Dairy farmers with the St. Albans Co-Op will be benefiting from a new technology that they say is crucial to helping them increase the value of their milk.
Rebecca Howrigan helps run her family’s farm, Manning Dairy, in Swanton. The farm is one of hundreds of members of the St. Albans Co-Op who will now be benefiting from a new milk testing system.
“This is just another tool that we will have to help make better decisions with our cows’ diets and to improve the amount of fat and protein that we can get from the milk,” said Howrigan.
Researches spent four years trying to develop a new way to test milk that would help farmers better manage their cows’ health and increase the value of their milk. On Saturday, they announced that the co-op would be the first in the nation to use it.
“A new tool in terms of a piece of information from milk that tells how well the cows are digesting their feed and converting it to fat and protein which is what the farmers get paid for,” said David Barbano, a Cornell University Science Professor.
Their research found that de novo fatty acids, which produce milk fats, have a direct correlation to the amount of protein and butterfat in the milk. Howrigan says farms are paid more for milk with high fat and protein content, and this new technology will now be giving them reports on the de novo fatty acids in their milk.
“So if we can get them to make more fat and more protein in the same amount of milk that they’re giving us every day, then that will help to be able to produce things that use a lot of the fat and protein like cheese, and yogurt, and butter,” said Howrigan.
Researchers say that farms can increase the amount of de novo fatty acids by changing the cows’ food, giving them more room in the barn, and providing more space for them to lay down.
“The dairy industry is such an important part of our economy, certainly throughout the state of Vermont and the Northeast, so we need to continue to all that we can to benefit this industry, to ensure there’s viability to the industry, and also for that next generation,” said Leon Berthiaume, St. Albans Co-op CEO.
Howrigan says as farms struggle with low milk prices, this type of technology will be crucial in helping them to increase the value and earnings of their product.
Source: WCAX
