Animal Husbandry

How to Successfully Run a Profitable Alpaca Farm?

A fluffy body with long legs and a long neck, then a head with big googly eyes, often crowned by a funny hairstyle – it’s the alpaca. This species of camel has been experiencing a surge in popularity in recent years, with many farms offering alpaca products and events. But how can farmers handle farming and breeding, regardless of the trends? Elisabeth Freitag manages the largest alpaca breeding farm in Germany and shares insights into the opportunities and challenges.

Using Artificial Intelligence in the field

Standfirst: A project aimed at monitoring cows at grass using artificial intelligence (AI) has given some interesting results.

A rancher champions the American bison’s enduring legacy

At the age of 65, Ed Dillinger and his family thought about setting up a bison ranch in the United States. At the Lazy Heart D-Ranch, he offers guided tours to show children and adults life on the ranch.

Using Wagyu beef to increase profits

In their pursuit of better returns on their small livestock farm, John and Nina Andersson, based outside Ängelholm in Sweden, turned to the legendary Japanese Wagyu cattle. They are known for their famous premium marbled meat, which is cherished by food connoisseurs and chefs across the world.

Making More by Brand Creation

Creating your own food brand based on your farm’s produce can be a challenging but rewarding journey, as arable farmer Thomas Björklund and other Swedish farmers can attest.

Why would you find seaweed in a farrowing house?

"You wouldn't," is usually the response you would get. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Sheep farming at the end of the world

On the Faroe Islands, you might well see a sheep before you spot another human being. But with modern dairy farming and dinners served up by the farmers themselves, more and more people are starting to realise there is more to this remote corner of the world than first meets the eye.

New life out of old soil

In eastern Croatia, between the rivers Sava and Drava, 80% of the country's agricultural products are produced. Welcome to Croatia's agricultural heartland – Slavonia.

Climate friendly cows

The cattle industry is under increasing scrutiny for its contribution to climate change, but with adversity comes innovation and agriculture has risen to the challenge by developing methane inhibiting supplements.

Making Protein out of a Feather

While conducting his field doctorate research, Dr Mohammad H A Ibrahim came across an interesting bacterium at a poultry farm in Egypt. Now it is part of a process producing high-grade feed protein and bio-degradable plastics from waste organic matter.

Crofting in the Outer Hebrides

There are few places in the British Isles as remote as the Outer Hebrides; 24 miles off the west coast of Scotland with little between them and Newfoundland, these islands are truly unique. Breathtakingly beautiful but with notoriously volatile weather, farming here is challenging – yet these resilient people are not only surviving but thriving.

Better Animal Health and more Ecology

A lot has happened on farms in recent years in terms of digital modernisation. Although it is difficult to predict where all these complex developments will lead, new options are emerging for many farms to meet future challenges.

Farming for the Prince of Wales

Being interviewed for a job by the Prince of Wales would set anyone’s nerves on edge – so when he asked David Wilson whether he would be prepared to try some biologically sustainable farming, Mr Wilson did what anyone else would do - say yes and find out what it is later.

Small island with busy summers

Søren and Helle Svennesen run the only farm on Barsø in the southern part of the Little Belt, Denmark. Summers are busy here with lots of activity and visitors, and there are challenges all year round, both inescapable and self-imposed.

Tradition and pride

The sound is both exhilarating and deafening. This is Switzerland at its traditional best: Hundreds of brown cows – complete with cow bells - returning from the alpine pasture to their winter homes, creating a festival for tens of thousands of people. Welcome to the Alpabfahrt - the Alp Descent.

Remote Monitoring for Health And Productivity

A technological revolution is changing the face of modern dairy farming in the form of a bolus that can detect temperature, activity and pH, sending early alerts of heats, calvings and illness to the producer.

Poultry farmers lead the way in antibiotic reduction

Antimicrobial resistance is a serious public health concern and livestock producers are increasingly under pressure to reduce antibiotic usage in animals. In the UK, the poultry industry is leading the way.

Turnout in the Flint Hills

Each spring truckloads of cattle from as far away as Mexico are brought to the Flint Hills, the last remnant of tallgrass prairie in North America to graze on the rich early-growth grass – a major logistics effort for farmers and forwarders.

Free farrowing – The future of British pig production?

High welfare pig production isn’t always about free-range systems. With growing demand for ethically produced but inexpensive pork, high welfare indoor systems could be the way forward for the industry.

Grazing management in the spotlight

Milk producers are under pressure from persistently low producer prices. At the same time, demand for more natural foods is rising. One solution could be to focus more on grazing management. But just "opening the cowshed door and let the cows out" is not enough.

“Know your costs and keep your focus”

Charlie Morgan, Director of Grassmaster Ltd, a grassland consultancy in the UK, gives advice on how to optimise grassland management.

“Compaction is relevant in grassland too”

Compaction is an issue that is often discussed in relation to arable land – but it can also be a problem in grassland. Olivia Cooper speaks to soil expert Philip Wright to find out more.