The New South Wales mastitis control program. 3. The effect on production and economics

A mastitis control program carried out in 35 commercial dairy heards over three years increased the milk produced by 343 kg per cow per year and the amount of butterfat by 15.8 kg per cow per year, giving a net benefit of $16.10 per cow per year by the end of the third year. The net benefit is considerably understated since benefits other than the increase in milk production were not quantified. The overall disposal rate of 33 herds showed a drop from 19.3% in year 1 to 13.6% in year 3. An analysis of culling records showed that as the severity of mastitis increased so did cow age.