Got Milk? Robots Transform Dairy Farms
Cows at dairy farms across the country are receiving a new kind of udder care. With the help of robotic milkers, they’re milking and feeding themselves — no farmhands necessary.
“Milkbots” like Lely’s Astronaut A4 robotic milking system operate 24 hours a day, allowing cows to be milked when they choose to step up to the machine. It’s a service cows want. “Not being milked hurts,” Paul Shapiro, a vice president of the Humane Society tells the New York Times.
The bots, which can cost up to $250,000, are disrupting an industry that’s experiencing tremendous strain. Rising domestic demand for dairy products like Greek yogurt coupled with increasing consumption in developing countries like China makes it difficult for farmers to keep pace.
U.S. dairy farms are largely family-owned and managed, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. While the industry has seen a consistent decline in the number of producers, there’s also been a rise in the number of cows per operation, putting further strains on dairy farm labor.
When a cow steps up to a robotic milking system, her experience is a personalized one. A transponder around her neck identifies her for the system. Then brushes clean her udder, and lasers scan and map her underside. Robotic arms attach teat cups in a matter of seconds. All the while, computers track her milking speed, the quality of milk she produces, how much she’s eaten and how many steps she’s taken. The system can tailor the amount of feed she receives and the rate at which she’s milked. It uses a full history of the cow’s feeding and milking habits to give farmers a dashboard view of the entire herd’s health.
A robotic system is also efficient. On a conventional dairy farm where milking is done twice a day, replacing manual labor with the Astronaut A4 system increases production by 10 to 15 percent, according to Levy.
With the milking handled by robots, dairy farmers can spend more time managing the health of their herds or sleeping in past the rooster’s crow.
Image courtesy of Lely.