Economics of cow barns clear as mud

Intensifying the farm system to make the barn profitable often erodes the environmental benefits. Photo / File

The jury is still out on the feasibility of cow barns for New Zealand farming, according to a DairyNZ study.

Investing in a wintering barn may feel good for the farmer but it won't necessarily be profitable, according to the study.

DairyNZ senior economist Matthew Newman and AgFirst consultant Phil Journeaux, in a paper presented to the Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society's annual conference in Rotorua last week, based their analysis on five South Island farms with free stall barns.

The study showed inclusion of a barn without intensification of the farming system may reduce nitrogen losses, but at a significant cost.

"With good management and intensifying the farming system, the investment in a barn can be profitable but this is dependent on the milk price, feed costs and initial capital outlay," the study said.

Intensifying the farm system to make the barn profitable often erodes the environmental benefits.

Overall, the decision around a barn tends to be either/or.

"Either you make money out of it or you reduce the environmental footprint of the farm," Newman said. "It is difficult to achieve both."

The study showed the farmers generally invested in wintering barns for farm management reasons such as reducing pugging of paddocks, better utilisation of supplementary feed, better control of grazing management and feeding, shelter for stock during bad weather, better working conditions and to reduce the cost of wintering cows off.