"Less cows. Or more land." Peter Oosterhof answers a difficult question concisely and clearly. We want to know what his dairy farm in Foxwolde, Drenthe, will look like in 2040. It becomes more extensive. And that will apply to the majority of dairy farming. With a richer soil life, less nitrogen loss and CO emissions2 and with more nature in agriculture. And with dairy farmers who are in charge of their own situation, something that certainly appeals to Peter.
Until 2015 he farmed 'full throttle', the term that stands for maximization in farmland: extracting as much milk as possible from each cow by using many inputs such as fertilizers, concentrates, veterinary medicines and so on. Sometimes regulations limit how far you can go, but otherwise: without brakes. The use of all resources is not always optimal. And that is not necessary in this view. Because growing is essential, actually a dogma. If you don't grow, you won't belong in five or ten years. Upscaling and intensification may cost something, if only to stay in the race.
Revenue model
This system exceeds the carrying capacity of the environment. And it is also not a sustainable revenue model, as many experience dairy farmers. It does not provide a good income for many. Only in years with an extremely good milk price, such as in 2022, may there be enough left over. On average over the years, the costs of all those inputs rise faster than the revenues, so that only further scaling up can offer a (temporary) solution. This often means even more external financing, which is also not free. Many livestock farmers recognize the mechanism, but see no way out of it… because they feel bound hand and foot to banks and/or suppliers that (hopefully) continue to finance them.
Peter Oosterhoff
Fossil
The penny started to drop for Peter in 2015. He took a different approach based on the conviction that we must get rid of fossil raw materials in agriculture, just like in the rest of society. 'So you have to stop using artificial fertiliser, because its production costs enormous amounts of gas. The large fertilizer factories are invariably at the top of the list of major consumers of fossil fuels and of the emission of pollutants such as nitrogen," explains Oosterhof.
In fact, current dairy farming is largely comparable: grassland with a monoculture of perennial ryegrass is brought to high yields with fertilizer, cows with a one-sided predisposition for the highest milk production only achieve this with large amounts of supplementary concentrates. "That concentrate also causes enormous emissions and destruction of nature; a large part of the raw materials comes from Brazil, where rainforest has been cleared for the cultivation of soy. And of course, the large-scale transport of these protein raw materials across the oceans is also far from sustainable. "
No more grain
So much for the critical analysis. How has Peter adapted his business? On all his land (60 hectares of grassland near the farm and 30 hectares of leased nature reserve further away) he no longer spreads a grain of fertilizer. The fertilization of its soil - largely sand and peat with a few clay heads - is provided by the dairy cows, which graze outside as much as possible. His 120 animals spent 300 days in the meadow last year and went out again in mid-February this year. It is a beautiful sight: a herd with shades of color from white to red, grey, brown and black. Peter chooses to cross-breed with more meat-oriented varieties such as Fleckvieh. "That way you get a herd that can take a beating. And, more importantly, that is very good at converting grass into milk." Milk production is therefore concentrated in the months when there is a lot of fresh grass. In the winter period, the dairy farmer feeds grass silage that has been won in the leased nature reserve. "You could also call it rubbish, because it has little nutritional value," says Oosterhof. His strong cows get through the winter with it and calve early in the spring to produce milk with fresh grass.
Manure
Because the cows spend most of the year outside, they bring a lot of manure to the land. "I don't have to spread everything my cows leave in the pasture. More importantly, the manure has such a hugely positive effect on the soil." The manure flats in the grassland, which Peter sows with a herb-rich grass mixture, stimulate soil life and contribute to a higher organic matter content. "In a few years' time, we have created a soil with a much richer life, which can store more carbon and which works like a sponge for more water storage," says an enthusiastic Oosterhof.
The rich soil life is the basis for grass growth and milk production. But Oosterhof cannot do without concentrates either. He has drastically reduced the amount, to 1.250 kilograms per animal per year. The average in Dutch dairy farming is about 2.500 kilograms per cow. "I can't completely stop using concentrates, because the extra land that would be needed is too expensive."
Organic
Within just a few years, his approach proved to be in line with the rules of the game for organic farming. Oosterhof has been certified since 2018 and receives the (higher) organic milk price. "That's fine, of course, but my conviction is not eco-agriculture. I want to cooperate with nature instead of against it. Because that leads to all kinds of negative side effects, such as environmental pollution. We traditionally devise all kinds of adjustments to eliminate these. End -of-pipe solutions, which are actually treating the symptoms, but it is driving dairy farmers at ever-increasing costs, without addressing the root cause of the problem." As examples of such adjustments, Peter mentions low-emission stable floors (which in practice turn out to be not nearly as low-emission as calculated on paper), air scrubbers, manure injectors, additives and 'nitrogen crackers'. "The companies that supply this earn good money from a leaking system. On the farmer's back, because it will not help him in the end."
Lower costs
Oosterhof has escaped the rat race and feels in control of his own situation again. But can it also be done? Because he has fewer milk-type cows that receive fewer nutrients. So his milk production is lower? "Yes, but we have a good milk price". Is that sufficient? Not quite, but there is an effect that is at least as important. "Our costs are much lower than on a traditional dairy farm. Just add: no fertilizer, much less concentrate, a lower bill from the vet and I could go on and on." How has Peter's income developed since 2015, when he changed course? "All the past seven years I have had a higher income than before. So it is certainly an interesting option, although I realize that this is not for all companies."
Nature manager
He realizes that his approach amounts to a completely different way of farming. "For us, it's all about bringing natural processes into culture. Actually, I'm no longer a farmer, but a food-producing nature manager." That he is successful in this is also illustrated by the reaction of an ecologist who visited his company. "He said that there is more to experience on my land from an ecological point of view than in the nature reserve that borders our land." A nice compliment. "And in our way, management doesn't cost a lot of money, while it delivers fair and good food," adds Peter.
Interest
Although his working method is a radical departure from decades of intensification in dairy farming, Oosterhof has noticed that more and more colleagues are showing a positive interest. "Something is really moving. Even convinced full-throttle farmers are now starting to have doubts." Can the government respond to this to facilitate the transition to more nature-inclusive dairy farming? According to Oosterhof, this is much less complicated than the current hassle with nitrogen standards, nature maps and discussions about expropriation. "Choose a ban on artificial fertilizer and an upper limit on the amount of concentrate. Not mandatory, but as a condition for a reward that every dairy farmer would like: to be exempted from all new obligations that only combat symptoms and increase costs."
Solar panel
Heartfelt advice to advocates and policymakers, from a man who starts to shift more and more in his chair after an hour of talking. "Come on, let's go outside. Then I'll show you where the solution begins." We get into Oosterhof's electric cart and zip from plot to plot. In the back are a few apple trees, which he will plant today. Together with the other trees that have popped up spontaneously along the edges of the plots in recent years and are cherished by Oosterhof: shade for his cows and an extra source of biodiversity. On each plot he puts the shovel in the ground and turns over the sod. Dozens of earthworms swarm in the soil. Smiling, Peter Oosterhof looks at us. "This is what our grass grows from. Grass that we make milk from. Grass that converts sunlight into carbon, proteins and energy. There is no better solar panel than this grass."
DAIRY FARMING IN 2040
according to Peter Oosterhof
● healthy soil as a basis
● no fertilizer
● less concentrate
● strong cows
● Farmer less dependent on suppliers
● stable income due to lower costs
This sponsored article is part of the series 'Speakers of the Future', an initiative of the Food Transition Coalition. In this series of interviews, written by Jeen Akkerman, visionaries give their views on the future of food production in the Netherlands. The editors of Boerenbusiness is not responsible for the content of these publications.