Mother-bonded calf rearing in organic milk production: Lessons from pioneer farmers in northern Europe

Summary

Pioneer farmers in northern Europe have developed a multitude of different ways of keeping cow and calf together for longer after calving. The practice, the timing and period around both separation and weaning are for the nine surveyed farmers the most difficult to manage. Future research should focus on positive and negative consequences of length, type of contact and methods of separating and weaning.