Forage diversification and feed self-sufficiency on a dairy farm located on the Barrois plateau

摘要

The EARL DECHAUX farm is located on the shallow day-limestone soil of the Barrois plateau in the department of Haute Marne. jointly run by two brothers at present, this family dairy farm has been handed down from father to son for three generations. The strength of the farm lies in its tight control of operational expenses and its feed autonomy. The latter is achieved by using diverse forage types and a wide range of tools: optimising grazing periods, ensuring forage stock via mowing, and reducing forage consumption. To fortify the forage supply, the farm uses combinations of meslin, cash crops, temporary grasslands, and multi-species mixtures. These strategic choices allow the farmers of EARL DECHAUX to more confidently face climatic events and, more specifically, long periods of drought. The milk from this farm comes from a herd of three-way crossbred cows and is used to produce PDO Brie de Meaux cheese. The milking facility is run intensively, producing 495,000 litres of milk from 77 hectares of primary forage area and 20 hectares of grain crops that are partially consumed on farm.