Comparison of Four Generations of Milking on Polish Dairy Farms

A crucial area of research in farm dairy production involves evaluating and comparing different milking systems. By comparing a wide range of milking equipment used in dairy farms, it is possible to identify trends in changes in milking efficiency with data, including those characterizing cow herds. In this research study, five generations of milking (GI-GV) were distinguished, ranging from hand milking (GI generation) to automated milking, AMS (GV generation), according to the applied methodology. Twenty-eight farms representing a different generation of mechanical milking (GII-GV) were selected for the study. Data on the size of the cow herd, annual milk yield per cow, number of milking clusters, number of milkers, and daily milking time were collected from these farms. Data from the dairy farms included in the study allowed us to find an increase in the annual milk yield of cows in farms with increasingly higher milking generations (GII-GV), from 5211 to 8977 L per cow per year. Compared to the lowest milking generation (GII), the highest milking generation (GV) was distinguished by 11 times more milking per cluster per day, 14 times more milk milked by the cluster per year, and nine times more human labor efficiency. The research study provides the basis for assessing the effectiveness of implementing technical and technological progress in cow milking.