The British Sheep Dairying Association

Why join BSDA?

Index

Introduction - Sheep Dairying
Suitable Ewes
Methods of starting up in the industry
Equipment
Buildings
Regulations
Marketing
Costs
Help and Advice
Conclusion
Equipment manufacturers for milking parlours
Further Reading

To join BSDA click here for the membership application form (PDF)

Sheep Dairying is an attractive, low capital alternative enterprise for Young Farmers, Sheep Farmers or Cow Dairy Farmers who want to be independent. It is very ecologically oriented and can be almost completely organic by virtue of the pasture based feeding systems usually adopted in the UK. Sheep Dairy Farmers should either come from or have acquired a dairying background, be prepared for hard work, with a high standard of management and be sufficiently capitalised in the beginning to be able to survive while they learn the techniques required and get their marketing organised.

From the milk alone a viable unit is about 250-300 ewes with a lactation average of at least 250 litres should provide an income equivalent to that of a skilled farm worker. Lower numbers milked or greater profit can be made if value is added to the milk in the form of yogurt, cheese or ice cream, or it is part of several other enterprises or the products are sold through a Farm Shop. However it is strongly advised that units of around 400-500 ewes should be considered for producing milk only and milking equipment bought to accomodate such a number. This may well include a rotary parlour, rapid exit parlour or one of the newer types of commercial sheep parlours unless there is plenty of spare cheap labour. It should also be understood that milking all the year round is very possible and preferred by most processors.

Suitable ewes

More information on choosing suitable Dairy Ewes to be added soon.

Only high health status animals should be used to start up with.

It is advised to only breed 20%-25% of the best of a Friesland flock pure since extreme meat rams will help to produce meat lambs from Friesland ewes. It is important to recognise the "Cheese YIELD" available from sheep as compared with cow or goat milk. High total solids milk should be sold at a higher price.

Methods of starting up in the industry

Under the umbrella of an existing enterprise or as part of a variety of enterprises. It is ideal for a farm open to the public or with Farm Gate sales.
Milking the best of a commercial meat lamb producing flock to gain experience and use a top Dairy ram on the flock to provide future dairy ewes.
Buy in a flock of dairy ewes, not more than 80 to 100 in the first year.
Set up as a product maker and buy in milk.

Ewes can be milked:

For their milk only, lambs being taken off at birth or up to 4 days of age and artificially reared or sold. Milk all sold to a processor, delivered twice a week, held in a bulk tank below 4°C.
After they have reared their lambs to 30-35 days. Lambs should never be taken off ewes between 5 and 20 days of age due to the unnecessary stress it causes.

Equipment

A simple platform with or without a yoking system and a bucket plant is the cheapest way to start. Other types of parlours are available to suit every need. Pipeline installations for 6 to 60 ewe standings are available as well as rotaries and other labour saving sophisticated parlours. Cooling and freezing facilities will also be required together with some way to transport the milk either by tanker, bulk tank on a pick-up truck or some other arrangement.

NB It is recommended to have a milking system, so designed, that it does not take longer than 2 hours per milking for any number of ewes.

For product making all the equipment needed must conform to the Food Safety Act 1990, help with costings can be obtained from various members of BSDA.

Milk recording equipment is also worthwhile, and for use in conjunction with this BSDA have now developed a computerised dairy sheep management programme available for bigger flocks.

Buildings

An umbrella building with purpose built milk handling "rooms" is ideal. Adapted old buildings, poly tunnels or cladded buildings can be utilised for housing sheep and lambs. Milk hygiene must be kept in mind at all times. The main considerations for the parlour are plenty of light, dust free buildings, impermeable walls and floors that can be pressure hosed, good drainage from the parlour and no contact between the bedded area and the milking area. No contact either with silage or other loose foodstuffs for fear of Listeria monocytogenes or yeasts and moulds. Attention should be paid to the prevailing wind and other sources of airborne contamination.

Individual advice may be needed on some aspects of all the above as each farm is different. Especially in ewe management, since high yielding dairy sheep require better quality feed and care than meat lamb producing sheep. Udder cleansing, unlike cows, is needed for clean milk in the UK and coping with multiparous ewes involves extra help at lambing and early lactation. Good airy buildings for lamb rearing are essential as Frieslands particularly, can be prone to pneumonia.

Regulations

Sheep milk comes within the scope of the Food Act (1990). The milking parlour must be inspected by an ADAS officer before milking commences. It will then be inspected yearly. It is illegal to sell milk or products without being registered. Your local Environmental Health Officer may require to inspect all areas used to handle or process milk. Further inspections will take place from time to time.

BSDA have set strict hygiene standards for sheep milk for sale. There are Codes of Practice available for England and Wales as well as Scotland and the new EU regulations which have come into force are based mainly on these Codes. The hygienic quality of the milk must be regularly tested as well as the products made from it. A hazard analysis programme must be in place with a good understanding of risk assessment.

Marketing

Sheep Dairying is essentially an entrepreneurial industry, but help and advice on entering the industry as well as about marketing is available to all members of the B.S.D.A. who also have a Technical Advisor who is an expert sheep nutritionist as well as giving essential advice on wormers, antibiotics and other problems which may affect the milk. B.S.D.A. have also taken on a P.R.Consultancy to help with sales.

There are two main outlets:

Sell the milk direct to a product maker on contract.
Make a product like yogurt, cheese or ice cream and sell that. Some milk can be sold by the pint, fresh or frozen, to shops and allergy sufferers.

Finding markets for milk is often difficult at first. Demand can be greater than supply on a year round basis. Larger cheese factories are taking sheep milk on board to add to their range of cheeses and existing processors are looking for extra milk to service their increased sales. Information on these markets is available from the B.S.D.A., but members are urged to do some research themselves.

Skill, imagination and superb presentation is required to market Sheep Milk Products at the price range they deserve.

Costs

A Gross margin ranging from £75 to in excess of £150/ewe can be achieved milking a viable unit of ewes with a minimum average of 250 litres/ewe/lactation. Lower yields and more sheep will not provide the same income since the cost of feed and housing will be the same with less milk production to off set. Winter milk production is, of course, more expensive, but usually carries a premium price. Although it can vary through the year, bulk milk is selling currently between 70p and 90p per litre provided it has acceptable total solids and is cleanly produced.

The main expenses are in feed costs at £80/ewe/year, labour and electricity. All information relevant to the industry is published in SHEEP DAIRY NEWS which is available to members online.

Costings

Source: Anthony Hyde, FRICS, FBIAC, ARAgS, July 2008

			Per Ewe
Performance Levels (yield)		Low	Average		High
Milk Yield (litres)		175	275		350
		£	£		£
Milk Value (1)		157.50	247.50		315.00
Value of Lambs (2)		54.00	54.00		54.00
Cull Ewes (3)		3.50	3.50		3.50
Wool		1.50	1.50		1.50

Output		216.50	306.50		374.00

Variable Costs:
	Concentrates (4)		150.00
	Miscellaneous (inc. Vet & Med)		17.50
	Forage Variable Costs (5)		21.00

Total Variable Costs			188.50

Gross Margin per Ewe		28.00	118.00		185.50

Ewes (plus. replacements) per ha (acre)			11.25	(4.5)

Gross Margin per Forage Hectare		315	1327		2087
Gross Margin per Forage Acre		127	537		845

Notes

1. Price 90p per litre at farmgate (range from 80-105p per litre).

2. Lambing %175 . Assume a 300 Friesland ewe flock. Retain 60 ewe lambs for flock replacements. Sell 385
finished lambs reared from 2 days old (inc.15% mortality) at £42. Meat type terminal sires used cross-bred lambs values increase to £65.

3. Cull ewes: 18/22% culled at £17.50/head. (including mortality)

4 Concentrates. Milking ewes: 200 days at 1.50 kg/head/day, 100 days at 0.5kg/head/day; cost £250/tonne.
Ewe lamb replacements and artificially reared finished lambs at £62 per head.

5 Forage costs.Quality silage: 1 tonne/milking ewe (or hay equivalent).
Grazing: early grass in March/April; good grazing on leys or pasture; similar for dry stock and lambs.

Additional Points

Fixed Costs per Ewe. Labour (paid) £73;Power & Machinery £22; Property Costs £12;Others £13; Total excluding Finance & Rent £120.

Capital Costs of Equipment. Complete milking unit for 300 ewes(including yokes, bulk tank,dairy equipment and installation)
£12 = £25,000. A small 50 ewe unit can be put together for under £10,000. None of these costs include building works.

Help and advice

The Council of the British Sheep Dairying Association will advise members personally or through Sheep Dairy News on milk testing, milk recording, progeny testing, A.I., Embryo transfer, worming, mastitis control, use of antibiotics with withdrawal periods necessary for milk used for human consumption, feed rations, dipping, all aspects of product making, advertising, supplying factual data to use in handouts etc. They also arrange Study Tours each year to see other sheep dairying enterprises both in the UK and abroad which, in the past, have saved members a great deal of unnecessary expense in setting up and have gained them invaluable experience.

Various well established members are prepared to discuss their costings with new members which is most helpful for those starting up, but do not expect to get this help for free. The Secretary is available on the end of a telephone during normal working hours to provide basic information or refer you to the best source of help for your particular problem.

Conclusion

Excluding land, buildings etc, a start-up cost of between £25,000 and £50,000 should allow an enterprising farmer to get straight into Sheep Dairying. Of course, going in slowly will cost much less. A small rotary parlour costs about £60,000, but the saving in time and labour easily justifies the expense. The cost of ewes varies from year to year, but good ewes are very prolific and a basic flock of say 80 ewes in the first year will produce enough ewe lambs to build up the flock to full strength. Strict selection by careful milk recording is always needed in the first few years. Our own computer programme is ideal for this purpose. Always check out the health status of any farm you buy from.

Equipment Manufacturers for milking parlours

Alfa Laval Agri, Oakfield, Cwmbran, Gwent. Tel.01633 838071
Fullwoods Ltd, Ellesmere, Shropshire. Tel. 01691 622391
Gascoigne Melotte (UK) Ltd, Rankine Road, Basingstoke, Hants. Tel. 01256 394300
Westfalia Separator Ltd, Old Wolverston, Milton Keynes. Tel. 01908 313366