The aim of this study was to examine the electric energy consumption of milking process on dairy farms and to evaluate the methods to improve the energy efficiency. The electricity consumption of the milking process was measured on three dairy farms in Southern Finland, and it varied between 37-62 Wh kg -1 milk. The largest energy saving potential was identified in milk cooling and the heating of cleaning water. Even simple methods, such as placing the condenser of the refrigeration system outside, may reduce the energy consumption of milk cooling by 30%. Efficient milk pre-cooling can reduce the energy consumption of the whole milking process by more than 25%. Even larger energy savings are possible with a sophisticated milk cooling -water heating systems. It was concluded that there is a significant potential to reduce the energy consumption and energy costs of the milking process, and thus to improve the profitability and sustainability of the sector at the same time.
Research focusing on the nitrogen (N) application and use of forage maize (Zea mays L.) in the boreal region is either limited or non-existent. The aim of this study was to investigate the response of yield, quality and N recovery efficiency (NRE) of forage maize to an increase in the N application rate and different climatic conditions in two locations in Finland. The field experiment was conducted in southern (Helsinki; 60° N) and central (Maaninka; 63° N) Finland in 2019 and 2020. Dry matter (DM) yield, forage quality and NRE were determined for N application rates of 100, 150 and 200 N kg ha−1. The DM yield was similar to all studied N application rates. Moreover, there were no marked differences in the studied forage quality traits or the NRE following the N application rates. However, the NRE of maize was generally low at 45%. The current study recommends a N application rate of 100–150 N kg ha−1 for forage maize in the boreal region. There is no need to increase the N application from current recommendations since climate conditions seem to limit the growth, development and NRE of forage maize. The observed low NRE of forage maize warrants further research in the future.
Fuel consumption of various forage harvesting methods was assessed with a theoretical calculation model, which was validated with field measurements. The examined harvesting methods were tractor-powered forage harvester (TPFH), self-propelled forage harvester (SPFH), self-loading forage wagon (SLFW), and combined baling and wrapping (CBW). The results from the field measurements indicated that the model was working either well or satisfactorily with the examined methods, apart from the CBW method, which would require redefining the model coefficients. Model sensitivity analysis indicated that variables such as yield level, working width, and transportation distance have a significant effect on fuel consumption. When the working width was increased from 3 m to 9 m, the fuel consumption of the examined methods decreased ca. 54–61%. Increasing the working width by windrowing was found recommended for all examined methods. In all, the most energy-efficient method was SLFW, but it was also most sensitive to transportation distance. With a transportation distance of 10 km, the fuel consumption of the SLFW method was already 9–11 % higher compared to that of TPFH and SPFH methods. The strong effect of these variables may cause a wide variation in the fuel consumption of the examined methods, but the model can be used to standardize this effect. The results from this study can thus be used for approximate estimations of average fuel consumption of the examined forage harvesting methods.
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