Choosing a Forage System for the Future in Dairying Production in the Western Part of France

A group of 25 dairy farms (44 ha, 38 cows, 7500 kg of milk/cow) was used for elaborating technical and economic references on dairy production systems in the department of Maine et Loire (western France), between 1986 and 1991. Changes in choosing a forage system began with the restriction of dairy production under EC rules introduced in 1984. Very intensive systems (over 10 000 kg of milk/ ha) no longer guaranteed that a better level of production per cow meant a better income for the farmer. After 5 years of study it was possible to propose 4 forage systems with very different technical options from high to low input levels (high-low animal pressure, high-low milk production per cow, growing proportions from 15 to 50% of corn silage). We could also assess that these systems can all lead to identical levels of net income for farmers,