Raising heifer replacements – labor costs and labor efficiency

Abstract

How much does it cost to raise a heifer from birth to first calving? The costs associated with raising heifers are often overlooked when analyzing expenses on dairy farms. In the summer of 2019, we collected data from 26 Northeast dairy farms. An analysis of this data revealed that the average total cost to raise a heifer from birth to weaning was $2,355, with an 80th percentile range of $1,953 to $2,824. As expected, feed was the largest cost associated with raising heifers, followed by labor. Labor was the expense with the greatest 80th percentile range and accounted for 13.2 percent of the total raising cost, on average.