Mr Robinson says: “We really struggle for shed space. Over the years we have rented sheds off-farm and we are constantly moving stock around.’’

The business either needed to invest in building a new shed or look at alternatives, and that led to the decision to run a flying herd, buying-in stock as in-calf heifers.

Mr Robinson is confident it is the right decision.

“I am in a benchmarking group and one of the farms, which is similar to ours but has a flying herd, always seems to come out very well on figures,’’ he says.

It may allow for expansion of herd size – the family currently milks 140 Holstein Friesians on the grazing platform – all 32ha (80 acres) – and rents a further 49ha (120 acres).

“It will give us a bit more flexibility on cow numbers,’’ says Mr Robinson.

He returned to farm with his parents at Parc-y-Llyn, Llandisillio, after studying agriculture at Hartpury College and working on large-scale dairy units in New Zealand.

He was destined to farm – for him no career choice has ever come a close second to farming.

He says: “Our family has farmed for generations, on both sides, I cannot imagine doing anything else.’’

His father was one of seven children and his mother one of three and, with no opportunity to farm at home, they applied for a county council tenancy.

They were offered Parc-y-Llyn, but with a caveat.

“Back then it was a requirement that they had to be married – they were engaged at the time so it hurried them along,’’ says Mr Robinson.

Thirty years on and they have grown the business.

Milk is produced on a level profile, with cows currently yielding an annual average of 9,000 litres/cow at 4.3 per cent butterfat and 3.25 per cent protein.

High yielders

This summer, for the first time, the high yielders were fully housed to give more control over performance and grassland management

“We have always buffer fed but that meant that the cows did not graze very well when they were at grass and the cows at peak milk production lost body condition so we looked at doing things differently,’’ Mr Robinson explains.

“Anything which was in-calf went out to graze and just had a few kilos of cake in the parlour, and the highs were housed on a ration.’’

The total mixed ration includes 7kg of blend, grass silage and home-grown wholecrop – 4-6ha (10-15 acres) are grown within the reseeding programme.

Producing high quality silage is a priority – up to four cuts are harvested.

This year’s first cut analysed at 28 per cent dry matter (DM), 16.4 per cent protein and an ME of 11.2 MJ/kg DM.

Through soil sampling and with nutrient management planning advice provided by Farming Connect, there is more targeted use of nitrogen fertilisers on fields with high indices.

Nitrogen is applied at 370kg/ha across the first three cuts, while the fourth cut is grown with slurry only.

Recent investment in a 400,000-gallon slurry lagoon will allow the farm to make better use of its nutrients, says Mr Robinson.

“It will take the pressure off this winter and will help us cut fertiliser rates too,’’ he says.

Paddock

Grazing is a paddock system with grass measured weekly with a plate meter; 123.5kg/ha is applied to the grazing ground.

While cow numbers and milk production are restricted by the size of the milking platform, Mr Robinson is instead adding value to that milk.

He invested £50,000 in a milk vending machine and pasteurizer and converted a farm outbuilding, a diversification he was guided on by his Farming Connect mentor Lilwen Joynson.

He has a formal agreement with his parents to purchase some of the milk.

“I wanted it to be a separate business, the onus is on me to get it right, and it gives me my own slice of the pie,’’ says Mr Robinson.

“I am really grateful to Lilwen for encouraging me in this direction.’’

He admits it has been a steep learning curve but it has been a good business decision.

Local support

The farm is right next to a road and can also be accessed by a footpath from a nearby caravan park.

“Local support has been brilliant,’’ says Mr Robinson.

He recently introduced a milkshake option.

“I saw a massive jump in sales, I could not quite believe it,’’ he says.

“There is a cup size option and that seems to be very popular as an after-school treat for children.’’

This diversification, which he estimates will pay for itself within four years, has given him greater confidence ahead of the introduction of a new farm support system in Wales.

“I have got an expanding customer base and I am optimistic that, within three years, when I hope to have paid off my loan, all profits from the milk vending side will be going straight into my pocket – that is a nice thought to keep me working hard.”

Dairy farming, he says, has ‘enough challenges’, but he is happy with the direction the family’s business is moving in.

“What dairy farming does not need is restrictive legislation that prevents us from producing food – as farmers that is what we are meant to do.

“A requirement in the Sustainable Farming Scheme proposals to have 10 per cent tree cover, and the new NVZ regulations are a bit of an odd one because the world needs to be fed.’’

The county council farm system gave the family the chance to farm but with many local authorities across the UK selling off their farmland portfolio in recent years, Mr Robinson worries that those opportunities will not be available for the next generation.

He is relieved that the sell-off policy is not one that has been adopted in any great way in Pembrokeshire.

“The new chief executive visited the farm a few months ago and I was reassured to hear that the council is not looking to sell its farms in the foreseeable future.’’

But the scale of county council holdings does limit opportunity, he adds.

“At 80 acres this is classed as a medium-sized farm but if it was not for us being able to rent land it would actually be small in a commercial sense and we would struggle to make the economics of it work.’’

Farm facts

-81 hectares (200 acres) farmed
-16:16 herringbone parlour
-Milk sold to Muller
-All-year-round calving herd