One VMS milking robot, two years, two million kilograms of milk! 

10 April, 2024 | News

DeLaval dealer, Stijn van de Pol from Leenaerts Agro Techniek, congratulates Jef and Nathalie Geerts on their impressive results.

At Jef and Nathalie Geerts’ dairy farm in Pulderbos, Belgium, efficiency is the name of the game. Their knack for surpassing national benchmarks is evident in their latest accomplishment: an extraordinary 2 million kilograms (approximately 4,409,240 lbs) of milk generated, courtesy of just 74 cows. 

Their secret? Cows with good teat positioning and high milking speed! That, together with the high capacity of the DeLaval VMS V300 milking robot and the OptiDuo that always provides fresh feed. 

“The fast attachment time and milking time make it possible to achieve such high production on one milking robot,” Jef Geerts explains. 

He also emphasises the indispensable role of the OptiDuo system, saying: “The OptiDuo works wonders here—we really can’t miss the robotic feed pusher here on our farm anymore, not even for a day!”

7-day average

The farm consistently exceeds national averages, with a 7-day average daily production of 3,000 kilograms and an average production of 41 kilograms per cow. Their milk solids remain top tier, facilitated by optimal feed intake, with a remarkable fat content of 4.3% and protein content of 3.6%.

The Geerts’ tips for success

By prioritising factors such as teat positioning, milking speed, and teat preparation, the Geerts achieve an impressive average milk flow of 1400 g/min per quarter. Jef attributes this success to the fast attachment time and efficient milking process enabled by the VMS V300 milking robot: “We installed the robot because the cows want to be milked more.” 

In the dairy farm setup, Jef and Nathalie have free cow traffic in their barn with deep litter cubicles. They keep the somatic cell count stable at about a good 150,000 cells, among other methods, by spraying the teats with Tri-Fender and disinfecting the preparation and milking cups with PeraDis (hydrogen peroxide). For even better pre-milking treatment and cleaner teats, they also add soap in the preparation cup. 

Looking ahead, the Geerts hope to further optimise their operations by introducing a second DeLaval milking robot in the future, provided regulatory conditions permit expansion.

Read press release One VMS milking robot, two years, two million kilograms of milk! on corporate.delaval