DAIRY PROFIT MONITOR AND
ACTIVITY ANALYSIS
PROJECTS
Betsey Howland
blh37@cornell.edu
Jason Karszes
jk57@cornell.edu
Cornell University PRO-DAIRY Program
Department of Animal Science
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
TOPICS COVERED TODAY
• Dairy Profit Monitor
• Cost of Manure Application
• Cost of Raising Dairy Replacements
DAIRY PROFIT MONITOR
DPM provides a snapshot of key operating
measures a producer has control over from month
to month
 Shows how different areas of the business are
impacting and influencing one another on 1 report
 Provides a great resource for tracking up to date
performance
DAIRY PROFIT MONITOR:
KEY MEASURES
Pounds of components
per cow per day
Herd Performance
Monitors
 Transition Cow
Management
 Cull Rates
Milk Check Analysis
 Net Marketing Margin
Efficiency
 Lbs. of milk per lb. of dry
matter
 Lbs. of milk sold per worker
Financial
 Vet and Medicine Costs
 Bedding Costs
KEY MEASURES: NET MILK
INCOME OVER FEED COST
Highest correlation with return on assets
 Last 4 years, Dairy Farm Business Summary data
Actual Milk Price
Fixed Milk Price
 Average of prices, last 3 years, Cornell DFBS
 Eliminates variation of milk price
 Any changes will be from changes in feeding
program
TRENDS
• How have key production and financial
measures changed over the last 12 months?
• Why have they changed?
• 46 farms have data entered for at least 11 of the
last 12 months
• 42 of the farms all 12 months complete
• 4 farms missing something for just 1 month.
POUNDS OF COMPONENTS
PER COW PER DAY
PREGNANCY RATE
FEED CONVERSION
COST PER LB. OF DRY MATTER
NET MILK INCOME
OVER FEED COSTS
• Key financial index to track operating
performance
• How is it changing over time
• Actual milk price vs fixed milk price
NMI OVER PURCHASED FEED
COSTS: ACTUAL MILK PRICE
NMI OVER PURCHASED FEED
COSTS: FIXED MILK PRICE
FACTORS
NMI OVER TOTAL FEED
COSTS: ACTUAL MILK PRICE
NMI OVER TOTAL FEED COSTS:
FIXED MILK PRICE FACTORS
WHAT HAS THE GREATEST
CORRELATION TO NET MILK
INCOME OVER FEED COSTS?
QUESTIONS ON DAIRY
PROFIT MONITOR?
COST OF MANURE HAULING
AND APPLICATION
PRELIMINARY RESULTS
STUDY INTENT
Develop template that can be used to
calculate cost of manure application
utilizing farm level data.
Determine costs of utilizing tankers to
transport and apply liquid manure.
Identify key factors that impact the cost to
apply manure.
STUDY LAYOUT
27 participating farms
Hauling and spreading with same tanker
Tractor and spreader
10 wheeler
Semi-tractor and tanker
Hauling and Transfer
10 wheeler
Semi-Tractor and tanker
STUDY
METHODOLOGY
Farms tracked data for spring 2012
Per day per piece of equipment
Labor hours
Fuel usage
Fields spread
Distance to fields
Travel time
STUDY
METHODOLOGY
For each piece of equipment
Investment level
Repair costs
Useful life & salvage value
Insurance & registration
For each employee
Total cost per hour, including all benefits
STUDY
METHODOLOGY
For each piece of equipment
Total cost calculated per period tracked by
farm.
Cost per hour, gallon, acre, etc., determined
by dividing by appropriate amount.
Costs for application of all manure not
inherently captured
Bedded packs
Cleaning sand out of manure pits
HAUL AND SPREAD
Haul and spread manure with same piece of
equipment
HAUL, TRANSFER AND
SPREAD
Haul manure to field and transfer to
spreader at field for application
KEY FACTORS
Key cost differences:
Spreading capacity
Distance traveled
Equipment utilization
QUESTIONS ON COST
OF MANURE
APPLICATION?
COST OF RAISING DAIRY
REPLACEMENTS
PRELIMINARY RESULTS
GOAL OF THE
REPLACEMENT PROGRAM
The primary goal of all heifer programs is to
raise the highest quality heifer who will
maximize profits once she enters the
lactating herd. A quality heifer is one
carrying no limitations into the dairy herd
that would hinder her ability to produce
under the farm’s management system.
Profits are maximized by obtaining the
highest quality heifer at the lowest possible
cost.
WHAT IS THE COST OF
RAISING REPLACEMENTS?
Hard to know what the “Average” is
Conduct study every 5 years to capture
costs on farms
17 farms have completed study
A descriptive study
COSTS FROM BIRTH TO
CALVING
The following tables represents what the
costs were for these 17 farms.
If all input costs and usage levels stayed
the same over two years, this is what the
cost would be.
Selected Measures
Dairy Replacement Program
17 Northeast Dairy Farms, 3rd Quarter 2012
Replacement Program
Number of Heifers
Age, Months
Weight, Pounds
Total Weight Gained, On Farm
Average Daily Rate of Gain
% Non-Completion Rate
Average
636
23.1
1,302
1,163
1.74
10.62%
80th Percentile Range
333
20.3
1,208
956
1.58
4.16%
1,305
25.0
1,368
1,272
1.96
17.66%
Feeding
Average Daily Rate of Gain
Average Daily Dry Matter Intake per Animal
Feed Conversion Ratio(Lbs. of Gain/Lbs. DM
Feed Cost per Pound of Dry matter
Feed Cost per Day per Animal
Feed Cost per Pound of Gain
Percent of Total
Grown Feed
Purchased Feed
Labor
Heifers per Weighted Daily Labor Hour
Pounds Gained per Weighted Daily Labor Hour
Average
1.74
15.19
0.12
$0.112
$1.674
$0.961
80th Percentile Range
1.58
12.20
0.09
$0.089
$1.423
$0.845
1.96
19.16
0.15
$0.142
$2.051
$1.195
63.5%
36.5%
Average
39.4
97.5
43.8%
23.1%
76.9%
56.2%
80th Percentile Range
26.4
30.9
57.6
176.8
Cost per Heifer Per Day
Cost per Pound of Gain
Number of Annual Worker Equivalents
Pre-Weaned Heifers per Hour
$0.378
$0.217
2.14
11.6
$0.215
$0.124
0.95
6.2
$0.511
$0.303
4.27
21.7
Post-Weaned Heifers per Hour
Cost per Worker Equivalent
59.0
$39,964
38.8
$27,655
102.1
$48,845
Breakdown of Costs of Raising Heifers by Stage of Growth
17 New York Dairy Farms, 3rd Quarter 2012, New York
Per Pound of Gain
Stage of Growth
Birth to 200 Lbs 201-700 lbs
701-850 lbs
851-Calving
Feed
Labor
All Other Costs
$1.714
0.805
0.610
$0.678
.140
.415
$0.811
0.125
0.571
$1.122
0.230
0.857
Total
$3.128
$1.233
$1.507
$2.209
By Total Raising Cost
Stage of Growth
Birth to 200 Lbs 201-700 lbs
701-850 lbs
851-Calving
Feed
Labor
All Other Costs
$188.5
88.5
67.1
$339.0
69.9
207.4
$121.7
18.8
85.6
$538.2
108.9
405.7
Total
$344.1
$616.3
$226.1
$1,053.1
% of Total Cost
15.4%
27.5%
10.1%
47.0%
8%
38%
12%
35%
% of Total Growth
QUESTIONS ON
REPLACEMENT COST
STUDY?
THANK YOU!
BETSEY HOWLAND
BLH37@CORNELL.EDU
607-592-6222
JASON KARSZES
JK57@CORNELL.EDU
607-227-0694