Gansu Holstein Breeding Demonstration Center

• Farm owner’s name: Lanzhou Farming Business Company
• Farm location: Honggu District, Lanzhou City, China
• Species and breed milked: 2500 Holstein Chinese Black and White Guanshu Breed

History

The farm was built in 1942, and at that time the milk that was produced was supplied to the office holders, and was considered a luxury.

In the beginning they imported cows form Holland, Soviet Union, Denmark and Germany, and in the 1990’s they started buying cows form Australia. Their cows have now become a specific Chinese breed called Chinese Black & White Guanshu Breed.

Milk production

This state-owned farm produces on average 25 tonnes of milk per day. The herd’s averages 330 days in milk, with a 390 day average lactation. The average age of the cows is between six-and-a-half and seven years old.

Replacement program

This farm’s replacement rate is currently 20 percent with age at first calving being around 16 months.  Gansu Holstein Breeding Demonstration Centre raises its own calves and uses artificial insemination whereby the semen is imported. “We import the semen from the US and Canada but we buy it from a breeding centre in Beijing,” says the farm’s manager Mr Qi Guanghong. There are 250 calves (10% of herd total) and 870 heifers (35%).

Housing facilities

Gansu Holstein Breeding Demonstration Centre uses a loose housing system. “We haven’t used any mats, brushes or bedding. The ground that the cows live on is called White Sand. It consists of very dry sand and serves well as bedding, but we do plan to improve on the bedding side in the future. The location of the farm, the environment and the moderate climate are all well suited to dairy cows,” says Mr Guanghong.

Milking system

“We had a pipeline system before this new rotary.  We did a lot of research before deciding on a rotary. We had to use 50 to 60 workers with the old system, but now we only need 10 workers. And the herd management system – especially the activity meter – makes our work more efficient.”

The farm now uses a 48-stall rotary parlour to milk three times per day and milk is collected once per day by two trucks. “The milk price varies and can be higher if the producer has a good relationship with the dairy,” says Mr Guanghong. The milk contains 3.5 percent fat and 3.02 percent protein.

Feeding programme

The farm uses TMR, and the cows are fed roughage and concentrate every day. “The feed cost is about 70 percent of our milk sales. The high percentage of feed costs is because milk prices are so low and we have no home-grown feed.”

Nutrient management

“We use the manure to produce methane gas for electricity and energy, and then we sell the rest of our dry matter to farmers and spread the liquid on our own field. Environmental regulations are also met.”

Milk quality control

The farm’s milk has a somatic cell count of “less than 600,000 after 24 hours” and the total bacteria count is “about 30 000.” Not surprisingly, udder infections and hoof diseases have had an affect on milk quality as with any other farm, but the situation is under control. “We use a fat testing tool to test milk quality. We feel confident with our milk quality because we have very good milking routines and we have been told that our milk keeps good quality – in fact it’s the best in the area even after 48 hours.  We get advice on this matter from the former three generations that have worked on this farm and the new staff who have just graduated from universities, together with equipment suppliers and professional conferences.” Gansu Holstein utilizes four sets of six ton cooling tanks.

Farm management

Mr Guanghong makes all the decisions on this government owned farm and has implemented technical management guidelines and job descriptions. “We also train the employees regularly,” he says.

Future

Gansu Holstein Breeding Demonstration Centre’s manager says the business has numerous plans for the future. “We want to improve our breeding technique. We will improve the cow comfort with bedding. We want to improve the working situation for our employees too and also improve our management. We are also planning to build our own dairy processing plant. The reason for this is that we think we should get paid more for our milk because we have a good cow breed, we feed them well and we have good equipment.

We also want to increase the milk yield, according to our three year plan. We are now in the second year and the average yield is 8 000 kilograms per year. Next year we aim for 8 400 kilograms per year. We know the cows very well and with a continual focus on nutrition we will reach our target. It starts with the calf; that’s where you start building the high yielding cow. In the end, it’s what you feed the cow this year that will show in the milk yield next year. Also our cow quality improves every year.”

“The unique features of this farm are a long history with good breeding and good management,” concludes Mr Guanghong.

Farm visited in September 2006