Herd Level Yield Gap Analysis in a Local Scale Dairy Farming System: A Practical Approach to Discriminate between Nutritional and Other Constraining Factors

Abstract

This study performed a yield gap analysis to help farmers understand whether their constraints were mainly due to nutritional factors or management and health issues. Twenty-nine farms were periodically evaluated. Milk yield (MY), dry matter intake (DMI), total mixed ration (TMR) composition and homogeneity index (HI), TMR digestibility, income over feed cost (IOFC), and MY summer–winter ratio (SWR) were collected. Farms were divided and compared according to the average annual MY: Low (L), Medium (M) and High (H), characterised by <31.1, 31.1–36.7 and >36.7 kg/head/day. An ANOVA mixed model and a stepwise regression to assess the relationship between nutritional variables and MY were run. H farms showed higher IOFC (p < 0.001), DMI (p = 0.006), DDM (p < 0.001), digestible crude protein (DCP, p = 0.019), HI (p = 0.09), SWR (p = 0.041) and lower HI coefficient of variation (p = 0.04). The conversion of DDM into milk was higher in H and M farms. Stepwise regression for MY selected DDM and CP (R2 = 0.716, p < 0.05). M farms were mainly constrained by nutritional factors, whereas L farms were also affected by other factors such as those related to management and health.