Dairy Development in the Netherlands and
Thailand
Experiences from the Netherlands and views on Thai Dairy
Development
June 2013, Bram Wouters (Wageningen UR Livestock Research)
Outline presentation
 Development of dairy sector in the Netherlands
 Views on Thai dairy development
 Conclusion
Dairy development during last 50 years in
Netherlands (1960-2010)
Two periods:
1. 1960-1985: Period of “More with More”
● Emphasis on production growth and
intensification
● Transformation of dairy farming system
2. 1985-2010: Period of “More and better with less”
● Emphasis on efficiency, quality and
sustainability
Dairy farm development in Netherlands
Total Milk total (million tons)
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)นตนา
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Dairy farms มราฟนวนา
์
จ
Dairy cows (million) มนดรคโ
ี มแนวนา
่
จ ))นาล้ )
1960
1985
2010
6.7
12.5
11.9
185,000 58,000
20,000
1.6
2.4
1.5
9
41
75
Milk production per cowวตอ
ั ตมนต
่ ลผลผ
ิ
4205
5371
>8000
Land for grass and forage (ha’s)
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ั
พะลแา
ื ญหก
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์
14
25
43
5500
12512
14070
175
325
243
830
2280
2060
8
72
142
Dairy cows per farm
Kg Milk per ha
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Kg N per ha (grassland)(
Kg concentrates per cow
รตแ
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วตอั ตน่ ขราหาอนวนา
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Kg Milk per hour labourงมโวช่ั1 นในางงรแอตมนต
่ ลผลผ
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Period of transformation (1960-1985)
 Main changes at farm level:
● Mechanisation:
● on farm and development of contract
services
● Specialisation:
● from mixed farming to specialised dairy
farming
● Intensification:
● high use of inputs (fertilizer, feed)
Major Innovations during Transformation
1960
1985
Barn
Tied barn
Loose housing
Milking
Hand milking
Milking parlour
Milk storage, transport
Milk cans
Milk cool tank
Breed
Dutch Friesian
Holstein Friesian
Roughage in winter
Hay
Grass and Corn Silage
Corn silage
No
yes
Manure storage
Solid manure, compost Slurry system
system
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1960
1985
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ำท
Developments in the past decades (1950-2008)
From tied barn to
Cubicle
barn
Innovations in
Housing (cubicle barn),
Forage production (corn),
Manure management
Manure
injection on
grassland
Corn growing
and ensiling
Example of Innovation (1970-1985):
Change from Cans to Cooling tanks on
Farms
 Goal: Reduction of transport costs and to improve milk
quality
 Public-private cooperation:
● Government/EU (subsidies, improvement
infrastructure), dairy industry (coordination,
investments) and farmers (investments)
 Implementation:
● first pilot projects thereafter scaling-up
 Result:
● 45,000 farmers got cooling tank in 10 years time
● Farms with less than 5 cows stopped dairy farming
Period of transformation (1960-1985)
 Main changes at level of agro-industry:
● Development of modern dairy industry (mainly
cooperative): product development, efficiency,
mergers into larger units;
● Development of modern feed industry
(cooperative and private)
● Development of breeding programmes (AI,
progeny testing, DHI programs)
● Improved access to finance for farmers and
companies (cooperative agricultural bank)
Feed industry
Dairy industry
Process of transformation (1960-1985)
 Major factors facilitating the transformation at sector
level:
● Strong government support (extension,
education, research, subsidies and tax facilities)
● Stable market (EU price guarantee)
● Well organized cooperation of government
(leading), knowledge institutions and private sector
to develop new technologies (innovations) and a
strong knowledge base
● Access to finance (long term loans for farmers,
companies)
1985 Turning point from “More with more”
to “More and better with less”
Important changes:
 Quota system: limiting growth of production per farm;
 Environmental side effects of intensification
● Pollution of air, surface and ground water
● Loss of bio-diversity
 Food safety: more awareness among consumers
 Animal welfare: more concerns in society
 Government: reduction of support
Period 1985-2010- also system innovations:
Emphasis on sustainability and competiveness:
● Economy
● Cost price: feeding, herd and disease
management
● Quality and efficiency: milk and feed
quality, farm management;
● Society:
● Food safety: track and tracing systems
● Bio-diversity: nature conservation
● Animal welfare: housing and grazing
Period 1985-2010- also system innovations:
Emphasis on sustainability and competiveness:
● Ecology:
● Nutrient cycling: manure management and
more efficient fertilizer use ;
● Organic dairy farming
● Knowledge system:
● Privatisation: extension and partly the
applied research
● Public private cooperation: research and
innovation, training of farmers
Example of “More and better with less”
Concentrate feeding and milk production
Year
Milk production per
cow per year (kg)
Concentrate feeding
per cow per year
(kg)
1985
5373
2280
2010
8000
2060
Factors: Better quality roughage (grass, maize) and
feeding management, genetic improvement.
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1985
5373
2280
2010
8000
2060
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ธนุ พงอขพาภยก
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ศั
ุ รปรากบ
Innovations in knowledge system
● Dairy Cattle Academy: farmers learn from
farmers (farmers networks)
● Livestock Networks: farmers take initiative and
are actively involved in testing innovations and
knowledge exchange
● Dairy Campus: stakeholders (private sector,
knowledge institutions, farmers) cooperate in the
area of applied research, testing innovations,
education and training on a dairy centre
● Golden Triangle: public-private partnerships
(government, private sector, knowledge
institutions) for research and innovation
Summary of Dairy Development Netherlands
 Dairy sector based on medium to large scale family
farms, process of enlargement still continues
 Innovations very important for development (“golden
triangle”)
 Well educated and skilled dairy farmers
 Strong private agro-food companies
 High labour efficiency
 Role of government:
● gradually reduced from co-actor to facilitator of the
sector
● Facilitating innovations, education, market access
and control of food safety
Outline of the presentation
 Development of dairy sector in Netherlands
 Views on Thai dairy development
 Conclusion
Major achievements of Thai dairy sector
The most developed dairy sector in the S-E Asia region
(ASEAN):
 Well developed and modern dairy industry
 Relative high milk production per cow
 A developed infra-structure with supporting
institutions (MCC’s, DHI program), associations,
platforms (dairy board), knowledge base (universities
etc.)
 A well functioning school milk program
Major challenges
 How could the dairy sector remain competitive
compared to relatively cheap import
 How could the dairy sector improve the quality of its
products?
 What is a sustainable system for improvement of
farmers skills, knowledge & entrepreneurship and
generation of new innovations?
Increasing Competiveness
What could be strategies?
● Reducing feed costs by improving the quantity
and quality of roughage and quality of
concentrate feeds;
● Reduction of costs and improvement of yields by
better farm and herd management (feeding,
disease control, number of herd replacements)
● Reduction of transaction costs by more efficient
milk collection, transport, more efficient input
and service supply
● Reduction of price support
Improving quality
 What could be strategies?
● Quality based payment systems at farm level
● Improved quality control at collection level and
coordination at national level
● Investing in a cold chain (cold chain from cow to
consumer – introduction of cooling tanks on farms)
Innovation in Knowledge dissemination
and Innovation system
What are options?
Public-private partnerships (cooperation of
government, knowledge institutions and private sector):
● More applied research and demonstration of
innovations
● Improved extension and farmer education
(cooperation of MCC’s, government, dairy food
companies and knowledge institutions)
Outline of the presentation
 Development of dairy sector in Netherlands
 Views on Thai dairy development
 Conclusion
Conclusion
 The Netherlands experience shows that continuous
innovations in dairy farming and the sector are required
to remain competitive
 The Thai dairy sector has the potential to remain
competitive and leading in SE Asia but need system
innovations to remain competitive and to become more
sustainable
 Innovations are needed in the Thai dairy sector to
reduce costs of production, improve yields and quality
and to improve the knowledge dissemination and
innovation system.
Thank you for your attention!
Questions?
The Dutch dairy sector in 2012
 18,500 dairy farms
 350 dairy farms with on farm milk processing
 Average farm size 74 cows producing 650,000 kg milk
/year
 11 billion kg milk (about 67% export – cheese etc.)
 15 dairy companies
 One large dairy company processes 75% of all milk
 EU/national legislation regarding milk quality and
quality assurance
 One national independent milk quality laboratory
Compared to 1960, Today’s dairy farming
in Netherland needs per kg of milk:
 10% of land
 21% of animals
 23% of feed
 35% of water
Emissions per kg of milk:
 24% manure
 37% CO2
 43% methane
(Capper et al, J Anim Sci, 2010)