family-giaroli-farm-26.html
VikingNews UK 01 2018
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27 may 2018 | vikingnews piles of parmesan
cheese
. is pleased with the results, averaging well over 32
milk
kg (per cow per day). he says the main goal is to produce the same amount of
milk
with fewer
cows
. they want to improve rather than increase the herd. more efficient
cows
, less labour, lower expenses, higher revenue: as simple as this. as such, they have set some kpi (key performance indexes) for calving,
milk
ing, breeding. plus most of the daily routines are set so everybody knows exactly what to do and when. hoof trim- ming is managed by an external trimmer and all
cows
have a pe- dometer for heat detection. today, heifers receive their 1st in- semination at 14 months of age and the average age at 1st calving is 25.8 months. days open is now set at 120 days but is often even lower through the year. healthy calves there has been a huge reduction in antibiotics use in the last period and ivana (calf manager) very rarely has to treat a calf today. at the moment, they are considering new facilities for the young stock.
cheese
production five people work in the
cheese
factory producing excellent par- mesan. they produce 36
cheese
cloths per day, that each weigh around 38 kg after 12 months maturing. on average, they need 100
milk
kg to produce eight kg of
cheese
, although this can vary depending on the
milk
composition and its properties, rather than the skill of the
cheese
maker. cow feed is also crucial as the use of silage is banned by the parmesan consortium because the
cheese
is matured for longer than 12 months and silage fermen- tation otherwise could create bumps or holes in the
cheese
. the
milk
needs to be high in casein but not too rich in fat. if you ever go in italy, we recommend you plan a visit to this friendly family farm: their doors are always open for a cup of coffee and a taste of their special
cheese
, made with passion since 1929. 500
cows
are
milk
ed twice a day in this 40-places rotary
milk
ing parlour.
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