ChewintheCud Podcast

Circular Farming: Better Food, Healthier Planet

Forget the headline battles over “cow versus climate.” We dig into how livestock, managed within a circular bioeconomy, can actually reduce risk, recover nutrients, and improve the food we eat. With Professor Michael Lee of Harper Adams University, we connect the dots between soil carbon, methane chemistry, and what ends up on your plate, showing why measuring only gross emissions per kilogram misses the true picture of sustainable dairy and beef.We start by reframing circular farming: crops generate non‑edible biomass and the food industry creates co‑products; ruminants turn those streams into milk and meat while producing organic manures that, with new stripping and separation technologies, return nitrogen and phosphorus to the fields that need them. That reduces dependence on mined phosphate and fossil‑fuel fertiliser and strengthens soil health and biodiversity. We also unpack the geopolitics of nutrients, from export controls to the hidden carbon cost of extraction, and why better manure management is both an agronomy win and a climate hedge.Then we get precise about methane. Biogenic methane sits in a short‑lived natural cycle; thermogenic methane from fossil sources adds new carbon to the atmosphere. Agriculture must cut emissions, and can, through genetics, feed, and efficiency. But farms are too often judged on gross emissions while their removals through soils, hedgerows, and trees are booked elsewhere. Case studies from Ireland show how net accounting can reveal major improvements and, in some systems, net‑zero performance. The takeaway is clear: measure net, reward verified removals, and avoid a carbon‑only lens that ignores biodiversity, water, and rural livelihoods.Finally, we get practical about what to eat. We don’t eat by the kilogram; we eat for nutrients. Animal‑source foods provide highly bioavailable protein and hard‑to‑get micronutrients, while plant foods supply the fibre most of us lack. Ultra‑processed “plant” proteins often strip out that fibre. A smarter plate is plant‑rich, fibre‑dense, and includes modest amounts of unprocessed dairy and meat. Using more of the carcass, including offal, cuts waste and boosts nutrient density.If this conversation changed how you think about livestock, sustainability, and nutrition, follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a review. Your feedback helps more people find evidence‑based farming stories that matter.This was recorded in October 2025, and all information was correct at the time of recording.Send a textFor more information about our podcast visit www.chewinthecud.com/podcast or follow us on Instagram @chewinthecudpodcast. ChewintheCud Ltd is also on Facebook & LinkedIn. You can email us directly at podcast@chewinthecud.com

Transition Milk; Leads to Stronger Calves

What if the biggest gains in calf health happen after the first feed? We explore the overlooked power of transition milk — the nutrient- and antibody-rich milkings from days two to four — and how feeding it for 10 days can tilt the odds toward healthier, faster-growing calves. With veterinary surgeon Dr Ryan Davies, we follow a spring block-calving herd in West Wales from a farmer’s observation to a structured study, complete with daily passive immunity testing and twice-daily Brix checks on pooled, pasteurised fresh cow milk.We start with the fundamentals: dialling in colostrum quality, quantity, timing, cleanliness, and stress to hit excellent passive transfer. Then we move beyond day one. Ryan breaks down how calving density drives pool quality, why Brix can fluctuate from bulk-tank levels to true transition milk, and the practical choice every farm faces — maintain quality for the youngest calves or dilute to stretch days. The data make the case: calves receiving higher-quality transition milk grew faster to weaning, and those with low serum IgG at 24–48 hours saw a reduced mortality risk when the quality was strong. It’s a clear demonstration of local gut protection from antibodies and the extra lift from proteins, fats, growth factors, lactoferrin, and prebiotics.We also address the risks and realities: pooling can spread pathogens, pasteurisation has limits for Johne’s and TB, and over-heating destroys the very bioactives we need. The solution is disciplined herd health plans, careful cow selection for the pool, and routine measurement. Expect straight talk on Brix targets, when to prioritise younger calves, and why prevention beats treatment when disease pressure climbs later in the block. The early signals are promising for beef finishing times and future heifer performance, with full productivity and longevity data to come.If you’re aiming to reduce antibiotics, protect staff morale, and improve sustainability without adding complexity, this is a practical blueprint: test, pool, pasteurise, protect quality, and feed transition milk for 10 days. Subscribe, share with a fellow calf rearer, and leave a review to help more producers find these insights.This was recorded in January 2026, and all information was correct at the time of recording.Send us a textFor more information about our podcast visit www.chewinthecud.com/podcast or follow us on Instagram @chewinthecudpodcast. ChewintheCud Ltd is also on Facebook & LinkedIn. You can email us directly at podcast@chewinthecud.com

Cows Choose Breakfast, Robots Do The Dishes

Fresh grass, quiet robots, and cows that choose their own breakfast. That’s the unexpected picture that emerges when grazing meets automation on modern UK dairy farms. We sit down with Matthew Senior, Farmer & Robot Grazing Consultant and George Dalton, Farmer, who prove robotic milking doesn’t end pasture; it strengthens it, from ABC grazing schedules to leaner labour and sharper decisions.We unpack why a shift from spring to autumn block calving can fit dry summers, wet winters, and evolving milk contracts. The conversation follows the practical steps: planning lanes and gates, sizing paddocks, sticking to entry covers around 2,800–3,000 and residuals at 1,500–1,600, and letting the grazeway gate cue movement every eight hours. The cows’ driver isn’t sweets in the stall; it’s fresh pasture on the other side of the robot. Average visits hover around two per day, robots stay free for heifers and fresh cows, and the yard stops feeling like a twice-daily stampede.We also dive into self-feed silage for autumn herds: building a wide pad, layering grass cuts, topping with maize and rape meal, and training cows to eat over a wire without waste. It’s not no work, it’s different work—periodic unsheeting, tidy faces, good wire geometry—and it cuts reliance on mixers and daily diesel. On the data front, collars and robot software deliver fast, focused insight: daily milk records, rumination, activity, and health and heat lists that you act on with judgement, not panic. Many alerts self-resolve; late-lactation cows don’t need three milkings; breeding gets simpler when the gate auto-segregates cows for AI.The real win is balance. Yields rise with targeted cake, antibiotics fall, and days become more flexible. Visitors see cows roaming by choice, a powerful story for animal welfare and transparency. If you’ve ever wondered whether robots and grazing can coexist, this is a clear, practical roadmap that shows how to get more milk from grass, protect soil and lanes, and reclaim your time.Enjoyed the conversation? Follow, share with a dairy friend, and leave a quick review so others can find the show.This was recorded in January 2026, and all information was correct at the time of recording.Send us a textFor more information about our podcast visit www.chewinthecud.com/podcast or follow us on Instagram @chewinthecudpodcast. ChewintheCud Ltd is also on Facebook & LinkedIn. You can email us directly at podcast@chewinthecud.com

Employing is Easy; Keeping People Isn’t!

New year, fresh start, better teams. We sit down with Becky Miles from Real Success to map out how UK dairy farms can turn a good hire into a long-term teammate. Not with grand gestures, but with the basics done well: a thoughtful first day, honest safety culture, and the kind of everyday communication that prevents small problems becoming big ones.We unpack a practical onboarding blueprint you can copy tomorrow—10 a.m. start, warm welcome, terms and conditions on the table, health and safety brief, PPE issued, WhatsApp groups explained, and a mentor assigned. Becky introduces the accountability ladder to shift behaviour from blame and excuses to ownership and solutions, and explains why leaders must provide time, tools, skills, and knowledge before they demand results. We dig into vision, mission, and values, turning them from corporate wallpaper into simple, lived behaviours around animal handling, safety, and respect.From there, we get specific: weekly breakfast huddles with KPIs, sharing milk tickets and cell count trends, giving credit when it’s due, and handling conflict with cool heads and open questions. We challenge the myth that pay is the main lever, showing how flexible rotas, visible leadership, and small rituals—like a team breakfast after milk recording—carry more weight. Training stays central, with smart ways to protect investment, because the real risk is an untrained person who stays. We also tackle facilities and first impressions; a bright, tidy parlour and fit-for-purpose kit speak louder than any slogan.If you’re aiming to reduce churn, lift morale, and get more done with less drama, this conversation offers concrete steps and language you can use with your team today. Subscribe, share with a fellow farmer, and leave a review with one retention tactic you’re going to try this month.This was recorded in November 2025, and all information was correct at the time of recording.Send us a textFor more information about our podcast visit www.chewinthecud.com/podcast or follow us on Instagram @chewinthecudpodcast. ChewintheCud Ltd is also on Facebook & LinkedIn. You can email us directly at podcast@chewinthecud.com

The Walk to the Land of the Long White Cloud

What really makes a cow go lame, and why did it take so long to change our minds? We sit down with Professor Jon Huxley—raised on a Welsh dairy, now leading Massey University’s vet school in New Zealand—for a candid tour through research that reshaped mastitis control, lameness prevention, and fresh cow care.Jon shares the story behind teat sealants becoming a cornerstone of selective dry cow therapy, showing how solid trials helped cut antibiotic use without compromising udder health. We then tackle the big pivot in lameness thinking: moving beyond the old acidosis-laminitis narrative to the digital cushion, body condition, and the brutal role concrete plays in claw horn lesions. The result is a practical blueprint—protect condition around calving, improve surfaces and cow flow, and trim with function in mind.Treatment gets equal airtime. Randomised trials demonstrate why NSAIDs matter for lame cows, reducing inflammation and pain to speed recovery. Extend that approach to fresh heifers and the benefits often reach into second lactation. From there, we zoom out: are mastitis, metritis, ketosis, and lameness different faces of the same early lactation inflammatory stress? If the transition cow is the most fragile athlete on the farm, then feed space, comfort, calm routines, and energy balance are one system, not a checklist.We also compare UK housed systems with New Zealand’s pasture-first dairying: longer walks on laneways, fewer hours on concrete, and lower lameness, but rising buffer feeding, new shelters, and tough conversations on nutrient leaching. Along the way, John explains how Massey’s hands-on facilities and the Kiwi “give it a go” mindset produce work-ready vets who can turn evidence into action.Listen for clear, usable insights on mastitis prevention, lameness treatment, digital cushion management, underfoot design, and the transition period. If you want fewer sore feet, fewer sick fresh cows, and more sustainable milk, this conversation pulls the science onto the yard. Enjoy the ride—and if it helps, share it with a friend, subscribe, and leave a quick review to support the show.This was recorded in December 2025, and all information was correct at the time of recording.Send us a textFor more information about our podcast visit www.chewinthecud.com/podcast or follow us on Instagram @chewinthecudpodcast. ChewintheCud Ltd is also on Facebook & LinkedIn. You can email us directly at podcast@chewinthecud.com