Animal welfare

Dairy farmers care for their animals day in and day out with great care, so that they grow as old as possible in a healthy way. In 2022, this resulted in our dairy farmers’ cows living 6 years, 1 month and 24 days on average, which is 29 days (1.3%) longer than in 2021. This result is comparable to the national average of 6 years, 1 month and 25 days.

"We have a dairy farm with milking robots. For 6 years we have been a supplier to Vreugdenhil Dairy Foods, which works well for us. The short lines with the factory really appeal to us. We think animal welfare is important. Our cows are grazed, we have deep litter bedding stalls and we try to get the cows to exhibit as much natural behaviour as possible in the barn.”

Laurens van der Gun - Dairy Farmer

Preventive measures
In order to continuously improve cow welfare, our dairy farmers have been using the KoeKompas tool for several years now. This is a tool that helps them track animal health and welfare. Together with a vet, the dairy farmer looks at different aspects that affect cow health and welfare, so as to identify strengths and points for improvement. This gives dairy farmers greater insight into potential risks at their farm, so that they can then take preventive measures. In the sustainability programme, rewards are based on the results from all this data.

Calf welfare
Improving calf care is also part of our sustainability programme. Dairy farmers use the KalfOK score to monitor calf welfare. Based on 12 indicators, cattle farmers gain insight into the quality of calf care and any points for improvement in their calf rearing practices.

Outdoor grazing
In 2022, our outdoor grazing rate was 89.6%. This is a slight drop compared to 2021 (91.1%), putting our dairy farmers well beyond the Dutch national target of 81.2%. For us, too, the outdoor grazing rate is well above the Dutch average of 83.9%. The bonus for outdoor grazing has been high for several years now, making it attractive for farmers to switch to outdoor grazing.

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