Conversion from conventional to organic dairy farming – an example I vill try to bring the principles in conversion planning to you by going through one or two example of conversion from conventional to organic dairy farming. If you are going to make a goood plan, it is nesesarry to consider so many different parts of the farm as possible. And of course. The farmers wishes and demands are also important. The first step is to: NMBU, Ås 24.10.17 Martha Ebbesvik

The example farm from Vestfold, dairy farming and crop production: A. Farm resources and current situation The example farm from Vestfold, dairy farming and crop production: 110,5 ha total 63,8 ha grass (the leys: 3 times cutting) 19,7 ha of these are pasture 36,7 ha spring wheat (variety: Mirakel) 10 ha for potatoes and vegetables (leased to a neighbour) Soil: not any special problems apart from some areas with too much water in the ground (these areas are protected, so she is not allowed to make ditches) Weed: not heavy weed pressure – frequently ploughing The first step is to: 1. Get to know the farm and the resources – descibe the current situation. Climate, land resources, soil type, soli analysis, family situation, manpower/workers, current productions, current harvest levels (kg/ha, MJ/ha, ton silage), crop rotations, special problems in crop rotation (weed).

A. Farm resources and current situation 55 milking cows Milk quota: 408 000 l Milk yield: 8 200 l/cow/year Concentrates: 21 FUm/100 kg milk or 30 % of the feed ration Young animals: 35 % heifers are followers all bull calves are sold after 4 months Labour: ? Buildings: ok, loose housing Mechanization: good maintenance is important Animal husbandry (what kind, number of animals), special problems in anaimal husbandry, Milk quota is the amount of milk you are allowed to deliver to the dairy. The average for all dairy farms in the country

Suckler herd of Hereford breed A. Farm resources and current situation Suckler herd of Hereford breed 10 suckler cows Produce milk for the calves, approximately 8 litre/day for 6 months Concentrates: 5 % of the feed ration All young animals are sold after 6 months

The feed resources on the farm A. Farm resources and current situation The feed resources on the farm Estimate yield levels on every crop at the farm (also pasture yield) What about the feed resources at the farm? Feedstuffs and feed quality. Manure system and management

Yields before conversion A. Farm resources and current situation Yields before conversion Well-known on each field (dream situation) or Calculate on the basis of animals and take into account the purchased feed Calculate on the basis of food store Sold crop You also need to know what kind of manure system and management, fertilizing practice In addition you also need to get an overwiev of the buildings on the farm if it is some spesial opportunities or not, And the mechanisation. And also the econo mical situation on the farm. Is there any difficulties with the economy? And the crop rotation. You have to know.

Yields at the excemple farm before conversion Grassland: 5 500 FUm/ha Wheat: 4 500 kg/ha Barley: 4 000 kg/ha

Why organic farming? – Answers may be: B. Starting the process - Objectives Why organic farming? – Answers may be: Want to do organic milk production if the economy is as good as before Need new challenges Provides professional challenges Don’t want to use plant spray When you have the overwiev of the resources on the farm, you can start the prosess and don’t forget to get to know why the farmers want to convert to organic farming. Why organic farming on the example farm? These are rather common reasons for converting to organic farming. Get an overwiev of the social unity on the farm (many, few persons) and the amount of work to be done – is it acceptable with more work? Demand for holydays, is it possible to rent workers. And the economical and finacial circumstances – what outcome is needed? Does the farmer or other persons in the family have work outside the farm. The status of the buildings – is it nessesary to do something whith the buildings regarded to the organic regulations? More space …..Outside area?

Ley-yields after conversion C. Plans for converted farm Ley-yields after conversion Ley-yields were compared between organic and conventional farms in Norway: on average, yields on organic leys were 12% lower, measured as FUm* per ha but: significant variation between farms, some having higher yields, other lower yields than on comparable conventional farms * feed units (net energy of lactation) When you have all the basic information from the farm, plans can be drawn up for how the farm can be driven when it is converted – looking into the future and into the crystall ball and do plans for the fully converted farm. FUm corresponds to the energy content of 1 kg barley by 86% DM counted for milk production = 6,9 MJ (6900 kJ net energy). Type of soil is important for the yield. Moor soil and sandy soils has often lower yields than moraine soil. Sheep and moor soil 30 % percent less yield after conversion. If the yields decrease, you have to reduce the number of animals. Then you also got less manure, and you cant get the manure from the sheep when they are in the wood or in the mountain. And you can of course not buy mineral fertilizer when you do organic farming. So this is a challenge. But if the soil are moraine you have a better assumption for organic farming.

Grain-yields after conversion Surveys in Norway have indicated that organic grain-growing without cattle manure can give 35 % less oat yield and 40 % less barley- and wheat yield compared to conventional grain growing With manure it is possible to obtain nearly the same yields as in conventional growing With cattle manure and “Grønn 8K”, a type of fertilizer based on manure from chicken, it is possible to obtain the same yields as in conventional growing In a competition between organic barley-growers in 2016 they achieved from 4 530–7 030 kg barley/ha

C. Plans for converted farm A Computer program (spread sheet) is very useful in the planning-process: Calculate before conversion Reduce ley-yields with after conversion and do calculations Find the balance between: plant yields – area - animals Reduce yields with 10 %, 20 %, 30 % and do calculations: How many animals How much manure How much cereals Gross margin So if you are going to calculate the yields before conversion on the basis of the animals at the farm, it is useful to use a computer program. An do a calculation of the whole farm before conversion. Do different alternatives and you get the gross margin for each. Then you can se if the outcome are as good as before conversion.

Or do other adaptions and alternatives C. Plans for converted farm Or do other adaptions and alternatives Use 15 % lower yields and reduce milk yield per cow Maintain milk delivery How many cows How many young animals Distribution between cash crops and fodder production

If the land is too small: C. Plans for converted farm If the land is too small: Reduce number of animals Reduce cash crops Rent land Increase the amount of purchased fodder Start to use outfields / uncultivated land Cultivate crops with high energy yield/ha Often you will find that the land is too small, especially if the aim is to produce as much as before the conversion. In Norway it is possible to rent land in many areas. High energy-plant is often difficult because it will demand more work an investments in machines and even buildings (for storing) (mais, swede)

To the example: Yield-estimates after conversion: Leys: reduction of 10 to 15 %, we use ca 12 % in our calculations Grass and pasture grass: 5 500 FUm/ha x 0,88 = 4 800 FUm/ha Forage area have to increase with 12 % to maintain the same total yield as before: 63,8 ha x 1,12 = 71,5 ha (Δha = 7,7 ha) Cereals: It is a lot of manure on the farm and organic fertilizer is purchased – 10 % reduction Wheat: 4 500 kg/ha x 0,9 = 4 000 kg/ha Barley: 4 000 kg/ha x 0,9 = 3 600 kg/ha Area for cereals: 36,7 ha – 7,7 ha = 29 ha A reduction of 30% for cereals are maybe too much because the are manure available at the farm, but just in case (don’t make a too rosy plan) – you can change it in the follow-up planning if the practice indicates otherwise

Distribution of area for cereals Area for cereals = 29 ha We grow barley on 11 ha and spring wheat on 18 ha

How many animals. Milk-yield, what level. Meet production, how much How many animals? Milk-yield, what level? Meet production, how much? Purchased concentrate, how much? We try to maintain the total milk delivery (economic reasons), so we reduce meet production – no bulls. Less young animals and reduced meat production Use some of the land used for cereals to grow grass The same amount of concentrate In Norway it is more profitable to produce milk than meet

Roughage that was used for bulls and young cattle before conversion, are now used in milk production. From an economic point of view, it would perhaps been just as profitable to retained concentrate percent and had the same milk yield per cow as before conversion. You have to choose between intensive and a more extensive way of farming. And it is a question if it is right to use so much purchased concentrate in the organic milk production. The concentrate is grown somewhere in the world and occupy land that could be used as human food. We use land somewhere else in the world to feed our animals, and this is ethicals questions I think we in the organic movement need to consider in the future

Cropping plan Start with the number of fields on the farm before conversion The size of the fields Calculate the need for area for each crop (forage production, vegetables, cereals) Decide the length of the crop rotation; 3 years, 5 years, 7 years? Make a new field map / field boundaries Make a plan for the crop rotation. The length of the crop rotation is also a question of intensive / extensive farming system

Suggestion for crop rotation on some of the fields 1. year: Spring wheat/barley with underseed 2. year: Grass 1 3. year: Grass 2 4. year: Grass 3 5. year: Potatoes / Vegetables If the yield and the weed pressure is ok, there can be 4 or 5 years with ley before cereals If you have green fodder or ryegrass and clover in the 5 year before cereals, you get two years of field crop after another, and this can be useful to keep weeds at bay or to control the weeds.

When the cropping plan is made, plan the process from today until the whole area is included in the crop rotation 2 years, 5 or 10 years? Where to start? Because of the excess price and government subsidies for organic farming, you lose money if you spend many years on the conversion period. It may be possible to buy extra organic feed at the start of the conversion period so that the change to organic farming can go quickly

When the cropping plan is done and there is a balance between animal numbers and area, it’s time to make the fertilizer management plan (Get help from advisors)

How to use the manure? Calculate the amount of manure (spreadsheet) Use the manure when you have plough up Use the manure where you need it most Not manure in the first year with grass and clover If you still have too little manure: Not manure in the year with 2. grass either Reduce the amount in the year with 3. grass Foto: H. Steinshamn

Economic results Gross margin today Gross margin after conversion Gross margin for different alternatives Foto: A. DeBoer

Exemple farm GM

Results on the example farm, alt.1 – alt.2 Fodder area per cow increased (from 1,05 to 1,16 ha) No difference in milk delivery The same number of cows No difference in purchased concentrate to milking cows, but more expensive Less purchased concentrate to young animals Reduced production of meet in milk production (from 9 975 to 6 335 kg) Less young cattle No difference in suckler herd Reduced production of cereals for sale (from 165,2 to 111,6 t) Increased gross margin (+23 %)

Then continue with: D. Conversion Period The strategy How to approach a desired crop rotation E. The conversion in the first year Time perspective – the length og time before completeley converted. Conversion strategy – One field at a time, large parts of the farm, livestock at the end or simultaneously with the land area

F. Follow-up Revise the plan along the way

Conversion plan Assumption: *human Targets: *farm resources *community constraints Targets: * sketch the converted farm Conversion period: * from today until converted * necessary changes * plan To summarize

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