An economic comparison of systems of dairy production based on N-fertilized grass and grass-white clover grassland in a moist maritime environment

Humphreys, J. and Mihailescu, E. and Casey, I. A. (2012) An economic comparison of systems of dairy production based on N-fertilized grass and grass-white clover grassland in a moist maritime environment. Grass and Forage Science, 67 (4). pp. 519-525. ISSN 0142-5242

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Abstract

This study compared the profitabilities of systems of dairy production based on N-fertilized grass (FN) and grass-white clover (WC) grassland and assessed sensitivity to changing fertilizer N and milk prices. Data were sourced from three system-scale studies conducted in Ireland between 2001 and 2009. Ten FN stocked between 2·0 and 2·5livestock units (LU)ha-1 with fertilizer N input between 173 and 353kgha-1 were compared with eight WC stocked between 1·75 and 2·2LUha-1 with fertilizer N input between 79 and 105kgha-1. Sensitivity was confined to nine combinations of high, intermediate and low fertilizer N and milk prices. Stocking density, milk and total sales from WC were approximately 0·90 of FN. In scenarios with high fertilizer N price combined with intermediate or low milk prices, WC was more (P<0·05) profitable than FN. Based on milk and fertilizer N prices at the time, FN was clearly more profitable than WC between 1990 and 2005. However, with the steady increase in fertilizer N prices relative to milk price, the difference between FN and WC was less clear cut between 2006 and 2010. Projecting into the future and assuming similar trends in fertilizer N and milk prices to the last decade, this analysis indicates that WC will become an increasingly more profitable alternative to FN for pasture-based dairy production.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/1100/1102
Departments or Groups:
Depositing User:	Admin SSL
Date Deposited:	19 Oct 2022 23:06
Last Modified:	10 Aug 2023 16:05
URI:	http://repository-testing.wit.ie/id/eprint/4070

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