Description
Sjirk Reijenga is a dairy farmer in the northern part of the Netherlands, the province Friesland. Together with a dozen other dairy farmers he delivers his milk to a milk collector for a special brand of dairy products: ’Weide Weelde’.
The brand ‘Weide Weelde’ is based on sustainable management of the grass-land to create a perfect environment for meadow birds by herb-rich grassland.
Reason for the innovation
The strategy of the farmer is based on creating a more sustainable herb-rich grassland management on his farm for meadow birds.
- Achievements: better environment for meadow birds
- Failures: modern technology is not applied
- Results: more meadow birds and an extra milk price of 2 cents per litre
Farm description
Environment
- Soil: Clay, peat
- Climate: Temperate oceanic
- Altitude: ±sea level
- Slope: flat
Grassland management
- Grazing: Yes
- Grazing management: Rotational
- Length of grazing period: 6 months/year
- Main composition grassland: Perennial ryegrass and foxtail grass
Structure
- Annual work units (AWU): 2
- Agricultural Area 95 ha UAA
- Permanent grassland 84,5 ha
- Herb-rich grassland 9,5 ha
- Wet grassland 1 ha
- Production method: Conventional
- Stock
- 173 dairy cows
- 119 young stock
- Breed Holstein-Friesian
Animal performance
- Milk production: 8100 kg/year
Why it is working
The innovation is successful on this farm because:
- the farmer has a moral passion for meadow birds.
- the area is suitable for meadow birds and herb-rich management of the grasslands.
- the extra payments for the milk as a result of the pact with similarity farmers and the milk collector. They create an added value with the branding of the dairy products.
