Dairy switch secures sustainable future (March 25)

A significant change of direction has seen one producer develop a brand new dairy business, with a high-health-status Jersey herd and selling milk direct to consumers.

TEXT SARA GREGSON

The success of his new dairy set-up is not only due to meticulous cow and grassland management by Devon-based producer Niall Tewson. But it’s also down to his drive and determination to turn what was once a prime beef and sheep farm, with 60 suckler cows and calves and 3,000 breeding sheep, into a profitable dairy unit.

After working for six months on several New Zealand based dairy farms in 2019, when he was just 23, Niall came back to the UK – inspired and passionately keen to milk cows. And, with the support of his family, that’s what he set out to do.

The beef herd and half the sheep at his family’s farm were sold, releasing capital to install 260 cubicles in the sheds, as well as a 24:48 GEA swing-over parlour, and to buy the first cows.

After lambing 1,500 ewes in the spring of 2021, the first of 130 pedigree Jersey heifers, which were imported from Denmark, were already being milked at Crokers Grange Farm, near Newton Abbott. These were followed by 100 more heifers bought from local high-health herds.

Three scenarios

“We planned three scenarios: one for an outdoor grazing unit, with cross-bred cows; one having fewer but higher yielding Holsteins, run on an indoor system; and one of setting up a Jersey herd,” explains Niall.

“We decided on the Jerseys because I could only get a Channel Island contract from Rivermead Dairies.”

The Tewson’s had initially rented the 122-hectare unit from 1993 but bought it seven years ago. The cows can access 50 hectares for grazing. The remainder of the land is the other side of a busy road and used to produce winter forage.

“The land at the top of the farm is free-draining shillet and we can turn the cows out very early,” says Niall.

“The lower end of the farm is heavier red Devon clay and can get sticky. But it is a true grass farm and that’s what grows best here.”

Niall’s family has bought grass and maize seed and fertiliser from Cullompton-based agronomist William Pitts for many years. And William has been working closely with Oliver Seeds’ John Harris since 2016.

"In 2019, on William’s advice, we reseeded a lot of the grassland with Oliver Seeds mixture MegaBite, ready for the new dairy,” says Niall.

This predominantly late perennial ryegrass sward, which includes varieties Nashota, Thegn and Bowie, produces high yields of top-quality feed. “And also ‘keeps going’ if we have a drought, which we often do in summer,” he adds.

The fields were reseeded in early autumn 2024, using a plough and power harrow, with MegaBite, but this time with added clovers, plantain and other herbs, so that all the fields now qualify for the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI).

“The swards are now richer, greener and fuller and will be powering milk production from 21-day rotations, from early February to mid-October. The swards’ ability to regrow quickly when managed correctly is phenomenal. And, being dual purpose, we can cut anything we do not graze,” says Niall.

Quality forage: using mixtures suited to grazing and cutting supports dairy system

Fertiliser applications

He applies 75kgN/ha, using a urea-based 40N+14SO3 product, onto the grassland from mid-February ready for the expected early grass growth. A total of 150kgN/ ha is applied as fertiliser during the growing season, with dressings after each grazing.

Having reached 240 head of milkers, the bottom 20% were culled in the summer of 2023. In December 2024, the herd produced more milk than the previous December, but with fewer milking cows. Niall puts this down to better management, cows and forage. The average annual milk yield is 6,200 litres, at 4.3% protein and 5.8% butterfat, with 1,613 litres produced from forage. The cows are fed 0.38kg of concentrate per litre of milk produced.

Niall is hoping to achieve up to 7,500 litres a cow a year while, at the same time, maintaining profitability. The herd is fed a TMR comprising 50:50 maize and grass silage, which is topped up with concentrates to yield in the parlour.

“We were block-calving in spring but are now moving to all-year-round to produce a level milk supply – and workload,” says Niall. “We are also starting to crossbreed with Irish Holsteins to produce more milk with the same milk solids.”

Direct selling

In May 2023 Niall bought a vending machine, which is sited it at the top of the farm drive. He initially budgeted to sell 50 litres of pasteurised unhomogenised milk per day, but was quickly selling 200 litres each day through one machine.

“We branded ourselves as ‘South Devon Dairy’ and were already active on social media, telling people what was happening on the farm, so milk sales soon took off,” says Niall.

“I started with a batch pasteuriser, which took eight hours to process from raw to processed and down to 3OoC. We have since invested in an inline pasteuriser, which is much quicker.

“At weekends we are now selling 400 litres of milk and milkshake each day through two vending machines and one coffee machine – at an average of £1.87 per litre. I really see the future for our business in selling direct to consumers.”

He adds that managing customers can be tricky: “But we are doing all we can to keep them happy, with ample off-road parking, a play park and small animal petting area. We sell several flavours of milk shake and handmade gelato, my mother bakes cakes and biscuits, and we also sell locally produced meat and vegetables.

“Education is another large part of what we do here. It’s vital to teach the younger generation about where and how their food is produced. We invite schools and other groups to show them what we do here.

“But I’m careful not take my eye off the cows because without them I would have nothing to sell. There has to be a balance between the two enterprises.”