd more inormation on both

studies at www.krachtvankoeien.wur.nl

The Cowel model was developed by

the Animal Sciences Group in order to

gain insight into the extent to which the

various characteristics o a husbandry

system are important to the cow. It

indicates the impact an environment

characteristic has on the dairy cows

welare i this characteristic does not

comply with the ideal. At the same time

the model provides an insight into which

characteristics o a husbandry systemare most important to animal welare

and which ones are less important.

The BoR Dairy Cow shows that the

cow preers to have at least 360 m

o space to move around. Then cows

are not in each others way, they can

move away i they want to and they do

not show aggressive behaviour among

themselves. O course that space is

considerably more than the area o

6 to 8 m the average cow now has in

current housing systems.

Cowel makes it easier or us to

estimate the relative importance o

this aspect: the gains in welare rom

doubling the cows space to at least

13.5 m is considerably greater than

the gains in welare we make with the

step rom 13.5 to 360 m. Despite this

act, we have based three out o the our

design concepts on the ideal. Yet dairy

armers who double the space to13.5 m are already realising a

considerable welare improvement.

What does the cow want?Not all environment characteristics are equally important to the cow. Some have a much

greater impact on the cows welare than others. Below we will discuss in more detail the nine

characteristics o a husbandry system with the greatest eect on the dairy cows welare,

according to Cowel. Cutting back on these characteristics has a major impact on the cows

welare.

At least one spacious resting spot or every cow.

Cows like to rest together as a group. Rest is

a necessity o lie or the cow.

Good eed.

The eed must enable the cow to maintain homeostasis and

to produce milk. It must contain sucient energy, dry matter,

crude bre, protein and trace elements. Cows are selective whenit comes to ood: it must be tasty, varied and resh, and not

contaminated with manure or saliva.

No negative stimuli such as leakage o current and cow trainers.

Negative stimuli will cause (chronic) stress. This has an adverse infuence on welare and

health.

Complete reedom o choice to move within the area and within the herd.

A cow wants to make up her own mind. Cows want to be able to get out o the way o higher

ranked animals and in large herds they like to

split up into smaller groups. Sometimes a cow

wants to get away rom the group. Yet, she

still wants to be able to see and hear the rest

o the herd.

Calm and predictable handling by the people, so she can move at her own pace.

A cow likes an orderly lie and she preers to know what to expect. Driving and other

unriendly treatments will cause stress.

No impact o obstacles during rising up, lying down and during lying and resting.

Possibility to lie down at a distance o at least two metres rom another cow. A cow

must be able to lie down in the way she would in the pasture. She wants to be able to opt or

her own personal space, but cows may still like to lie close together.

A comortable climate

(Temperature Humidity Index below 71).

To avoid stress rom heat or cold.

Passage ways and eeding areas with a nonslip, dry and

clean foor without sudden changes in the level or texture.

I the foor is too smooth, the cow may slip, i too rough, she may

damage her claws. Uneven, wet or dirty foors are detrimental to the

cows locomotor system.

Sucient light during the day (more than 200 Lux). A cow must be able to see her

surroundings properly, so she can recognise her herd ellows, explore her surroundings or

play with her companions. In addition, light is important or ertility, which in turn is in the

armers interest.

The relative importanceo requirements: Cowel

11


7/27

Cows in pasture

Pasturing can easily be incorporated in the

Cow Power design concepts. People very

much like to see cows out in the pastures,

and pasturing is an excellent solution or

many requirements a cow makes upon

her environment with regard to health

and welare. Yet we have not included

pasturing as a rm requirement in the BoR

o the cow.

Why not? Pasturing in act combines

several unctions, such as being outdoors,

exercising and grazing.

Being outdoors and exercising can be

solved in various ways. But or grazing

pulling o and taking up grass in the

mouth pasture land is a prerequisite.

Although there is discussion and

uncertainty among scientists whether this

is one o the cows needs, we nevertheless

decided to include pasturing in our designs

as a precautionary measure. With current

pasturing methods, this has consequences

or the environment (nitrate), economy

(reduced grass yield) and labour (collecting

cows every day).

The green outdoor range o 360 m per

animal available to the cows throughout

the year in three o the our designs is

necessary or maximum welare. The

green outdoor range is a major increase

in living space, but it is not intended as

an alternative to grazing in summer and

certainly not sucient or the production

o eed.

I it were up to the armer

There is no such thing as the dairy armer. Farmers come in alltypes and sizes. Cow Power wants to call upon entrepreneurs

who look beyond just economy. Entrepreneurs who also want

to do justice to the values o the animal, the environment, the

landscape and the citizen in their operations. Kreas buorkje is

what they call it in Frisian, in other words arming neatly. The

designs provide or ve needs that we recognise among our

armers.

In Cow Power we specically address two groups o dairy

armers: social armers and new growers. Those are armers

who want to develop in their own way and want to seize the

opportunities presented by social desires and trends, including

the attention or animal welare and or the environment.

Two target groups

Social armers are interested in developing their arm by adding

new activities and creating economic and social links with their

surroundings, such as nature and landscape management,

organic agriculture etc. Growth in arm size is not their rst

priority, but growth in quality is. They have a positive view o the

uture and as entrepreneurs they have every condence that their

branch will be able to maintain a solid position in the Netherlands.

New growers keep striving ater the largest possible top arm in

an unorthodox business structure and have interest in innovations.

They are creative, persevering people who like to take initiative

and who show leadership. In many cases they are young people

with relatively large arms. They have condence in the uture.

What do these progressivearmers want?

Growth and development

The design concept oers possibilities

or developing the arm, while growth is

accompanied by and based on reinorcement

o the relations with the social setting.

Social orientation

The design considers that social desires and

developments are an opportunity to create

economic and social values. Functional

relations and all types o cooperation withthe surroundings are utilised to the ull.

Labour

The design must guarantee work satisaction

and some variation. Interaction with

cows contributes considerably to work

satisaction. Automation must not stand in

the way o interaction with cows and the

work must be suciently fexible to allow a

fourishing social lie.

Operational continuity

The business must be suciently protable

to let at least one amily make a living. The

business must, possibly temporarily, be able

to provide or more than one amily in the

event o a takeover. Hiring labour is another

option, just like diversiying and entering into

steady relations with the surroundings.

Pasturing

The design allows pasturing without causingconfict with other needs, such as labour, or

limiting conditions such as the ratio between

home plot area and herd size.

13


8/27

I it were up to the citizenDutch citizens increasingly care about animal husbandry. Positive interest

is growing, and so is criticism - in particular with regard to the position

o animals in livestock husbandry. The act that this does not always lead

directly to a change in buying behaviour in the supermarket, is connected

with things such as the lack o choice and trust, and the relative scarcity o

products that combine personal and social advantages. On the basis o nearly

a hundred interviews we investigated the image o Dutch citizens towards

livestock husbandry, in order to fnd out what the brie o requirements o

the citizens is. Then, when we know what the ideal o citizens is, we want to

approach this ideal as much as possible in our design concepts.

Just like the armer, the cit izen does not exist either. Yet a meaningul classifcationo citizens can be made. A division in three classes emerged rom our study: the

romantics (50%), the pragmatists (35%) and the ethicists (15%). The pragmatists do

not worry too much: ater all, we keep animals or our own ends. The ethicists, on the

other hand, do not take that or granted: using animals is an important ethical choice.

The largest group, the romantics, are convinced that their interest is ully in line with

that o the animal. A good lie or the animal is good ood or me.

Compromise or ideal production method

Economic pressure is the main explanation or below-standard animal welare

according to those interviewed. Pursuit o short-term proft, particularly in the ood

industry, victimises the animals, nature and the environment, and in many cases

also the armers themselves. Things will get better, they think. Livestock husbandry

is gradually developing in the desired direction, and will eventually arrive at a

compromise between economic production and respect or nature and animals. Not

quite the ideal, but an estimate o what people consider practically easible.

It is striking that dairy husbandry scores a only little higher than intensive arming.

Without prior knowledge, citizens have the impression that cows are hardly better o

than chickens or pigs. On the other hand, cows in the pastures represent exactly what

is considered ideal. Citizens do not want animals to be locked up, but to roam reely

and live their lives outdoors in natural circumstances.

In the design concepts we want to link up with the image o the romantics as ar as

possible. I those designs can do that without major economic repercussions, the

pragmatists will be content too. The ethicists will at least consider it a desirable

development.

What does the citizen want?The eleven most important positive

characteristics o ideal husbandry in the

citizens eyes are listed below. However,

the three dierent groups o citizens

(romantics, pragmatists and ethicists) have

dierent emphasis.

1. Let animals roam reely

2. Treat animals as brothers and sisters

3. Take good care o animals

4. Natural and resh animal eed

5. A higher price or better animal welare,i necessary

6. Let animals live in natural surroundings

7. A tasty and resh product (or people)

8. Fair and sustainable production methods

9. Proessional reedom to operate or

armers

10. Reasonable margins or armers

11. Rules or quality assurance

I it were up to the environmentDairy husbandry places a considerable burden on the environment: locally by

eutrophication and acidifcation, and globally by greenhouse gas emissions,

indirect use o energy or artifcial ertiliser and eed concentrate, and use

o natural resources rom elsewhere. Keeping the sector viable in the uture

requires drastic steps. Much more drastic than current legislation requires.

In our brie o requirements or the environment we deliberately set our aims

high because that orces us to consider dierent solutions. When we do so,

much more appears possible than we thought.

Energy and manure

We distinguish nine types o environmental impact: land use, energy use,

eutrophication, acidifcation, greenhouse eect, soil quality, water consumption, localsurroundings, and biodiversity. Ater defning sources and types o environmental

impact, a lie-cycle analysis (LCA) gives a good impression o the environmental load

caused by Dutch dairy husbandry.

The lie-cycle analysis o dairy husbandry

The table below shows the results o a lie-cycle analysis o dairy husbandry in the

Netherlands. The contribution caused by dairy husbandry or fve environmental impact

categories and our links in the chain is displayed. In this analysis the chain reers

to the series o production steps including production and transport o supplied

products up to the point that the milk is collected at the arm.

Table: LCA o dairy husbandry in t he Netherlands, based on 119 regular dairy arms

(Source: Thomassen 2008)

It is striking that the supply o products causes a substantial share o the

environmental impact. Energy use is particularly important in this respect. The main

environmental impact on a dairy arm itsel is eutrophication through nitrate leaching,

acidifcation through ammonia emissions, and the contribution to the greenhouse

eect through emissions o methane and nitrous oxide. For that reason we have

defned specifc targets which are higher than the legal minimum with regard to

energy use, eutrophication, acidifcation and greenhouse eect. For the other types

o environmental impact, qualitative requirements have been defned or they are in

accordance with legal requirements.

Land use Energy use Eutrophication Acidifcation Greenhouse gases

Total

divided over

1,2 m2/kg milk 5,1 MJ/kg milk 0,15 kg NO3-eq/

kg milk

11,2 g SO2-eq/

kg milk

1,3 kg CO2-eq/

kg milk

% supplied

concentrate

24 58 17 26 26

% supplied roughage +

wet by-products

12 9 12 4 8

% supplied artifcial

ertiliser

0 12 1 3 6

% arm: land, housing,

animals

60 18 70 65 59

15


9/27

What do we want or the environment?Good land use

We use land to grow grass and ood crops. Dairy husbandry uses more than 50% o

the armland in the Netherlands, which makes it the largest land user. Cultivation o

cereals, soy and palm kernels or the production o eed concentrate takes up land,

not just here, but also in other countries.

Reduced energy use

We mainly generate energy rom mineral oil. The European Union wants at least 20%

o the energy to come rom renewable energy sources by 2020. The national action

programme called Schoon en Zuinig (translates to clean and economical) responds

to this by striving ater an increase o the share o sustainable energy rom 2% in

2007 to 20% in 2020. In addition, it has been decided that national energy savingsmust be doubled rom 1% to 2% per year. The Cow Power project presents design

concepts which give 75% savings on energy use, mainly by reducing the use that is

linked to the supplied products such as articial ertiliser and concentrates. On top o

that we want to take maximum advantage o the possibilities o generating sustainable

energy (sun, wind and bio-digestion without the use o valuable co-products, i.e. no

co-digestion).

Reduced eutrophication

Nitrate and phosphate rom livestock husbandry cause a major share o the

eutrophication o surace water and groundwater. At European level there are

guidelines or the permissible quantity o nitrate in groundwater (50 mg o nitrate per

litre) and measures have been dened or the use o ertilisers containing nitrogen and

phosphate. In the designs we reduce eutrophication by 75% by minimising losses on

the use o ertilisers.

Reduced acidication

Livestock husbandry is responsible or some 90% o the Dutch ammonia emissions.

National emission ceilings (NEC) have been dened or 2010 or every EU member;

or the Netherlands that is 128 kilotons o ammonia. The Netherlands will be able

to meet that t arget through measures in intensive arming, in par ticular. A relatively

modest requirement o 9.5 kg per housed animal per year has been imposed upon

dairy husbandry. In addition, special application techniques to reduce emissions arerequired: injection, shallow injection on grassland and direct incorporation on arable

land. However, the EU ceilings are ar rom adequate or the problems in the areas

that are sensitive to acidication, such as the Natura 2000 areas. For that reason,

the designs aim at a 75% reduction o the ammonia emissions by reducing emissions

rom barns and rom the application o manure.

Reduced greenhouse eect

The ambition in the Netherlands is to reduce the emission o greenhouse gases by

30% in 2020 compared to 1990. However, as yet no legal requirements exist or

arable arming and livestock production to reduce the emission o carbon dioxide or

the other greenhouse gases, methane and nitrous oxide. The design concepts result in

a reduction o the methane production by 50% and o the nitrous oxide production by

75%. This is the result o dierent storage and use o aeces and urine and reduced

use o articial ertiliser and eed concentrate.

.

Improved soil quality

Dairy arms have to observe a directive that protects the soil quality when they store

and handle agricultural products and eed, animal waste and oal, ertilisers and green

municipal waste. The organic matter content and other heavy metal concentrations

are primarily important or the soil quality o grassland and arable land. Organic matter

improves the structure and workability o the top soil, increases aeration and water

drainage, which stimulates soil lie. So soil quality is in the armers interest as well.

In the designs, a very diverse soil lie is part o the system and the organic matter

content in the soil will increase.

Improved water use

A dairy arm may use water rom dierent sources such as tap water, ditch water,

spring water and rainwater. The main uses include drinking water or cows, water or

cleaning and or growing crops. The major share o the total water use comes rom

rainwater, which evaporates rom plants and soil or is carried o through the soil.

In the designs we store water rom the urine fow, and we make better use o water

through irrigation, as a result o which the yield per hectare will increase.

Improved air quality surroundings

Air quality increasingly becomes an important actor in assessing and granting

licences. For arms this mainly concerns the emission o ne dust and the limitation or

prevention o odour nuisance. Major sources o dust particles on dairy arms include

manure, straw and bedding, dry eed, fakes o skin rom animals and soil particles

blown away on tillage. The European and Dutch standards or permissible ne dust

concentrations in living environments will become stricter in the coming years. As ar

as odour nuisance is concerned, a minimum distance o 50 meters between barns and

houses applies outside residential areas and o 100 metres inside residential areas.

Rapid discharge o aeces and urine fows will reduce these sources o ne dust and

odour.

Richer biodiversity

Biodiversity reers to the diversity o fora and auna in a certain area. Because dairy

husbandry uses an enormous area o land, it has a major impact on the numbers o

species in fora and auna on arable land, ditch banks and water fows. In addition,

biodiversity elsewhere in the world is reduced due to land used or eed concentrateproduction. Through all kinds o direct and indirect eects, biodiversity is reduced

as production intensies. In the designs, the negative eect on biodiversity in the

surroundings o dairy arms is lessened considerably as a result o a major reduction

o eutrophication and acidication, and through improving the soil quality.

Ammonia emissions rom husbandry cause eutrophication o nature areas,

causing a reduction in biodiversity. Dairy husbandry is responsible or hal

o this. Ammonia is a major problem or dairy armers close to Natura 2000

areas, because they have no more possibilities or growth.

17


10/27

Farmers, citizens, cows and the environment: they may all have their own

wishes, but are these compatible? Isnt sustainability just as much a permanent

struggle to get the best part o the cake? O course there are limits,

according to Peter Groot Koerkamp and Bram Bos, project leaders o Cow

Power. You cant have the best o both worlds all the time, but oten you can

have much more than you think. However, that does require the courage to let

go o our trusted standard ways o thinking and acting.

Currently a quest or sustainability is taking place in many dierent elds. Many

unsustainable eects o our current ways o producing and consuming can be avoided,

Peter Groot Koerkamp says. They can be solved without any loss o prosperity or

quality o lie or ourselves and others. In some cases that is easy, without changing

behaviour: A LED lamp, or instance, produces the same quantity o light at a raction

o the energy that a regular incandescent lamp requires.

Deeply rooted

But more oten the non-sustainability is rooted more deeply in our systems.

Groot Koerkamp: Sure we can make a clean car running on hydrogen, but the entireinrastructure around it is geared to petrol engines. Consequently, we usually just keep

trudging along on the amiliar road, with gradual modications to our present cars to

make them less polluting. The result is not particularly earth-shattering.

In dairy husbandry it is oten exactly the same, Bram Bos continues. It is easier

to install an energy-gobbling air scrubber in an existing livestock house than to design

new accommodation in such a manner that we take away the source o the pollution.

The same applies to housing animals close together to save costs and to keep track

o them rather than giving them the space or their specic animal behaviour, letting go

and being uncertain about the eect on your income.

Think dierently,

act dierentlyIn many cases non-sustainability

is deeply rooted in our systems.

It is easier to install an energy-

gobbling air scrubber in existing

barns than to design new

housing systems in such a

manner that we take away the

source o the pollution.

There is a dierent way

Bos and Groot Koerkamp are convinced: there really is a dierent way. O course they

know the objections many people will come up with. Dairy husbandry is a delicate

system in which armer, cow, soil, crop, capital, energy, and nutrients are intricately

interconnected. Pulling one string has co nsequences elsewhere - in unexpected places.

Making dairy husbandry more sustainable gets stuck on all kinds o contradictions that

seem incongruent.

Bos names a number o these paradoxes. More space or cows costs money and

increases the cost price. It also causes high emissions o ammonia. Concentrates must

be ed eciently and sparingly in order to reduce the environmental impact, while the

use o slurry is inherently connected with uncontrollable losses to the environment.

Keeping more cows on a arm oten seems the only way to keep the amily income up

to the mark.These contradictions are almost unavoidable with existing methods, the researchers

acknowledge. It is true that every square metre o slatted foor or slurry pit costs

money, says Groot Koerkamp . And it is just as true that you can better avoid

spreading out slurry over a large area because o the emissions. Concentrates are

ecologically sound - as long as you ignore the environmental impact o production,

transport and processing. Indeed, increasing the number o cows is the only way to

make enough money i you are ocussed on doing more o the same all the time.

Dierent context

There are many contradictions in the current practice. But, Bos and Groot Koerkamp

emphasise, these contradictions apply within a certain context, in a situation where

everything else remains the same. In order to step out o this context and to mitigate or

even overcome the contradictions, we must think dierently and act dierently.

We will not be able to make substantial improvements i we continue as usual. We

think it is necessary as well as worthwhile not to take the easy road, Bos says. I we

want to combine the needs o the cow and the armer with the requirements o the

citizen and the environment, we will only succeed i we have the courage to let go o our

ingrained patterns o thinking and acting. Only then will it be conceivable that we do not

have to balance the interest o animals against that o the environment or the economy.

Cow Power contains proposals or thinking dierently and acting dierently,

Groot Koerkamp says. They are the oundations o the designs or sustainable

dairy husbandry. Note: none o those proposals is specically our idea. All kinds oresearchers, armers and other people in the eld have been studying various elements

or years. We combine their ideas coherently to show that together they can mean a

sustainability leap in multiple respects.

I we want to combine the needs o the cow and the

armer with the requirements o the citizen and the

environment, we will only succeed i we have the

courage to let go o our ingrained patterns o

thinking and acting.

19


11/27

THINKING: our turnaroundsThe design concepts o Cow Power are based on our turnarounds in thinking:

1. CowMeet all the cows needs rather

than giving her what is economically

easible or conceivable.

2. Nutrients cycleConsider minerals in aeces and urine

as a resource instead o waste.

3. Capital and labourShare capital and labour with others

rather than dividing them over more

cows.

4. SoilConsider the soil a productive

ecosystem instead o a dead

substrate.

Turnaround in thinking 1: the cowReally meeting the cows needs not only improves her welare. There are positive

eects that simultaneously contribute to economic objectives: reduced physical

and social stress, natural hierarchy in the herd, improved health through improved

adaptation and improved perormance o the immune system as well as a lower

inection pressure. Healthy cows live longer, require less care and thereore less labour,

and even the eed eciency increases when the animal does not have to use energy to

combat disease and stress.

Turnaround in thinking 2: nutrients cycleThe environmental load o dairy husbandry is caused by losses o nutrients and gases

to soil, water and air, mainly involving nitrogen, phosphate and carbon compounds. We

are used to reducing these losses by increasing the eciency o parts o the system,

or instance the soil or the cow. This strategy does work, but has its limits. It may also

cause unwanted side eects, to the cows health, or instance. Thereore, it would be

better i we looked at the eectiveness o the entire system and ensure that sub fows

are preserved in a useul manner. That is what we call Cradle to Cradle. In doing so,

we should not ocus solely on the nutrients cycle on the dairy arm. Cycles at a higher

scale, such as at regional or national level, are just as important. These include, or

instance, the useul application o nutrients in vegetable cultivation.

1

2

It is better i aeces (dry manure)

and urine are kept separate.

That is good or the cow, the

environment and the armer.

3

4

No more ploughing is a lot

like quitting smoking.

Problematic, but much

better in the end.

Turnaround in thinking 3: capital and labourLabour and capital assets such as land, buildings and machines are a major cost item

in the total production costs o milk. Currently, the main strategy to reduce those costs

is to increase the scale per arm, dividing the xed costs over more cows. However,

increases o scale are not always possible or reasons o nance or space. Moreover,

in many cases the scope o the benets remains limited and side eects occur, suchas a urther decrease in income per hour and longer periods that the cows are kept

inside. For that reason it would be better to keep down costs through undamental

measures such as reducing investments in livestock housing, using machines such as a

milking parlour together with other dairy armers and substantially increasing the crop

yield o the land. We can also automate simple labour and drastically reduce the time

required or cow management by improving the cows health and welare, supported

by automated sensor systems. That requires new cooperation rameworks, both

mutually between dairy armers and between armers and other parties. In addition,

nancial support or this turnaround can be ound in new unctions, such as local

energy production, that operate in synergy with the primary production process, and by

combining unctions, or instance by shared land use.

Turnaround in thinking 4: soilThe soil is a complex ecosystem in itsel. A living, good quality soil is good or

productivity and structure and improves the storage and use o nutrients. Such an

ecosystem cannot, or cannot easily, be managed. It can also easily be destroyed i we

consider the soil mainly to be dead matter, a place where you can get rid o minerals

and where you have to work as quickly as possible with large machines.

The alternative is much trickier, but in the end the yield is greater: by striving ater

positive qualities o manure or the soil, maintaining the natural balance and applying

ertilisers specically and customised as to time and place, we utilise the productive

capacity o the soil.

Cradle to cradleCradle to cradle (C2C) is a new approach to sustainable design. Ater their lie in one product, all

materials must be put to use in a dierent product. Without loss o quality. Residual products must

also be reused or at least be environment-neutral. The ideas have been developed in a book by William

McDonough and Michael Braungart: Cradle-to-Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things.

21


12/27

ACTING: four turnaroundsThe four turnarounds in thinking require concrete changes to realise a type of

dairy husbandry that is sustainable in every respect. But we do not know and

cannot do everything yet. The development of knowledge and technology and

their coherent application in a dairy husbandry system requires time and effort

from various parties. But still, the course for sustainable dairy husbandry is

clear.

1. Cow create space or the cow throughout

the year

oer resting acilities

give reedom o choice

oer suitable foors

oer exercise possibilities

avoid interventions and stressul

treatments

provide sucient and varied eed

2. Nutrients cycle utilise available plant and residual

products

oer eed supplements but no eed

concentrate

keep aeces and urine separate

process and ully utilise sub fows o

manure (C2C)

make articial ertilisers superfuous

keep and accumulate organic matter

in the soil

3. Capital and labour oer space or the cow without

expensive housing

share capital assets

cooperate between arms

put cheap by products to value

increase yield o grassland and

arable land

generate energy with solar cell roos

increase labour quality and value

put new unctions to value

4. Soil utilise organic matter rom manure

apply intensive and extensive (low-

input) arming practices at the same

time.

optimise the orm o nitrogen

ertiliser

apply nutrients accurately

minimise tillage

prevent soil compaction

This coherent package o measures will have multiple positive eects and it will takeaway major bottlenecks that hinder reconciliation o the requirements o armer, citizen,

environment and cow.

1) Turnaround in acting 1: the cowI we want to satisy the cows needs, we must give her sucient space to perorm all

her behavioural characteristics out o her own ree will. In summer as well as in winter.

Resting is very important to the cow and she needs sucient space and time to do that.

A clean and dry foor will stimulate the cow to exercise and to show oestrus behaviour.

That has a direct positive eect on the cows welare as well as an indirect eect on

her health: much less stress, low inection pressure rom the living environment and a

properly unctioning immune system. That reduces diseases and disorders, so the cow

can be kept or a larger number o lactations. And in turn that simplies management

or the dairy armer and reduces costs. With a varied diet, space and room to eed or

all cows, lower-ranking cows can also produce milk without living on their reserves or

permanently experiencing stress rom herd ellows.

1

A good foor or cows is sot,

nonslip, and clean at the

same time. There are many

possibilities. These our

combine those characteristics

with provisions to keep aeces

and urine separate. Some

foor types are available

already; others still require

urther development.

It is no problem to give the

cows space, i at the same

time we carry o urine and

aeces quickly and separa-

tely. A sandy soil is a per-

ect place to lie down. The

drawing shows how urine is

harvested through drains. In

case o heavy rain, the water

is discharged.

23


13/27

Turnaround in acting 2: the nutrients cycleI we eed the cow mainly with plant material containing crude bre, she can play an

important role in utilising these residual fows, or instance rom nature areas and rom

the ood and beverage industry. At the same time we can considerably reduce the use

o eed concentrate and ocus on a diet aimed at health rather than production level.

Keeping aeces and urine separate creates two unique nutrient fows without

expensive treatment: the aeces with organically bound nitrogen and phosphor, and the

urine with mainly mineral nitrogen and potassium. The urine can be used directly, but it

can also be processed into an articial ertiliser substitute. In summer, the aeces can

be used directly with minimal losses because it contains hardly any mineral nitrogen.

In other periods it can be digested or biogas production. Adding additional biomass is

not necessary because the dry matter content is much higher and there is no negativeinfuence rom mineral nitrogen.

This way, the dairy arm is able to produce high-quality nutrients and organic matter

in various sub fows, simply and with limited investments, which can be completely

utilised in various types o plant cultivation, on the own arm or in arable arming. This

means a contribution to a reduction in the use o articial ertiliser in Dutch agriculture.

As such, dairy armers will be storing and using various fows o nutrients on their arms

and partly supplying them to arable arms.

Turnaround in acting 3: capital and labourA dairy arm that perorms other unctions in addition to the production o milk oers

a sound oundation or a stable and sustainable sector. Cows may, or instance, eat

certied residual fows such as those released during rening grasses and algae. These

fows are likely to increase in uture. An important new unction o dairy husbandry could

be the production o electric energy rom solar cells on or as roos, or rom a new

generation o small wind turbines, or instance.

Increasing the yield o specic sections o grassland and arable land saves costs

and creates room or own cultivation o protein-rich crops, or nature or or grasslands

with ecological value. The costs o housing dairy cows can greatly be reduced i we

stop thinking in terms o conventional livestock houses and start searching or dierent

solutions or slatted foors and slurry pits.Other interesting possibilities to drastically reduce costs include sharing capital-

intensive assets such as milking parlours, tractors and harvesting machines. Even

ar-reaching cooperation is an option - without loss o unctionality. Automation and

robotisation will urther increase in the uture. Then cows may, or instance, get their

eed rom autonomous vehicles without human intervention.

Giving the cows all the space they want, will make them happy, vital and healthy, so

diseases will not bother them very much. They will have ew problems with claws and

the locomotor system and they can timely be inseminated to have the next cal. The

much better hygiene will also make persistent problems such as mastitis a thing o the

past. As a result, the dairy armers job will shit to high-quality, unique labour that pays

well.

2

3 4Turnaround in acting 4: the soilThe soil and the crop can be supplied with organic matter and minerals rom aeces and

urine. That will require a new application method. Liquid mineral nitrogen rom urine is

applied to the soil several times during the growing season. Dependent on the plants

needs, soil and weather conditions, application is rst in small quantities and close to

the plant roots, later in greater volumes and broadcast. Organically bound nitrogen,

phosphate and organic matter can be injected or incorporated in the soil according to

crop and rotation.

Minimising tillage operations such as ploughing and harrowing prevents undesired

decomposition o organic matter. Accumulating organic matter will even make it possibleto store carbon in the soil. These measures, in combination with avoiding soil compaction

(no more heavy machinery), will stimulate aeration and soil lie. That makes plants grow

better and reduces nitrate leaching as well as the ormation o the greenhouse gas

nitrous oxide. Applying intensive arming on some elds and extensive arming (low-input)

on others, gives possibilities to make an important contribution to the richness o species

o plant and animals (biodiversity). Precision ertilisation and using irrigation tubes in

the topsoil or watering will increase production on grassland, creating possibilities to

compensate or production losses rom low-input arming.

Expensive capital assets such as an advanced milking

parlour can better be utilised to the ull. A milking parlour

shared by various arms considerably reduces costs and

makes labour more fexible.

25


14/27

De MeentSpace or physical exercise, ree choice and social behaviour

Spacious bedding and distance between cows

Protection rom heat stress, strong winds and heavy rain

solar energy

harvesting solid manure(aeces) and urine

water

urine

Year-round spaceA unit o 50 cows

Year-round space (360 m per cow)

Three living ranges plus pasture

Welare: 95% o maximum score (Cowel)

Keep aeces (solid manure) and urine separate

Ammonia emissions 75% lower

20 m solar roo per cow

Economy: not more expensive

27


15/27

Four undamental turnarounds in thinking and acting: those are the basis

or De Meent, De Meent XL, De Bronck and Amstelmelk. The starting points

are the same or these our designs or sustainable husbandry systems: only

the detailing diers. The design o De Meent has the most comprehensive

description. Many o the solutions presented there can also be ound in the

other designs. Once more, these designs are not blueprints but examples o

how it could be done.

Design concepts or

sustainable dairy husbandry

De Meent: year-round spaceAt De Meent - see previous page - 50 cows are kept together as a herd with

all the space they need: 360 m per animal in summer as well as in winter. A

herd size o ty heads oers the animals saety, social ranking order and the

possibility to recognise all herd ellows. De Meent oers cows space or social

interaction and play, to fee or to keep a proper distance. In this way, conficts

will develop less easily.

Some dairy armers already keep their cows outdoors in the pastures

throughout the year, also when it is cold. For instance, dairy armers working

according to the PureGraze system.

De Meent does not oer the herd a traditional barn. The cows have three

unctional areas that are interconnected over the ull width: the green outdoor

range, the shelter and the sand bedding. These three zones together oer the

cow space or all natural patterns o behaviour.

Own choice

In dry weather and good soil conditions, the three areas are

permanently available. When it rains or when the soil is wet in the

outdoor range, the cows can stand or lie under the shelter (20 m

per animal) or on the sand bed. That protects the sward. Actual

pasturing with grazing takes place on the elds around De Meent.

1) The green outdoor range

The green outdoor range is the largest zone: a grass eld,

specially laid out, with an intensive drainage system and a very

strong type o grass. This area is intended or lying and exercising.

Grass production comes s econd here. In summer, the green

outdoor range oers access to the pastures around it where the

cows can graze. Drainage ensures discharge o rainwater and

harvesting o urine.

2) The shelter

The shelter is what catches the eye. Most unctions are

concentrated here, such as resting, eeding and milking. For

every cow there is a sheltered, spacious and sot bed. The

resting places are grouped in islands. It means that subgroups

o beriended cows can lie together. At the same time, it is easy

or cows to nd a resting place away rom a higher ranking cow.

Over the entire width there are ample numbers o easily accessible

eating places. Fity cows are milked in one automatic milking

system. This also allows lower ranking cows to be milked without

waiting time.

The superstructure o the shelter consists o a simple, sel-

supporting construction o some ve metres high. Towards the

south it is covered with solar panels, towards the north the roo is

made o transparent perspex or canvas. That makes it light, but

not hot under the shelter. This structure makes it possible to install

solar cells in any building block with optimum orientation towards

the south. Rollable wire mesh wind breakers around the shelter

keep out the cold wind.

3) The sand bed

The uncovered sand bed lies b etween the green outdoor range

and the shelter. That sand bed is intended as lying area and it is

large enough or all cows to lie down on it, with a spacing o at

least two metres, which cows regard as pleasant.

Harvesting aeces and urine

Loss o nutrients and emissions o harmul gases are limited in De

Meent. Ater pasturing in the surrounding elds, the animals go

back to the outdoor range to rest. In this way minimum quantities

o aeces and urine end up in the pastures and maximum

quantities can be harvested in the outdoor range. We expect that

50% o the aeces and urine will end up under the shelter, some

25% in the sand bed, 20% in the outdoor range, and 5% in the

pastures.

Resting beds

Cows spend the better part o the day quietly ruminating.

Thereore, it is important that there are sucient places to lie

down. De Meent has three types o beds.

1. Green outdoor range: here the cows can lie down under normal

conditions at some 8-12 metres rom each other.

2. Sand bed: a lying dist ance o at least 2 metres. Sand is a

pleasant material to lie on. The sand bed is a good alternative

when the soil in the outdoor range is too wet.

3. Under the shelter: here are sucient spacious places to lie

down where the animals lie a little closer together or a while.

The beds are pitched, so the cows will automatically lie down

with their head up and their bottom towards the technical foor.

That makes it easy to collect aeces and urine.

Healthy cow

De Meent is a good place or a vital cow that likes to exercise

actively, can stand her own in the herd and yet has a sizeable

production. The cows no longer have to be dehorned - the social

ranking order, the space and the husbandry system allow that.

Because o the good lie, the lie expectancy o a dairy cow can

easily be nine years. Good foors prevent claw problems and

natural behaviour improves ertility. The lower inection pressure

and clean suraces, together with an ample ration and sucient

eating and resting acilities, will reduce mastitis and other arm-

specic diseases. Since the cows do not eat much concentrate,

De Meent is less suitable or highly productive dairy cattle.However, we expect that the considerably improved standard o

animal welare will also have a positive eect on the milk yield.

As long it is dry and not too cold outside, cows preer to be outdoors. Even at

10C that is no problem or them. But cows do need shelter in strong wind,

heavy rain, or blazing sun.

Very high animal welare, good health and long lie

Cow welare is considerably higher than in existing husbandry systems, see the graphs on page 33. This is the result o much more

space to move, reedom o choice, and ample and sucient lying places, among other things.

Good health and low replacement rates o cows through clean and dry foors, exercise, rapid and separate discharge o aeces and

urine, a production level suitable or armers management style, and calving in spring.

With a suitable type o cow, the lie expectancy o the cows will increase to the economically optimal age o nine years without any

problem.

29


16/27

Harvesting minerals: three birds with one stoneDe Meent is geared or harvesting minerals and reducing emissions. That

is done by separating the aeces (solid manure) and the urine o the cows

in the three areas and eectively carrying o the two products and storing

them separately.

De Meent kills three birds with one stone by harvesting aeces and urine. Firstly:

ammonia is ormed when urine and manure get mixed. Keeping them apart reduces

emissions considerably. Secondly, urine and aeces are separately suitable or

processing into useul ertilisers. The urine can relatively easily be converted into a

manageable nitrogen concentrate. The solid manure can be spread out over the land

or digested rst. That can be done in a smaller digester than usual and without co-

digestion because no urine is mixed in. Use o a plug fow digester allows intensive

digestion o the aeces with a high dry matter content at a higher temperature.

Thirdly, quickly carrying o the aeces rom t he system promotes hygiene. It reduces

the general inection pressure and the development o pathogenic germs.

Harvesting urineHarvesting minerals takes place in a dierent way in each o the three zones. Under

the sheltered area, where most unctions are concentrated, there is a technical foor

through which urine passes but solid manure does not. The shallow space below the

foor is permanently kept at negative air pressure. In this way no ammonia rom the

pit will escape to the atmosphere. A small in-line air scrubber can strip the nitrogen

rom the urine and put it in a concentrated solution. This way the better part o the

urine can be harvested as an articial ertiliser substitute.

The sand bed also acts as a lter. The urine seeps through the sand, is

discharged through the drainpipes and then stripped o nitrogen. As the sand bed

is not covered, much more water will be carried o when it rains. The rst rain will

fush the urine rom the sand bed. It will then be collected, processed and stored. In

heavy rain the cows will be lying under the shelter, so no new urine will end up in the

sand bed. Then, the discharge water contains so little urine, that it can be discharged

without any problem.

Urine can also be harvested in the green outdoor range. Part o the minerals rom

the urine is taken up by the grass in summer. In addition, here too the urine can be

collected and carried o using drainpipes under normal circumstances. In heavy

rain, the rst fow will be collected. In summer the highly diluted fow o water can be

used or sprinkling or irrigating other elds and in winter it can be discharged. That

minimises mineral losses.

Harvesting solid manureOne or more robots drive around 24 hours a day, pick up the manure throughout the

system and bring it to one collection point. Those could be modied versions o the

existing Scarab manure scraper, now still manned.

Such unmanned robots are currently under development and eventually they will

be suitable or use in all three zones. As long as this technology is not yet available,

an improved grooved foor system with holes is a good option. On the sandy bottom

and in the green outdoor range, man-driven machines can remove the manure.

The main benet o this approach is a hygienic system that produces hardly any

ammonia and keeps minerals available in an easily utilisable orm. In this way the

dairy arm creates various fows o dierent nutrients that are

stored separately. The armer can then decide which ertiliser is

the most suitable one at what moment or which crop. Moreover,

he can also supply sub fows to arable arms.

Energy rom sun and aeces

The roo o De Meent not only provides

shelter or the cows: its structure also

makes it possible to harvest solar energy.

Photovoltaic cells, or PV cells, are an

integrated part o a ramework with space

rame girders. Because o their sturdy

triangular design, the bearing structure does

not have to be heavy and they can always

be positioned to the south in every building

block. That makes this shelter cheap. The

area o PV cells is 20 m per cow. That

is almost sucient to compensate thegreenhouse eect o the enteric methane

emission o the cows themselves. In

combination with other measures to reduce

greenhouse gases, this system makes it

possible to become energy-neutral at the

start. With the expected doubling o the

eciency o solar cells over some ten years,

dairy husbandry may even become climate-

neutral through compensation.

Keeping aeces and urine separate has

yet another major advantage: digestion

makes it possible to generate biogas rom

the aeces without co-digestion. In act,

this is the only gas you can truly call green

gas. Ater all, co-products require a lot o

energy or transport and in many cases they

are valuable ood products as such. That

applies or instance to maize. On top o that,

it makes the digestion process easier to

control because there is much less mineral

nitrogen. As a result, smaller installations will

suce.The gas can be supplied directly to

neighbouring residential areas or it can be

used in a total energy system supplying

heat or the arm (housekeeping and drying

residues) and electricity to the mains.

Simple to expand

Because o its shape, De Meent can easily

be expanded in width, allowing incremental

growth. However, the main limiting actor is

the capacity o the milking robot. For that

reason a armer who strives ater step-by-

step growth along the De Meent concept will

opt or a milking parlour rather than a robot.

Growing cropsAt De Meent or another nearby arable arm, maize and other crops will be grown in

addition to grass or a varied and balanced ration. These crops could include odder

beet, alala, peas, barley, odder lupines and clover in the grass. The leguminous

crops bind nitrogen rom the air. Cultivation o the other crops does not require articial

nitrogen ertiliser because substitutes with mineral nitrogen have been produced rom

the harvested urine.

Precision ertilisation and shallow and deep injection make it possible to administer

exact quantities and types o urine based liquid ertiliser. On top o that, it can also

be done at the right place - at the plants roots - at the right time and under the right

weather conditions, so not outside the growing season and not on waterlogged soils.

This method reduces nitrate leaching, almost completely eliminates ammonia emissions

and considerably reduces the ormation and emission o nitrous oxide and other nitrousgases. Thanks to the reduction o these losses, the nitrogen application rate can also

be reduced drastically.

Developing ertiliser application technologies urther

Existing technologies, such as the spoke wheel injector, are suitable to use and to

develop urther or accurate application o the liquids. In the long term we may even

see autonomous vehicles delivering weekly small applications to the crops, or instance.

The harvested aeces contain mainly organically bound nitrogen and phosphate as well

as organic matter and in summer they can directly be used or the crops. During other

periods o the year they can be sent to the digester and stored as digestate or use

during the growing season.

Reduced ploughing and harrowing

When growing grass and other crops, and or crop rotation, traditional tilling operations

such as ploughing and harrowing are less applied. This considerably reduces the

decomposition o organic matter in the soil. So, the organic matter content increases

and the soil can be used or CO2

storage through the accumulation o carbon. With

urther development o existing technology or minimum tillage - such as reseeding and

local tillage - crop rotation without ploughing while maintaining proper weed control is

increasingly possible. Combination o crops may then contribute to increasing the yield

per hectare while at the same time reducing the environmental impact.

Lighter machinery

A well-aerated soil with sucient organic matter contributes to improved rooting in the

crops, xing nitrogen in the topsoil, and a good soil water status. Consequently, it is

important to prevent soil compaction by using less heavy machines. Automation should

make that possible in uture. When human labour is no longer necessary, many light

machines can do the job o one large one.

The cows eed and pasturing

With a varied diet o resh grass, grass

silage, maize, untreated residual fows

rom the ood industry and high-protein

sources, the cow can receive optimum

eed in all stages o her lie. On the

one hand this reduces the methane

emissions by the cow, with the added

advantage o a reduction in urine spots

since the urine contains less nitrogen.

With a proper diet it is no longer

necessary to closely control the cows

nitrogen and phosphate eciency, but

instead ocus should be on the quality

and composition o the excreted aeces

and urine. Residual heat rom the

digester and the total energy system are

suitable or drying residual products or

or improving the roughage quality.

I cows graze or short periods at a time

on slightly older, long grass, this grass

will have more structure and contain

less nitrogen. The grass production

will remain high as well. Contamination

o the pasture grass with aeces is

minimal because the cows rest in the

green outdoor range. Application o an

irrigation system with underground hoses

at a depth o 30 to 40 centimetres

makes it possible to supply water and

nutrients and a yield o 16 tons o dry

matter per hectare can be achieved.

Ammonia emissions are 75% lower as a result o:

rapid separate discharge o urine and aeces to a closed storage

separate application o urine (or concentrate) and aeces (or digestate)

injection o urine (concentrate)

31


17/27

Economy: competing with existing systems

The design concepts o Cow Power can compete with existing

systems economically, and eventually even perorm b etter. This

does depend on the development o necessary technology,

in particular, labour-saving robotics and precision ertiliser

application, and the development o an attitude towards intensive

cooperation between armers in dairy husbandry. Cost reductions

and new yields in the designs compensate the additional costs

and lower yields elsewhere. Major yields and savings are

achieved by the cheaper inrastructure - cheaper roo with a

double unction, no slurry pits - a higher crop yield per hectare,

a longer cow lie, major reduction o the concentrate supply and

ertiliser application and sharing capital assets (at De Bronck and

Amstelmelk). An overview is shown below.

New costs

Green outdoor range and promenade with lower grassproduction (De Meent and De Bronck)

Drainage o outdoor range (De Meent and De Bronck)

Faeces collection robot

Irrigation o pastures

Lying space on sand

Storages or urine and aeces

Storage acilities and, i necessary, processing o residual

fows rom the ood industry

New yields

Higher grass production o pastures Grass production rom nature areas

Electricity production

Sale o articial ertiliser substitutes

Compensation or carbon storage in the soil

Higher costs Lower occupation rate o milking robot (De Meent and De

Meent XL)

Low-emission foor that separates aeces and urine

Development o dierent management methods by the armer

(mainly De Bronck)

Savings Longer lie o dairy cows will reduce the need or rearing

young stock

No expensive slurry pits

Cheap and light roo structure

Optimum utilisation o milking parlour (De Bronck and

Amstelmelk)

Smaller digester without biomass; no purchase o co-products

Minimum processing o eed concentrates

No articial ertiliser required

Minimal tillage

Less labour per cow

More fexible use o labour

Less diseases and stress or the cow

De Meent XL: i you want moreDe Meent XL is a combination o three De Meent-units

o 50 cows. The herds live in separate areas so as

to minimise any ranking order conficts. Farmhouse,

armyard and storage acilities are at the centre o the

system. De Meent XL ts well into a 1-hectare building

block.

From a spatial and unctional point o view it is no problem to

enlarge the design o De Meent without aecting the design

principles; the additional yields and costs apply here as well.

Keeping spacious transition areas b etween the shelter, the sand

bed, and the green outdoor range is important or De Meent

XL, too, since the cows are completely ree to go outside or,

conversely, to nd shelter.

De Meent XL can benet rom the size o scale in a number

o ways: purchasing, supplying, storing and processing residual

fows rom the ood industry, processing aeces and urine into

specic nutrient fows and inrastructure or transport o the

generated energy.

Energy-neutral systems through:

no use o articial ertiliser, keeping tillage to a minimum

eed concentrate only rom minimally processed residual

products rom regional sources

local and regional application o minerals (limited transport)

solar cells

energy production rom digestion without co-digestion

The welare score o the designs in Cowel

The graph below shows a comparison between our relatively

avourable practical situations o existing husbandry systems or

cows (tie stall, cubicle house, straw yard and year-round pasture

based), the our design concepts, and the modied version o

Cow Power (CP). The graph shows that the Cow Power designs

score 16 to 30 points higher than the existing best system or

animal welare, which is year-round grazing.

The De Meent & XL and De Bronck designs only all 12 point

short o the maximum possible score (313). The dierence

is caused by the lack o cow-cal contact, the milking system

and the lower milking requency, three characteristics clos ely

connected with the production purpose o the system. In theAmstelmelk design, the score is also lower because o the

application o dehorning and the more limited space per cow

in winter. The modied version o an existing cubicle house, in

particular, scores lower because we have based the assessment

on the - though modied - still concrete foor in the barn,

standard lying beds and dehorning.

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350

Tie stall

Cubicle housing

CP modified version

Straw yard

Year-round pasture based

CP Amst

cow power (kracht van koeien)

Documents