Can technology help achieve sustainable intensification? Evidence from milk recording on Irish dairy farms.

This article explores the potential of a farm technology to simultaneously improve farm efficiency and provide wider environmental and social benefits. Identifying these 'win-win-win' strategies and encouraging their widespread adoption is critical to achieve sustainable intensification. Using a nationally representative sample of 296 Irish dairy farms from 2015, propensity score matching is applied to measure the impact of milk recording on a broad set of farm sustainability indicators. The findings reveal that the technology enhances economic sustainability by increasing dairy gross margin and milk yield per cow. Furthermore, social sustainability is improved through a reduction in milk bulk tank somatic cell count (an indicator of animal health and welfare status). Conversely, milk recording (as it is currently implemented) does not impact farm environmental sustainability, represented by greenhouse gas emission efficiency. While the study shows that milk recording is a 'win-win' strategy, ways of improving current levels of utilisation are discussed so that milk recording achieves its 'win-win-win' potential in the future.

Economic analysis of biosecurity adoption in dairy farming: evidence from Ireland.

Given the significant negative impact of livestock disease outbreaks on animal and public health, preventing disease spread through biosecurity practices is important. In this study, we used a nationally representative dataset that included information on biosecurity practices of almost 300 Irish dairy farmers. We applied parametric and nonparametric estimation methods to assess the economic implications of adopting the following biosecurity measures: vaccination, bulk tank milk testing for diseases, and not pooling colostrum. We found mixed evidence of biosecurity practices on economic outcomes, measured as gross margins per cow. Specifically, we found that vaccination and testing bulk tank milk for diseases were significantly associated with better economic outcomes for dairy farms. However, we found no significant association with the economic performance of not pooling colostrum from more than one animal. Our findings have important policy implications required for targeting support for the adoption of biosecurity practices in dairy herds.

Given the significant negative impact of livestock disease outbreaks on animal and public health, preventing disease spread through biosecurity practices is important. In this article, we assessed the economic implications of the adoption of biosecurity practices on Irish dairy farms. Specifically, we studied vaccination, testing bulk tank milk for diseases, and not pooling colostrum from more than one animal. Our analysis is based on a dataset of almost 300 dairy farmers that included information on the adoption of these practices combined with detailed information on the farm's economic performance. Our findings support the adoption of biosecurity measures. Specifically, we found that vaccination and testing bulk tank milk for diseases are significantly associated with economic benefits resulting in higher gross margins per cow, while our results do not provide a positive association on farm economic performance of not pooling colostrum. However, not pooling colostrum from more than one animal as a biosecurity practice is not negatively associated with economic outcomes of farms. Our results are important from a policy perspective to support increased adoption of biosecurity practices among livestock farmers globally.