Several meetings and conferences are held in conjunction with the Pacific Agriculture Show. Events related to dairy producers include the BC Dairy EXPO seminar, Agri-Energy and Waste Management forum, and BC Dairy EXPO farm tours.
BC Dairy EXPO seminar
The themes for the 47th annual BC Dairy EXPO Seminar are animal handling and care and dairy facility ventilation. The seminar is organized by the Dairy Industry Research and Education Committee (DIREC), which functions under the umbrella of the BC Dairy Association (BCDA) and includes producers as well as representatives from the feed industry, veterinary practice and the provincial government.
The seminar will be held on Thursday, Jan. 29, at the Tradex in Abbotsford. A $20 registration fee includes entrance to the Pacific Agriculture Show and dairy seminar, lunch and copies of any seminar proceedings. Registration begins at 9 a.m. with the seminar starting in the BMO Dairy Room at 10 a.m. The event’s schedule is:
10 a.m. Welcome and opening remarks
Chairman Tom Droppo, British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture, Abbotsford
10:05 a.m.
HARP-DD pilot test results for digital dermatitis control in BC dairy herds
Dr. Steve Mason, principal, AgroMedia International Inc., in Calgary, Alberta, is an independent contractor who continues to work on several dairy industry projects despite the fact he has retired twice.
Mason’s current contract work is focused on dairy cattle hoof health with an emphasis on digital dermatitis in terms of data collection, monitoring and control programs.
Mason is also an adjunct professor in veterinary medicine at the University of Calgary where he is involved with several research projects that address cow comfort, hoof health and extension communication.
10:20 a.m.
Part 1 – Intro to dairy stockmanship: Safe, humane, efficient, science-based dairy cattle handling
Don Höglund, MS, DVM, is an adjunct associate professor teaching applied large animal behaviour and dairy cattle stockmanship at North Carolina State University – College of Veterinary Medicine and at Virginia Tech University.
His two-day to two-week courses concentrate on safe, humane, efficient, science-based large animal-handling techniques for practice and producer applications.
Höglund owns and operates Dairystockmanship.com where he and his staff present on low-energy stock handling at conventions and on-farm for ownership, management, students and staff.
11 a.m.
Ventilation to maintain peak production
Raymond Funk, dairy ventilation specialist, is involved in sales and marketing at Penner Farm Services in Blumenort, Manitoba. His position is market development and new product development with a specialty in ventilation design in dairy, poultry and hog facilities.
In his 24-year career, Raymond has spent countless hours in barns designing, calibrating, troubleshooting and tweaking ventilation systems.
Funk will discuss heat stress criteria, conditions that commonly occur and options to mitigate them. He will present numerous things that he has implemented successfully in prairie dairy farms to keep production from decreasing drastically during hot weather.
The focus will be on tunnel ventilation and cooling systems as well as insulating and general barn design with respect to air quality.
11:45 a.m.
Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) Farm Sustainability Award
Presentation made by David Janssens, British Columbia representative to DFC
11:50 a.m.
Part 2 – Intro to dairy stockmanship: Safe, humane, efficient, science-based dairy cattle handling
Don Höglund, MS, DVM, and adjunct associate professor and animal handling expert from Raleigh, North Carolina
12:30 p.m.
BC dairy producers’ luncheon
Located in the Scotiabank tent, this year’s luncheon menu will include an expanded and more nutritious selection of items compared to previous years. The luncheon will include soup, a choice of two salads, a choice of four sandwiches, a dessert and freshly brewed coffee and herbal teas.
It is available only to those who paid the registration fee and can show proof of purchase.
For more information on the seminar, contact DIREC committee member Tom Droppo or (604) 556-3144.
Agri-Energy and Waste Management forum
Learn about on-farm anaerobic digestion in British Columbia and how this technology can positively impact your farm at the 2015 Agri-Energy and Waste Management forum, Jan. 30-31 at the Tradex in Abbotsford.
A day-long seminar on Friday, Jan. 30 in the BMO Room begins with background information on British Columbia’s newest on-farm anaerobic digester at Seabreeze Farm, which is followed by a session on local and international anaerobic digester adoption and technological advancements.
The afternoon seminars focus on the environmental farm plan, nutrient and waste management opportunities, and pyrolysis opportunities and challenges.
An annual legal and regulatory review will begin the day on Saturday, Jan. 31, in the Direct Solutions Room. Then participants will board a bus to visit Seabreeze Farm.
The farm’s anaerobic digester will convert 24,000 tonnes of manure and off-farm organics each year into more than two million cubic meters of pipeline-quality natural gas as well as other valuable co-products.
The Seabreeze Farm site visit will include a BBQ lunch, coffee and tea. Anyone wishing to visit the farm must sign up to book his or her place on the bus, as no parking will be available on-site. All buses will leave from in front of Tradex at noon on Jan. 31, returning to the same location at 4:30 p.m. Sign up before Jan. 12 to receive a discount.
To register or for more details, visit Pacific Agriculture Show.
BC Dairy EXPO farm tours
The following five farms and the University of the Fraser Valley are participants in the 2015 BC Dairy EXPO farm tours on Wednesday, Jan. 28. The tours are conducted as open houses with visiting hours noted for each stop.
Lunch will be available from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Kampvale Farms and Starlane Dairy. Owners, building contractors and equipment suppliers will be on hand to answer questions.
Agriculture Centre of Excellence
University of the Fraser Valley
Chilliwack
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The University of the Fraser Valley’s Agriculture Centre of Excellence at its Chilliwack campus at Canada Education Park includes a barn, greenhouse and associated infrastructure constructed to LEED (Leadership Energy and Environmental Design) standards. The Centre is available to provide academic resources to industry, including research, industry services, education and training.
The demonstration barn incorporates individual compartments for livestock (dairy, poultry, swine, equine) and will provide opportunities for hands-on practical experience and research for seven types of animal husbandry.
The dairy training facility includes a custom-built, fully functional single milking stall with the latest milk metering, cow identification and activity system. The system is connected to herd management software for training students.
Also included in this project is a 6-foot-by-20-foot rotary drum for composting food waste and dairy waste material. This system includes a scaled auger mixer with a conveyor to fill the drum.
Beaverbrook Farms Inc.
Vic and Jim Toop
Chilliwack
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The primary driver for Beaverbrook Farms to go to a two-robot milking setup was to reduce labour costs. Incorporated with the robots are rumination and heat detection, as well as butterfat and protein monitoring.
A second milk line was installed for calf milk transport. It can feed the pasteurizer and calf feeding system. The 52-foot-by-114-foot extension to the drive-through barn incorporates elements that provide superior cow comfort and allow for efficient cattle flow.
It is equipped with automatic separation gates, cow brushes and an automatic feed pusher. The farm also features a new office, vet room and dairy/equipment room.
Kampvale Farms
Harold and Diane Van de Kamp
Chilliwack
10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Kampvale Farms embarked on a new building project recently to replace outdated barns where the stalls were too small and the floors were too slippery. The new facilities for 70 milking cows plus heifers optimize feed rationing using robotics.
The robotic feeding system is the first of its kind in British Columbia. It manages TMR automatically for seven groups of animals, combining corn silage, grass silage, hay, grain and commodities.
The facilities improve animal walking space and cow comfort markedly by including spacious stalls and two-chambered waterbeds for stall bases. Site and barn layouts are designed to incorporate pasture feeding options for the summer.
The barn is also equipped with alley scrapers with a flush-flume system at the back of the barn that incorporates a pump to transfer manure to the steel manure tank providing six months of storage.
Rosebrin Farms Ltd.
Brad and Lisa Roseboom
Chilliwack
9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Rosebrin Farms has been using sand for bedding since the original barns on this site were built 10 years ago. The recently incorporated sand settling system allows Rosebrin to reuse 80 to 90 percent of the sand at savings of $2,000 to $2,500 per month.
Parlour water is used to wash the sand, which is stored after recovery in a covered building for one to two weeks. A new engineered concrete pit with the ability to accommodate a roof was built as part of the overall project. Other features include a new 220 freestall barn with LED lighting.
Starlane Dairy Ltd.
Tom, Katrina and Lauryn Maljaars
Chilliwack
9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Starlane Dairy’s primary goal was to build a dairy barn that prioritizes cow comfort while operating efficiently. The farm is currently milking 30 cows and has the capability to expand to 50 cows.
Farm features include a robotic milking system, a new three-row, drive-through barn with high walls and clearspan trusses, and a manure pit with four 10-foot channels under the back 40 feet of the barn.
Westar Holsteins
Bob and Marcie Matzek
Chilliwack
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Westar Holsteins incorporated a variety of features to ensure animal comfort and environmental sustainability. The orientation of the new 60-cow barn maximizes natural cross-ventilation and minimizes the incidence of direct sunlight on animals or feed.
Fans in the roof cupolas encourage further airflow. Westar did not experience milk production drops during the extended hot weather experienced during the summer of 2014.
Manure storage incorporated underneath the suspended slab floors minimizes the introduction of precipitation into the manure pit and provides an ample 12 months of storage, allowing the farm to spread manure at optimum times of the year. Other farm features include a robotic milking station, gel mats, rubber flooring and alley scrapers. PD
For further tour information, contact John Luymes, farm structures engineer at the Ministry of Agriculture in Abbotsford or (604) 556-3114.
—Compiled from promotional materials developed for each event
