Comparison of Mechanized and Automated Technologies in the Scope of Cumulative Energy in Sustainable Milk Production

Abstract

The labor and energy inputs for milking and milk cooling, the preparation and distribution of feed, and manure removal were analyzed on eight farms in the Masovian, Podlaskie, Lower Silesian, and Kuyavian–Pomeranian voivodeships. In these facilities, milking was carried out using milking robots, which were also employed during feed preparation and discharge. The cleaning of manure channels and walking corridors were also automated. Based on labor, fuel, energy consumption, weight of machinery and equipment, and building area, the cumulative energy intensity of the farms was calculated, taking into account the average density of cow herds. The lowest energy input, 0.974 kWh∙LU−1∙day, and the lowest cumulative energy intensity, amounting to 19.601 MJ∙day−1∙LU−1 were observed in a farm with AF-AM5 technology, that is, an automated milking system (AMS) and an automated feeding system (AFS). The second lowest total energy intensity was measured in a farm utilizing the AF-AM7 technology and amounted to 22.505 MJ∙day−1∙LU−1. The highest cumulative energy intensity was measured in a farm practicing conventional milking in a fishbone milking parlor, with a traditional feeding wagon powered by an agricultural tractor. A high level of cumulative energy intensity, for the majority, was connected with a high energy and fuel consumption, especially during the preparation of feed and feed distribution.