Today’s rapid technological development is putting farm management on a whole new level. With advanced herd management tools, it is possible to better monitor the herds and improve the efficiency of milk production.

With the aim of raising awareness in advanced dairy farming technologies and establishing networks with the leading service providers, CARD AgroService CJSC facilitated a three-day study tour to DeLaval, Sweden. The tour was for the RoA Deputy Minister of Agriculture Mr. Robert Makaryan, lead farmer Mr. Vahagn Arsenyan from the Vayots Dzor region and a board member of Ashtarak Kat Dairy Plant, Mr. Hayk Apoyan.

The two-day program included visits to the DeLaval Exhibition Hall where consultant, Mr. Stefan Bergstrand, introduced the Armenian representatives to the advanced technologies that included solutions for milking, animal comfort and stalling. The DeLaval Hamra farm representatives showed the Voluntary Milking System units (VMS), loose housing barn and the DeLaval Factory where the assembly line of the VMS is situated. It is worth to mention, that assembling one such robotic system (VMS) takes less than an hour, whereas after assembling, the system undergoes a thorough checking taking more than two days.

On-site visits to Nackunga Tied-Up Farm and Angeby Loose Farm were aimed at understanding the operational benefits and possible risks associated with using the advanced technologies.

A meeting was held with Karin Ostensson, the Head of the International Student Department of Lovsta Research Center at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Potential knowledge exchange visit opportunities between the Armenian farmers and/or specialists and the research center were discussed.  Lovsta is one of Europe’s most modern facilities for education and research on cows, pigs and poultry farming.

The delegation was also given a demonstration of the state of the art technology designed and patented by DeLaval. The revolutionary system, Herd Navigator, in use from 2013, stands out for its capacities: by milk sampling and analysis, the system provides online information on animal health and reproduction status. This allows the control and prevention of reproduction and metabolic disorders as well as heat detection with the effectiveness not available before. More importantly, it enables the prevention of the Ketosis.