Custom Forage Harvesting
Ideas for more
efficient dairy
farming.
by Gunnar Josefsson,
Marcia Miquelon and
Larry Chapman
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Healthy Farmers, Healthy Profits Project
Some of the busiest times on a dairy farm are when forage is harvested
and put into storage for future use. It is during these times that milk
production (and income) can suffer as the labor and management demands
of the farmer are stretched to the limit. At times, extra help not familiar
with operating farm machinery on a daily basis are called upon to help
out. Work safety is at a higher risk during these times due to extra long
hours and inexperienced help. One method of improving working conditions
and safety at harvest time is to hire a custom forage harvester to handle
chopping, hauling and storing your forage crop. This allows the dairy
farmer to concentrate on managing the dairy herd.
What is custom forage
harvesting?
For the purposes of this Tip Sheet, custom forage harvesting (CFH) is defined as hiring a commercial operator to harvest and put into storage (bunkers, bags, etc) either corn or hay silage. Although there are other custom services available (baling, grain harvest, etc.) these are not considered in this document.
CFH is increasing in popularity. Individual farm conditions determine if this method is cost-effective.
Advantages:
There are many reasons why Custom Forage Harvest might make sense for
your operation.
· Expansion. If you plan to expand your herd,
or your old equipment has worn out, custom forage harvest can save further
capital investment in harvesting equipment. There are a number of good
resources for finding out where the break-even point is for purchasing
new equipment. (1,2) In most cases, additional factors need
to be taken into consideration such as; quantity and quality of forage,
labor and management availability, and available capital.
· Faster. A custom operator with a selfpropelled
harvester can cover 3 to 4 times the ground in the same time as a pull-type
forage harvester. This speed can be critical when it comes to feed quality,
or trying to take advantage of small windows of opportunity in the weather.
· Better feed quality. For each day past “prime,”
an alfalfa crop can lose up to 5 points in relative feed value. Any loss
in RFV can mean lower milk production.3 Some custom forage
harvesters also offer processing, which improves digestibility of corn
silage. 4
· Free up time. By hiring a custom forage harvester,
you can free up more of your time to concentrate on the facets of your
farm that require the most attention. For many dairy farmers, this involves
managing the dairy herd rather than recruiting, hiring and managing short-term
laborers to help with forage harvest and hauling.
· Able to spread manure sooner. Many farms have
manure storage that allows them to store manure and spread it as soon
as possible after a forage crop has come off.
· Less weather risk. If your custom operator can
harvest and store your forage faster, there is less chance that weather
will disrupt your schedule.
· Save on taxes. You’ll have less capital
equipment investment to depreciate, and your custom harvest costs would
be deductible on a schedule F.
