Dairy Farmer keeps you updated with all the latest news, views, insights and information from the Dairy sector - from animal husbandry to milk prices and diversification.

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Why has a flying dairy herd in Wales moved to breeding its own replacements?
Dairy

Why has a flying dairy herd in Wales moved to breeding its own replacements?

Gwynfor Jarman and his family are committed to forging ahead with their business plan and have instigated several significant changes at Gwern Hefin over the years

clock 11 March 2026 • 7 min read
Dairy Talk - Ben Yates: "The challenge will be trying to save costs without having a negative effect on the cows or production"
Dairy

Dairy Talk - Ben Yates: "The challenge will be trying to save costs without having a negative effect on the cows or production"

Ben Yates manages Mells Park Estate, Somerset, where he oversees a 400-cow unit and manages the 405-ha (1,000 acre) estate. Along with his wife and two sons, Ben has his own small herd of pedigree Holsteins under the Wowcow prefix. He joined the Holstein UK Board of Trustees in 2021

clock 05 March 2026 • 3 min read
Why one Stoke-on-Trent farming family stays committed to British Friesians
Dairy

Why one Stoke-on-Trent farming family stays committed to British Friesians

An ‘easy care' British Friesian with the potential for maximising milk from forage is the cornerstone of the Oulton family's herd breeding policy at Domvilles Farm, near Stoke-on-Trent

clock 04 March 2026 • 6 min read
Dairy Talk - Stuart Sadler: "Our milk buyer didn't pick up our milk for four days"
Dairy

Dairy Talk - Stuart Sadler: "Our milk buyer didn't pick up our milk for four days"

Stuart Sadler is a fourth-generation farmer on the 56-hectare (138-acre) Yew Tree Farm just south of Chester in Aldersey. In partnership with his parents, Stuart milks 75 predominantly Friesian cows calving all year-round supplying Arla C.A.R.E.

clock 02 March 2026 • 3 min read
Dairy Matters - Mark Chatterton: 'If support is thinning, margins need to fatten'
Dairy

Dairy Matters - Mark Chatterton: 'If support is thinning, margins need to fatten'

Mark Chatterton is the director and head of agriculture at Duncan & Toplis, which is one of the largest accounting and business advisers in the UK

clock 01 March 2026 • 5 min read
Dairy shed lighting explained: How many lux do cows need?
Dairy

Dairy shed lighting explained: How many lux do cows need?

An estimated 5–10% of dairy units in the UK currently use automated systems to deliver optimised lighting with potential benefits linked to increased fertility and yield performance

clock 28 February 2026 • 4 min read
Roger Evans: "It says little for the value of milk"
Dairy

Roger Evans: "It says little for the value of milk"

This month, Roger Evans discusses the value of milk, work ethic and hare coursers

clock 26 February 2026 • 4 min read
Dairy farming in Galicia: How Spain's dairy heartland is evolving
Dairy

Dairy farming in Galicia: How Spain's dairy heartland is evolving

Galicia is Spain's largest milk producing area with 41.6% of the country's total dairy production coming from the region's dairy producers. Natalie Noble joined a study tour to Galicia to find out more about Spain's dairy heartland

clock 25 February 2026 • 5 min read
Manage feed availability to reduce the risk of ketosis in dairy cows
Dairy

Manage feed availability to reduce the risk of ketosis in dairy cows

Maintaining body condition and promoting rumen fill and function in the dry period is key to preventing ketosis in fresh calved cows

clock 24 February 2026 • 4 min read
New year, new goals for pedigree Holstein breeders
Dairy

New year, new goals for pedigree Holstein breeders

A new year prompts a fresh look at the genetics programme for three of the country's top pedigree breeders, who review their goals for performance improvement in the 12 months ahead

clock 23 February 2026 • 6 min read
Farm vets adopt agritech for earlier disease detection on dairy farms
Dairy

Farm vets adopt agritech for earlier disease detection on dairy farms

As milk prices decline, along with recurring and emerging diseases and pressures to meet sustainability goals, Nantwich Farm Vets are working with ag-tech innovators to identify diseases earlier

clock 22 February 2026 • 3 min read
NZ Vet's View - Rory Dean: "Some farmers have seen a drop in pasture quality"
Dairy

NZ Vet's View - Rory Dean: "Some farmers have seen a drop in pasture quality"

This month, New Zealand vet, Rory Dean discusses the silage season, an increase in spending at some of his farms, and his sporting endeavours

clock 20 February 2026 • 5 min read
Can herbal leys pay their way? A Derbyshire dairy farm's experience
Dairy

Can herbal leys pay their way? A Derbyshire dairy farm's experience

At Rough Grounds Farm, Derbyshire, Graham and Justine Worsey have transformed their 96-hectare (237-acre) milking platform by reseeding every acre into herbal leys

clock 18 February 2026 • 6 min read
Dairy-Tech: Making time to talk
Dairy

Dairy-Tech: Making time to talk

A lunchtime meeting that lasts just 1% of the working week is essential in making sure the other 99% runs smoothly at Major Farming, near Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire

clock 13 February 2026 • 2 min read
Dairy-Tech: Consider an early turnout
Dairy

Dairy-Tech: Consider an early turnout

Turning cows out early – if only for part of the day – could help dairy farmers deal with the twin pressures of dwindling forage stocks and falling milk prices, said Tony Evans of Andersons

clock 13 February 2026 • 2 min read
Dairy-Tech: Get to grips with EID early
Dairy

Dairy-Tech: Get to grips with EID early

Electronic identification (EID) of cattle is a major boon on two fronts for Cornish dairy farmer Claire Brewer

clock 13 February 2026 • 2 min read
Dairy-Tech: Prepare for pinch points
Dairy

Dairy-Tech: Prepare for pinch points

Some painful decisions are likely to come up for dairy farmers this spring as the consequences of previous profitable years and falling milk prices clash

clock 13 February 2026 • 3 min read
Inside a Chilean dairy farm: How tight budget planning protects profit margins
Dairy

Inside a Chilean dairy farm: How tight budget planning protects profit margins

A large-scale dairy business in Chile is looking carefully at future capital investment opportunities

clock 09 February 2026 • 4 min read
How long-term investment has fuelled expansion at a Lancashire dairy farm
Dairy

How long-term investment has fuelled expansion at a Lancashire dairy farm

An open mind to investment and expansion have seen the White family grow their thriving 500-cow dairy operation

clock 04 February 2026 • 6 min read
Raw milk vending machine boosts farm profitability in Wales
Dairy

Raw milk vending machine boosts farm profitability in Wales

A consistently poor milk price was the catalyst for the launch of direct raw milk sales on the Granville's Mid Glamorgan unit

clock 02 February 2026 • 6 min read
Dairy Talk - Robert Reed: 'A crash in milk price is not what we need'
Dairy

Dairy Talk - Robert Reed: 'A crash in milk price is not what we need'

Farming 405 hectares (1,000 acres), a mix of tenanted and owned land at Gatcombe Farm, near Seaton, Devon, Robert Reed and his family milk 350 all-year-round calving Holstein cows via five robots and are achieving average yields of 12,000 litres

clock 31 January 2026 • 4 min read
Early-maturing maize variety boosts silage yields on Oxfordshire dairy farm
Dairy

Early-maturing maize variety boosts silage yields on Oxfordshire dairy farm

Farming on the northern margins of the North Wessex Downs, Hamish McIntosh has always tried to maximise the contribution maize makes to his milking ration

clock 28 January 2026 • 5 min read
Colostrum management: Latest research on handling and storage for dairy farmers
Dairy

Colostrum management: Latest research on handling and storage for dairy farmers

USA-based calf and heifer expert Dr Jim Quigley offers his perspective, after reviewing worldwide studies into best practice for calf colostrum handling and feeding

clock 27 January 2026 • 4 min read
Dairy Talk - Ifan Roberts: "As much as it is painful to see such turbulence, there is nothing that quite focuses one's mind on-farm than when times are lean"
Dairy

Dairy Talk - Ifan Roberts: "As much as it is painful to see such turbulence, there is nothing that quite focuses one's mind on-farm than when times are lean"

Ifan Roberts is a new entrant who has established a contract farming agreement milking 500 block calving cows in Cheshire, and is aiming to improve the land farmed, encourage others to participate in the industry and deliver attractive returns to his stakeholders

clock 25 January 2026 • 3 min read
Winter mastitis in dairy cows: How to spot it early and reduce the risk
Dairy

Winter mastitis in dairy cows: How to spot it early and reduce the risk

Vet Emma Greaves, of Stapeley Veterinary Practice, looks at how to manage winter mastitis infections on-farm

clock 23 January 2026 • 3 min read
Managing scour in dairy cows this winter
Dairy

Managing scour in dairy cows this winter

Variable silage quality and nutrition challenges could be a driver of scour among milking herds this winter

clock 21 January 2026 • 4 min read
Hope amid conflict: Milking cows on a Ukrainian farm during wartime
Dairy

Hope amid conflict: Milking cows on a Ukrainian farm during wartime

A dairy farmer in Ukraine is planning to build a new 1,000-cow unit once war with Russia ends

clock 21 January 2026 • 4 min read
The smallholder farmer: The backbone of the Kenyan dairy sector
Dairy

The smallholder farmer: The backbone of the Kenyan dairy sector

Kenya was host to this year's International Federation of Agricultural Journalists World Congress, where Katie Fallon gained an insight into the country's dairy sector

clock 16 January 2026 • 7 min read
How a Cornish grazed dairy herd maximises butterfat for Rodda's creamery contract
Dairy

How a Cornish grazed dairy herd maximises butterfat for Rodda's creamery contract

The Warren family run a mixed breed herd on their Cornish unit, with quality bonuses from a local creamery contract making up a large percentage of the milk cheque

clock 14 January 2026 • 6 min read
Welsh dairy farm sees strong return on investment from new slurry system
Dairy

Welsh dairy farm sees strong return on investment from new slurry system

Investing in 9,000m3 aerated slurry lagoon with eight months storage and a floating cover has future proofed the dairy unit run by Rheinallt Harries

clock 31 December 2025 • 7 min read

 

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Meet The Editor - Katie Jones

Hailing from a family farm in Cheshire, my roots are firmly in farming and now living on a 300-cow dairy farm with my own family, I can appreciate the daily issues which affect everyone involved in the industry.

I believe the level of innovation and technology we are already seeing on dairy farms is something we should all be very positive about, as is the innovation we are likely to see in the future.

I also believe that, despite the challenges posed by the industry, there is a huge amount of passion, optimism and enthusiasm among the younger generations of dairy farmers.