Netherlands dairy farmer and Global Dairy Farmers president Ad van Velde was a guest speaker at the Dairy Research Foundation Symposium at Camden in November, where he offered fascinating insights into his home country's dairy industry.
Mr van Velde owns and operates Hunsingo Dairy in the northern part of the Netherlands, where he milks a herd of 240 Holstein and Holstein/Fleckvieh cows three times a day.
Hunsingo's herd size is double the national average of about 110 cows.
Located only two kilometres from the North Sea, cows graze on pasture in the summer and in a barn with fresh grass, combined with maize, in the winter.
Hunsingo produces 68 per cent of its feed protein requirements, aiming to increase that to 75pc.
A strong focus at Hunsingo is on fertility, young stock and fodder while embracing innovations to improve roughage.
Heifers are joined at 12 months of age using sexed semen, with the heifers calving at 21-22 months of age.
"I think we grow our young stock in a different way compared to Australia," Mr van Velde said.
"In our case, the calves are housed indoors. We feed top-quality roughage, and during only the first few months of life, some concentrate.
"We start with four litres of colostrum half an hour after birth, followed by a few days of milk off the mother and then pasteurised milk until 10 weeks of age, plus a kind of calf muesli," Mr van Velde said.
"Milk goes up to 10 litres daily at six to eight weeks.
"If a calf is born alive, she or he never dies, except for one or two for a significant reason."
In 2006, Mr van Velde formed the trading company NoorderlandMelk, which later became a cooperative with a board of five dairy farmers and about 170 members, of which he has been the CEO for nine years.
The co-op is relatively small and flexible logistically, delivering milk to one large and several smaller clients.
"It is a co-operative how a co-op should be, like a family," Mr van Velde said.
"We co-operate with crop farmers and grow many new pasture varieties - alfalfa (lucerne), fodder beets, etc.
"They grow crops for Hunsingo, and in turn, we grow potatoes for them and share the dairy's manure with other farmers.
"It means circularity and a win-win for both."
The use of antibiotics in cattle is prohibited in the Netherlands.
Farmers receive a premium of up to six to seven euro cents a litre of milk for non-genetically modified and nil antibiotic use, compared with the standard price, which is currently about 44 to 46 euro cents a litre, excluding tax.
"The forecasts look good," Mr van Velde said.
"Our biggest market is Germany; you have to realise that if we speak about Western Europe, it is an internal market with a huge number of inhabitants."
Land and labour
Land values in the Netherlands are high - from 35,000 to 125,000 euros per hectare in Hunsingo Dairy's region.
"We are an extremely wealthy country, and people make a lot of money," Mr van Velde said.
The uptake of dairying as a career among young people in the Netherlands is a hot topic of conversation, similar to that in Australia.
"Modern, developed farms have a successor, but not all," Mr van Velde said.
"Working on a farm is okay, but not very popular."
Hunsingo employs two part-time workers who earn about 30 euros an hour gross, which equates to 17-18 euros net.
"Wages are going up, and therefore, automatic milking and feeding are becoming more popular," Mr van Velde said.
The Netherlands on the global stage
Mr van Velde said the Netherlands takes a leading role in the global dairy market as an exporting country.
"We have to because we export 65pc to 70pc of our dairy products," he said.
"Our cattle are free of big diseases, and we don't have a vaccination program in the Netherlands, which is important for our position as an exporting country.
"The Netherlands has perfect climatic conditions for agriculture; we have good soil for high-value products such as seed potatoes, onions, sugar beets, (flower) bulbs, spices, and so on."
The Netherlands exports high-end dairy products, such as cheese and infant formula, to China.
The Netherlands uses 30 per cent of the dairy it produces for domestic consumption among its population of 18 million; 45pc is exported into the EU market and 25pc outside of the EU (China, the US, and the UK).
"We have a responsibility. Of course, it's business providing food, but we have a responsibility to Africa and other countries," Mr van Velde said.
"Recent export data comparing the first half of 2023 to the first half of 2022, in the EU states we are still the largest dairy exporter."
The Netherlands produces 13.8 billion litres of milk annually, of which cheese makes up 58pc, milk powder 13pc, milk/other products 8pc, condensed milk 5pc, butter/butter oil 3pc, and other 13pc.
Dairy generates 6-7pc of the Netherlands' GDP.
The organic market in the Netherlands is 4pc and remains stagnant; Mr van Velde said organic farming operations in Europe are closing because there is no viable market.
Mr van Velde believes a small country, such as the Netherlands, must be in a pole position regarding innovations, efficiency and sustainability.
"We need to support each other and exchange ideas and best practices; we are colleagues," he said.
"If you are a farmer in The Netherlands, you have to be in the top 10pc of farmers in the country.
"You must be a good farmer and an entrepreneur to succeed - strategic and efficient.
"The difference between the top and bottom farms is 25 euro cents a litre of milk.
"When we started this benchmarking 10 years ago, I thought we would all come together at a certain point, but there is still a big difference."
Rules and regulations
Mr van Velde points to "the environmental space" in some areas of the Netherlands as a hurdle for farmers.
As of 2023, farmers must have buffer strips one to three metres wide along all waterways, which cannot be used for grazing, to keep canals clean and open.
"Calculated across the whole country, it is a huge amount of hectares that is lost, and more rules and regulations are on the way," Mr van Velde said.
Many regions in the Netherlands have farms near nature reserves and forests.
"Rules, laws, and regulations are changing continuously," Mr van Velde said.
Mr van Velde predicts there will be fewer farms as land for agriculture becomes unavailable, which will decrease the number of animals in the Netherlands by 10pc, all while the demand for food and dairy increases.
"It is unpredictable, but the mindset is changing a bit," he said.
"People and consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the value of food and farmers."
Previously, farmers were permitted to use 250kg of nitrogen per hectare from cow manure, but newly introduced regulations will see that decrease to 170kg/N/ha by 2026.
"The use of chemical fertiliser and manure, especially the use of manure, is reducing yearly," Mr van Velde said.
"The impact is huge, and it's all controlled and measured.
"Now we have to sell the extra manure to crop farmers.
"In my region, it is possible but expensive. However, there are certain regions in the Netherlands where it isn't possible.
"Managing the sentiment and feeling of society is challenging for farmers."
The Netherlands is used intensively for agriculture, with a maximum of 23,000kg of milk solids produced per hectare on high-quality, productive land.
"This week, the Food and Agriculture Organisation published a new report about food production, production efficiency, and so on," Mr van Velde said.
"It mentioned the Netherlands as a very efficient food producer, an example for the rest of the world.
"It creates new discussions in our country."
