Does it make financial sense to purchase dairy replacement heifers in today’s white-hot market?
Maybe. Or maybe not, according to a pair of University of Florida Dairy Extension Specialists.
Albert de Vries and Russ Giesy developed a spreadsheet [available here] more than 20 years ago to help individual dairies determine how much they could afford to spend on replacement heifers.
The handy tool was developed specifically for dairies with vacant spots that could be filled with new heifers to maximize herd capacity – but not as a method to decide whether to replace a cow with a heifer. It also does not take tax considerations into account.
By Maureen Hanson
March 04, 2025
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