All year round dairy calving key performance indicators (KPIs)

The key measures of performance for dairy farmers who calve all year round with no seasonal emphasis or period where the entire herd is dry.

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The KPIs show targets for performing well, room to improve and review performance, based on industry dairy farm data.

All year round calving KPIs

Key Performance Indicators	Performing well (Top 5%)	Room to improve (Top 25%)	Review performance
Pregnancy rate (%)	>25%	25-14%	14-5%
Age at first calving (months)	23-24 months (but not less than 22 months)	24-27.5 months	27.5-30 months
Total purchased feed costs (pence/litre)
9,000l	6-7.5ppl	7.5-11ppl	11-15ppl
9,000-11,000l	8-8.5ppl	8.5-12ppl	12-15ppl
>11,000l	6-7.6ppl	9-12ppl	12-15ppl
Milk from forage	3,000-2,000l (litres) 230-150kg (kgs milk solids)	2,000-1,500l (litres) 150-115kg (kgs milk solids)	1,500-1,000l (litres) 115-70kg (kgs milk solids)
Average daily lifetime yield (litres/day)	>19 litres	19-12.5 litres	12.5-8 litres
Overheads (exluding rent and finance) (ppl)	7-9ppl	9-12.5ppl	12.5-20ppl

Genetic merit

<5th percentile

5th-50th percentile

>50th percentile

Compare your figures using our Farm Business Review - KPI Express tool

All year round calving KPI definitions

Key Performance Indicators	Why you should do this KPI	Definition
Pregnancy rate (%)	If any genetic merit is to be passed from one generation to the next, fertility is key. Pregnancy rate is fundamental to increasing the daily weight of milk sold per cow as well as generating calves for replacement or sale. It is the best way of measuring the efficiency of pregnancy production as it is real time and takes into account the whole herd and is comparable between farms and systems.	Pregnancy rate (also known as the % cows eligible for service conceived) is the percentage of cows eligible to be bred in any 21-day period (following a 50-day voluntary waiting period) that are served and hold in calf
Age at first calving (months)	So much of a cow’s lifetime performance, fertility and longevity depends on the rearing it received as a heifer. Achieving target weights and ensuring that heifers calve down at 24 months will benefit animal health and fertility of the herd and drive profitability. This KPI has been selected as if achieved it will contribute to achieving the other KPIs.	The average first calving age over a 12-month period is the addition of all ages of first calvings divided by the total number of first calvings
Total purchased feed costs (pence/litre)	Feed is one of the highest costs and, as such, represents a key area where there is potential for improving business profitability. It varies considerably depending on dairy system, but can be compared within similar systems and monitored on a monthly, or annual basis. Low feed costs can indicate a higher proportion of production is from forage (particularly when forage is of high quality) and vice versa. This KPI depends not only on the amount of feed the cows eat, but also its price.	All purchased feed costs including concentrates and bulk/moist feeds. This cost should be divided by the total milk produced
Milk from forage - Litres	Regardless of the farming system, quality forage (particularly grazed grass) will always be the cheapest form of feed. The more milk produced from forage, the greater the profitability.	Average milk yield per cow – milk produced from non-forage feed = milk from forage. Milk produced from non-forage feed = kg of non-forage feed fed x87% standardised dry matter x 12.7MJ standardised ME / energy needed to produce a litre of milk with the butter, fat and protein entered.
Milk from forage - Kgs milk solids	Regardless of the farming system, quality forage (particularly grazed grass) will always be the cheapest form of feed. The more milk produced from forage, the greater the profitability.	Average milk yield per cow – milk produced from non-forage feed = milk from forage. Milk produced from non-forage feed = kg of non-forage feed fed x87% standardised dry matter x12.7MJ standardised ME / energy needed to produce a litre of milk with the butter, fat and protein entered. Milk yield (litres) from forage x 1.03 (to convert to kg) x (butterfat % + protein % ÷ 100) = Milk solids from forage.
Average daily lifetime yield (litres/day)	Daily lifetime yield averages out total milk production over every day a cow has been alive. Cows that start milking at a young age, have a short calving interval, and are healthy enough to last several lactations, will have a much higher LDY than those who are older at first calving, do not get back in calf very quickly and have poor longevity. A high yielding cow that doesn’t make it to the third lactation because of poor health or fertility will have a lower daily lifetime yield than a cow that reaches fifth lactation but with a lower average yield per day.	The average of total milk sold (litres) divided by age (in days from birth to culling) for cows leaving the herd during the year
Overheads (excluding rent and finance) (ppl)	Overhead costs are one of the largest sources of variation in the cost of production. Labour, power and machinery are all inter-related, so it is important to measure overheads in detail and benchmark where the best farmers are, find detailed areas to focus on and set targets to lower the cost base. Collecting this data and setting SMART targets will help all dairy farmers assess their business overheads and improve.	Overheads of the herd but excluding the rent and finance
Genetic merit*	The performance of a dairy herd is determined by two factors, the management of the herd and the genetics of the herd. Therefore, in order to drive progress and improve their performance through the Optimal Dairy Systems genetics must be a consideration.	This is the percentile your average £PLI score falls into. For more information on how to obtain this value please refer to the 'how to get your genetic merit value' section below.

* Fully milk recording herds can find their genetic merit score through our Herd Genetic Report - details can be found in the above online calculator. For non-milk recording herds, we've created this genetic merit tool so you can work out your percentile.

All year round strategic farm KPI case studies

Practical examples from our strategic dairy farms who openly share their KPIs so you can see how they perform.

Access Farm Business Review - KPI Express to see how your farm measures up

Further resources

Block carving key performance indicators