THE OUTENIQUA JERSEY HERD: A great research tool

by Prof. Robin Meeske, robinm@elsenburg.com

TThe Outeniqua research farm close to George in the Southern Cape is where you will find the Outeniqua jersey herd. The herd was started in 1957 and has grown and developed over many years to a registered jersey herd with 400 cows in milk. The fodder flow consists of kikuyu/ ryegrass, lucerne, fescue, plantain, red clover and white clover pasture. Cows are fed dairy concentrate in the dairy parlour during milking at an average of 6 kg/cow/ day. Average milk production varies from 14 to 20 kg/cow/day depending on pasture quality and level of concentrate fed.

The dairy parlour was upgraded during 2019. The milking machine is a 20-point swing-over Waikato system and the Afikim milking and cow-management system is used. The Afilab system has been installed, enabling collection of individual cow data on milk fat, protein and lactose on a daily basis. Cows are weighed twice a day with the walk-over scale. The feeding system will be doubled in 2020, enabling feeding of two different concentrates to large numbers of cows. This will facilitate large-scale production studies to provide answers to dairy farmers and the feed-manufacturing industry.

The dairy herd is a member of the Outeniqua dairy study group. Contact with dairy farmers and industry is key to ensure that research conducted at Outeniqua is relevant and adds value. The herd participated in the local George jersey show and won the Nestlé trophy for the most uniform group of cows on the 2019 show. The herd ranked 26th of all registered jersey herds in South Africa on the SAINET ranking in 2020. The breeding value of the Outeniqua jersey herd for kilogram and percentage milk fat and milk protein is higher than the breed average for jerseys in South Africa. Jersey bulls selected for the herd should have the following breeding values: milk +200 kg, kilogram milk fat

+25 kg, milk fat percentage +0,2%, kilogram milk protein +15 kg, milk protein percentage +0,1%. Bulls should also have high genetic values for udder, body, feet and legs. Milk solids are important as the milk price is determined by protein and fat content of the milk. Herd health is protected by managing the herd as a closed herd. In the past 30 years, no new animals have been brought onto the farm. Close collaboration between the directorates of Animal Sciences, Plant Sciences and Research Support Services at Outeniqua is key to the research output of the farm. The dairy and pasture research teams on the farm are well known in South Africa for their sterling research and research findings are presented at the annual Outeniqua information day and other technology transfer platforms. A new generation of researchers and research technicians is also trained at Outeniqua to ensure that our research programmes continue to support the dairy farmers of the Southern Cape.