The cost of replacement heifers has become another big issue in Japan. Farmers who have no space to keep their replacements usually buy heifers from Hokkaido, a northern island which is the primary dairy region in Japan. Currently the price is about $7,000 per pregnant heifer! It is a huge investment!

Wagyu, Japanese black beef cattle which produce wonderfully tender meat with high marbling, affects the dairy heifer market. The price of Wagyu calves has also been inflated because of decreased calf production from Wagyu cow-calf operations. Now the price of Wagyu calves, both steers and heifers, is about $7,000 at 9 months old! Farmers could sell dairy pregnant heifers at almost the same price but need to keep them for 18-20 months. And how about dairy bulls? They are much cheaper than heifers, Wagyu, or even crossbred calves (Wagyu × Holstein). If you were a Japanese dairy farmer, which would you like to breed? Yes, many farmers have been shifting to breeding Wagyu (either insemination or embryo transfer) to their dairy cows. That is why dairy replacement heifers are also getting expensive.

Unfortunately, the numbers of dairy cows and herds in Japan are decreasing. In addition to the problems mentioned above, a labor shortage is making the dairy industry difficult. A national survey in 2014 found that 40% of Japanese dairy farmers had no successor. So, we have focused effort on improving labor efficiency as well as cow productivity and longevity. Some new technologies would be helpful for labor-saving. Good management in every aspect of dairy farming is also important to keep cows healthy and productive as mentioned in many articles in the Farm Report. Those efforts should be made not only for the present farmers but also for the next generations. I hope the relationship between Miner Institute and Zen-Noh can brighten the future of the dairy industry in Japan as well as in the US.

TheCattleSite News Desk