Identifizierung von Bio-Milchviehbetriebstypen sowie deren Betriebs-, Herden- und Managementcharakteristika

Summary

Organic dairy milk production is a growing sector in Germany. The sector varies between regions and individual farms due to topographical and structural differences,
but very little statistical information is available in Germany about this variation. The aim of this study was to identify typical major farm types (MFT) of German organic
dairy farms and to describe their farm, herd and management characteristics. Based on data from 204 organic dairy farms from previous studies with representative samples, four MFT were identified by cluster analysis and expert opinions. Cluster criteria were herd size, milk yield, region and housing system. 10-11 farms per MFT, in total 41 farms were interviewed with respect to their management by phone or during a farm visit. Descriptive measures show that the farms within the MFT typically differ in more variables than the cluster criteria, highlighting the heterogeneity of German organic dairy production. Thus, for recommendations at least variation between these different farm types should be taken into account.