These are the slides of a presentation I was invited to give at the Cattle Association of Veterinary Ireland (CAVI) at their annual conference, held in Galway, Ireland. The presentation deals with economics of production diseases.
2. Who am I
Farm boy (dairy farm, 45 cows)
Animal science at Wageningen Univesity
● Epidemiology (simulation model of management around
cystic ovaries)
● Economics (long term effect of herd health management
programs)
PhD at Vet Medicine (AI programs to diagnose mastitis)
Working in field of animal health management
In between Wageningen University and Faculty of Vet. Med.
● @henkhogeveen
● animal-health-management.blogspot.com
3. Current trends
Farmers management is more and
more aimed at optimization of
health, not maximization of health
Vets function on equal level:
discussion instead directive
One additional argument: money
….. vets need to know about
economics of disease and
economics of management
4. Outline
Economics of disease
Production diseases
● Mastitis
● Reproduction
Final remarks
5. Milk output (Q)
Farm production
Farm with fixed land and
buildings (constraints):
Output is a function of
input
Resource input (R)
6. Effect of disease
-More resources for same production
-Less production with same resources
Milk output (Q)
-optimal level of production changes as well
I
Resource input (R)
7. What’s the point?
Production function differ from farm to farm, dependent
on:
● Management skills
● Farm seize
● Intensity
● …..
And ….
● Effects of disease differ from farm to farm
● Effects of disease differ based on prices
8. Economic effects of diseases
Economic effects = losses + expenditures
Losses (decrease in production)
● Decreased production level
● Discarded milk
● Changes in milk price (milk quality)
● Culling
Expenditures (additional resources)
● Drugs
● Veterinarian
● Labour
● Preventive measures
10. Disease treatments
Treatment of clinical cases is an expenditure
● Used to optimize total losses
● Studies on optimal treatment are available
e.g. Steeneveld et al., 2011; 2007, Swinkels et al., 2005a; 2005b
But for prevention, treatment is seen as part of costs of
a case (failure)
Therefore we optimize Failure costs vs Preventive
measures
11. How to study economics of prevention?
Start with failure costs of disease
● Losses
● Associated expenditures (treatments etc)
● Quite some information is known
Calculate costs of prevention
● Investments (depreciation & intrest)
● Expdenditures
● Labour (value?)
● Relative straightforward work
Estimate economic improvement
● Difference between old and new situation
● Difficult !!!
14. Modelling to estimate effects of diseases
and disease control
Simulation model
Input data based on data, literature, expertise
Relatively cheap
Pragmatic approach
Bio-economic modelling: economics combined with
detailed physiological basis
15. Models ……. do not capture the complexity
of the real situation
17. Outline
Production economics
Production diseases
● Mastitis
● Reproduction
Final remarks
Based on work of:
Huijps et al., 2008, 2010
Hogeveen et al., 2010
van Soest et al., 2011
27. Cost-effectiveness of preventive measures
-18 management measures (Huijps et al., 2010)
-Quantify effect
-436 scientific papers (1996-2006)
-43 relevant and useful
- Expert sessions
-Effect 100 % contagious
-Effect 100 % environmental
-Efffect on BMSCC
-Efffect on clinical mastitis
28. Additional
Reduced
expenditures
losses
Net benefit
37
16
-21
104
20
-84
26
9
-17
3
9
6
34
9
-25
1
9
8
31
31
-0
1
11
10
123
15
-108
13
11
-2
Use of a treatment protocol
7
15
8
Application of blanket dry cow therapy
9
36
27
Keep cows standing after milking
2
12
10
Feed additional dry cow minerals
13
13
0
Prevent overcrowding
23
13
-10
Clean boxes
54
15
-39
Clean yards
51
8
-43
Milk cows with clinical mastitis last
Milk cows with subclinical mastitis last
Use of separate cloths during udder preparation
Wash dirty udders during udder preparation
Prestripping
Use of milkers’ gloves during milking
Post milking teat disinfection
Back-flushing clusters after milking a cow with clinical
mastitis
Back-flushing clusters after milking a cow with subclinical
mastitis
Replace teat cup liners in time
Optimize feed ration
29. Outline
Production economics
Cost factors of production diseases
Production “diseases”
● Mastitis
● Reproduction
Final remarks
Based on work of:
Inchaisri et al., 2010, 2011,
2012
30. Two decisions around reproduction
When do I start with
inseminations
When do I stop with
insemination
31. Difficult calculation
Cow factors
● First ovulation
● Probability of detection
● Probability of conception
● Milk production level
● Reproductive disorders
Economical factors
● Milk price
● Costs of insemination
● Costs of culling
● Costs of calving management
A complex
system of
dynamics and
interactions
31
38. Longer VWP when ….
Cow factors
38
Economical factors
● Parity = 1
● Lower costs low milk
production
● Not Holstein Frisian
● High costs of
● High persistence
inseminations
● Low production
● High costs culling
● Late peak in production
● Calved in winter
● Bad oestrus detection
● Late first ovulation
● Reproduction diseases
39. Outline
Production economics
Cost factors of production diseases
Production diseases
● Mastitis
● Metabolic disorders
Final remarks
40. Only two production diseases
What about
● Young stock raising
● Culling policy
● Claw health
● Metabolic diseases
● ……….
41. Under estimation of costs by farmers
200
180
Real costs (€/cow)
160
140
120
100
80
60
46 under
Mastitis
estimators!!!!!
40
20
0
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Expected costs (€ per cow)
140
160
180
200
42. Herd health programs
Herd health & management programs are aimed at
improving herd situations
Knowledge of economics is then essential
Improvement of disease situation improves value of herd
health programs (see work of Derks et al., 2012)
43. There is more than economics
Attitude explains mastitis situation (Jansen et al., 2009)
Campaigns do have an influence (Jansen et al., 2010)
Cost factors are not regarded as being equal (Huijps et al, 2009)
Sometimes farmers behave irrational (Huijps et al., 2010)
44. Economics to support decisions
Production diseases costs much money
● Most expensive cattle disease present
● Costs are often failure costs
● Total costs (including prevention) are much higher
● Differences and underestimation between farmers -> farm
specific calculations
More than only money to motivate farmers
Decision support is weighing costs of prevention vs reduction of
failure costs
● That is up to you, veterinarians!!!
● Tool on www.wageningenur.nl/bec -> research -> decision
support tools
45. Thank you for your attention
@henkhogeveen
animal-health-management.blogspot.com
On-line courses on
Veterinary Economics on:
www.elevatehealth.eu