Herd genotyping is one of the “most obvious” ways that dairy farms in Ireland can ensure optimum calf welfare, particularly when it comes to dairy bull calves.
That’s according to Lakeland Dairies group chief executive, Colin Kelly, who has been speaking to Agriland.
“Animal welfare is top of our (Lakeland Dairies] agenda,” Kelly said.
“We all know it only takes one or two negative instances to portray something across the whole industry. Some of the things that have happened, in this space, over the last number of years have been unwanted.
“I do think there is a good industry move to make sure that a sustainable model is developed,” he added.
Kelly admitted that he believes that there is a limit to what Lakeland can do in isolation.
“Obviously we’ve been promoting animal welfare. There [are] penalties in terms of milk not being collected if anybody is seen to be not in line with those standards.
“But from an overall industry basis, Ireland Inc., if you wanted to call it that, obviously the herd genotyping is probably the most obvious one. It will take a period of time. It will take a period of investment from processors, and obviously support then from government.
“It gives a number of benefits in terms of attracting DNA, improving outputs from a dairy perspective, but it also gives a much better starting product in terms of dairy-beef for that transfer across to beef herds,” he said
Calf Welfare Charter
As an active member of the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS), Lakeland Dairies has also adopted the ICOS Calf Welfare Charter.
The charter sets out key principles, which the entire industry will abide by, to ensure that the highest possible welfare standards apply to all calves produced on Irish dairy farms.
The co-op said that the dairy industry is not just about milking cows but about all and every aspect of animal welfare.
Lakeland has stressed that those in the dairy sector have to be aware that the social licence to operate is under ever-increasing scrutiny and that the general public is looking at animal welfare more than ever.
The terms of the ICOS Calf Welfare Charter are as follows:
- From January 1, 2024, no healthy calf can be slaughtered within the first eight weeks of life, except under force majeure circumstances. Implementation will be pursued in collaboration with Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and relevant state agencies;
- On-farm euthanasia of healthy calves is prohibited;
- It is not acceptable for herds supplying milk to have an on-farm calf mortality rate that is significantly higher than the normal prevailing range except under exceptional circumstances, e.g., disease outbreak;
- Dairy and beef stakeholders will commit to the development and adoption of breeding technologies and practices to increase the quality and value of calves from the dairy herd, to enable the functioning of a viable supply chain for all calves;
- Milk suppliers must adhere to best practice in relation to the early stages of rearing, housing and feeding of all calves, in line with industry best practice guidelines (Farm Animal Welfare Advisory Council (FAWAC), Teagasc and Animal Health Ireland (AHI).