Dual purpose cows are the ideal breed An extended grazing window and hardy breed are the key elements that make the Ty Isa dairy herd at Gwaenysgor in Clwyd such a success for brothers Colin and Alan Wright. Ty Isa is home to the UK’s largest herd of Meuse Rhine Issel (MRI) cattle, with 402 milkers plus followers adding up to 695 animals in total.

The Wright brothers farm a total of 642 acres and first introduced MRI genetics into their British Friesian herd in 1982.

“We were looking for a way of increasing milking cow longevity without compromising too much on milk yield,” Colin Wright describes. “We weren’t keen on going down the typical Holstein route because we didn’t feel that their genetics could give us the endurance we were looking for.

“The MRI breed is much more durable and they do really well outside, even in the wet and windy conditions that the North Wales coast is notorious for.”

The cows at Ty Isa are turned out to grass as early as February, and typically stay outside until well into November, even during the wettest of years. “Being able to make the most of such a long grazing period means that we can keep everything else as simple as possible,” Mr Wright adds.

The milking cows are fed a simple diet of grass and grass silage which is supplemented by a parlour fed compound ration that is specially formulated by Wynnstay’s senior ruminant specialist Lesley Marsh, and adjusted throughout the year to provide a balanced and consistent diet.

“The key to the herd’s success is the no nonsense approach that Colin and Alan have adopted,” Miss Marsh explains. “The MRI cow is extremely durable which means that the farm has been able to write its own set of rules. There is no need for a diet feeder, and the herd performs really well without the need for any maize or wholecrop silage.”

The milkers are fed twice a day in the parlour using a high energy compound feed that is based on sugar beet, wheat and high quality soya protein, providing 16% crude protein in the summer and 18% in the winter. The ration is adjusted to balance the grass based diet and is fed on a flat rate system according to the stage of lactation. Grass silage and hay are also fed to buffer the diet later in the grazing season and during the winter.

The herd’s average yield is 6,000 litres per cow, but that includes 94 heifers which make up almost 25% of the herd. “We’re aiming to produce an average of 6,500 litres per cow,” Mr Wright explains, “and with some of the high yielders already reaching in excess of 9,000 litres, we are well on our way to achieving that goal.”

The Meuse Rhine Issel breed is well known as a dual-purpose breed, with bull calves and cull cows making good money – a welcome supplement to the farm’s milk income. “We sell our bull calves to two local rearing units which are currently paying £180 for animals at 10 days old,” Mr Wright explains. With bull calves providing such an important income stream, and heifer calves also in demand as a result of the breed’s increasing popularity, it is essential that each animal is given the best start.

The calves are fed colostrum at birth and are soon moved onto four litres of Wynngold Rich Cream milk powder which is bucket fed by Mrs Wright, Colin and Alan’s mother, twice a day to provide a more consistent ration.

Wynnstay’s Grow Krunch coarse mixture is then introduced at 10 days to promote rumen development. “A newly born calf’s rumen is the size of a thumbnail, but it needs to grow to the size of a 200 litre drum in order for an adult cow to yield a profitable amount of milk,” Miss Marsh advises. “It is therefore essential that roughage is introduced at a really young age so that the rumen can begin to expand as soon as possible”.

The Ty Isa herd calves all year round and supplies milk at 4.4% butterfat and 3.6% protein to South Caernarfon Creameries where it is used to make cheese. “The MRI breed gives us three distinct advantages,” Mr Wright explains. “Firstly it gives us a hardy cow with good feet, legs and outstanding longevity.” In fact, the herd still contains a number of first and second generation crosses and some of the oldest cows were born in 1992 and are still performing well. This helps to keep cow replacements rates at an exceptionally low six percent per year and allows the brothers to take advantage of the healthy market for MRI heifers.

“Secondly, we can produce high quality milk from a very simple and easy to manage grass based system. And thirdly, the breed’s dual purpose nature means that we can make decent money from our bull calves and cull cows. For our purposes, it is the ideal breed.”

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