Making The Leap To Organic Dairy Production (Continued from Page 17) 200 days of grazing for our milking herd and often a month more than that for our dry cows and many of the heifers. During winter, the pasture environment can’t be duplicated, but the same basic tenets apply to keep the cows in a low stress environment with lots of fresh air, daily exercise, and high quality food supplementing their diet with immune system boosters such as kelp, Vitamin E, and selenium. When an animal does get sick and needs treat ment, options available include homeopathy, herbal/plant-based products, and / immune system supports such as vitamins and colostrum whey products. Management of mastitis without the use of antibi otics again rests on ensuring that animals have a strong, healthy immune system and good sanita tion. Frequent monitoring of individual cow somatic cell counts and the culturing of individual cows to identify both problem cows and problem or ganisms are two useful tools for organic farmers. Organic farmers need to substitute tight manage ment in place of the use of antibiotics. I know it is possible, for we have gone from a somatic cell count of around 400,000 when we started organic produc Paul B. PACER Self-Priming Centrifugal PUMPS For Agriculture We Stock A COMPLETE LINE OF UM/Sm spray products A * Nozzles ■ » • Balls Valves/ Solenoid t ir Valves BALL VALVES CAM COUPLERS difiMfrife. .. In Stock jHL 1/2” to 3" IP P * ■ ' '• & <g. SKtHa DIAPHRAGM DEMAND pump rsv PAUL B. ZIMMERMAN, INC, Manufacturers - Distributors so Rti,. ... mtmm tion to averaging around 200,000 four years later. Marketing A most basic piece of information that a farm should secure near the start of the transition period is to ensure that once certified, they will have a market for their milk. Some farms have started on-farm processing or have found an alternative market, but these options are not easily or readily available. There are some geographic areas that are currently too far from the organic milk pick-up routes and there just is no market for the milk from farms in such areas. Since it is costly to go through organic transition, it is important to have assurance, in writing if possi ble, that the intended milk buyer will indeed pick up your milk once transitioned. Given the unpredicti bility of the growth of the organic dairy market, it often is hard for the buyer to know for sure when additional milk is needed. They may not be able to give a letter of intent until it is time to start the last 90 day, 100-percent organic feeding phase. Farmers need to find, or already have, profes sional consultants (i.e. veterinarian, nutritionist, etc.) who can work within the confines of the or ganic standards. As with anything new, it is also (Turn to Page 20) SPRAYING EQUIPMENT « .ft POLY-TANKS «*kfc- v aMH^SL 4HP 25 To 3300 Gal. Vertical and Horizontal JHyjM-o rumps KiHi Blue nEgryja^ Line™ ■■ W For roller pumps centrifugal pumps diaphragm pumps piston pumps and plunger pumps no one offers you more quality choices than Hypro More types More models And most of all, more quality and dependability For virtually any spraying fluid handling or pressure cleaning need you have depend on The Long Blue Line™ for genuine value Genuine Hypro pumps from your quality Hypro dealer HOURS: Mon., Thurs., Fri. 7-8:30 lues., Wed. 7-5:30 Sat. 7-4:00
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