A dairy farm has struck the right balance between a grazing animal and one capable of eating large volumes of silage at housing by introducing the dual purpose Fleckvieh into its crossbreeding programme.

Deian Evans and Jamie McCoy, who farm near Newcastle Emlyn with Deian’s father, Lyn, brought Fleckvieh genetics into their herd after switching from an all year-round calving system with Holstein cows to autumn block calving and more than doubling cow numbers, from 80 to 185.

Jersey genetics were initially used to produce a herd that would be better suited to grass but crossing to a Jersey had too significant an impact on cow size, reducing the yield potential from the autumn milk system at Gorwel Farm.

The family looked at a range of breeds to find the one with the traits that would best complement their own herd and system, and the improvements they were hoping to make.

“What we were aiming for was to add a bit more power, to produce a robust animal,’’ says Deian.

“We wanted a cow that would be profitable on our system, it wasn’t about breed or colour, it was about performance.’’

The Fleckvieh, a breed similar to a Simmental but one that has been selected for milk, offered these traits so the business imported 15 in-calf and freshly calved heifers from Germany in 2015.

From a Holstein-based herd, the farm embarked on a three-way cross breeding programme, using a Friesian, a Fleckvieh and a Norwegian Red.

There are now around 50 Fleckvieh-cross cows in the herd.

The intention was to produce a functional cow and crossing with a Fleckvieh has done that, says Deian.

Heifers are all served to a Jersey for ease of calving so the herd has a strong Jersey influence but cow size has increased to an average of 550kg.

The Fleckvieh is a good match for a system that places emphasis on maximising milk from forage. “The Fleckviehs are excellent forage converters, as an autumn calving herd we need the cows to eat lots of silage, to eat to capacity,’’ says Jamie. 

But what really sets the Fleckvieh-cross apart from others in the herd is their body condition, she adds. “They never fail to carry good condition. They don’t go thin or fat, they are fit, meaty cows.’’

Milk butterfat and protein have steadily improved, to an average of 4.9% butterfat and 3.6% protein.

At an annual average milk yield of 6,700 litres, the business is not producing quite as much milk as it was when it was milking a black and white herd, but the milk is more saleable - the farm has a constituents-based contract with Glanbia.

Another characteristic of the Fleckvieh is its longevity. “Good longevity makes a cow more profitable because there is a lot of expense in replacing cows,’’ says Deian. 

Sexed semen has been used for the last four years and the response has been so good that for the 2022 calving season the entire herd has been served to beef breeds - British Blue and Aberdeen Angus sires.

Calf values will benefit from the Fleckvieh influence as the breed is not only a good match for farm’s milk contract but calf and cow cull values are good too.

The calf price is comparable to that of a Limousin-cross, says Jamie. “There is a cost to rearing a beef calf – the cost of the eartags, feed, bedding and our time – so we need to get as much back from them as we possibly can. Calves are an output of the farm.’’

As with everything else in the business, breeding and cow breed is constantly evaluated.

“Cows need to be reliable and to do the job, to integrate well within the herd. Those are our priorities, not necessarily what the breed is or what it looks like,’’ says Jamie.

Despite its many attributes, the business doesn’t have plans to increase the number of Fleckvieh crosses in the herd.

“A little bit of Fleckvieh genetic influence is good for all sorts of reasons but not too much because the cows become too beefy,’’ says Deian.