Award-winning Keighley dairy farmer installs milking robots to counter falling milk price

An award-winning North West dairy farmer is using technology to tackle falling milk prices by investing in a state-of-the-art automatic milking system, as supported by Yorkshire Bank.

Thanks to a six figure funding arrangement from the Bank, Jonathan Sharp recently installed two milking robots at his 200-acre Tewitt Hall Farm in Keighley. The farm, which has been in the family for three generations, was purchased by Jonathan’s grandfather, Frank Sharp, in 1947 and then run by Jonathan’s parents Peter and Noeline Sharp. The deal to fund the purchase of the milking robots was arranged by Peter Manley, relationship manager, at Yorkshire Bank’s Business and Private Bank.

Automatic milking systems, which have been designed to make dairy farms more efficient and to improve the quality of life for both the farmer and the herd, are fast gaining in popularity. As well as allowing the cows to be milked more regularly (from three times a day to up to five times a day), the robots feed the cows as they are milked and analyse the quality of the milk being produced.

Instead of being herded into a milking parlour, the cows simply move to the milking shed when they want to be milked and the robots, which use lasers to identify the cow being milked, produce regular graphs on the health and wellbeing of the herd. It is anticipated that, when fully operational, this process will generate a 20% increase in milk yield from the herd of 125 Holstein cows at Tewitt Hall Farm.


Jonathan Sharp explains:

“Working with milking robots has been a steep learning curve for us all; although it’s fair to say the cows have definitely found the process easier than I have. From discussions we’ve had with other farmers - who have installed similar robots - most say it takes around a year to achieve the anticipated yield increase for the whole herd. So there’s still a long way to go but we’re definitely getting into the swing of things now.”

This is the second ‘green’ venture at Tewitt Hall Farm to be supported by the Bank. Following the completion of a carbon emissions audit, as part of the farm’s Asda DairyLink membership, it was also supported by the Bank to erect an Endurance E-3120 wind turbine on the site. The turbine, which is on a prime location 1,200 feet above sea level, has averaged 20,000Kwh a month since it was installed in November 2012. By taking advantage of the Government’s Feed-in Tariff scheme, its installation has reduced the farm’s electricity bill by half.

In recognition of his efforts to reduce their carbon footprint, Jonathan, who lives on the farm with his wife Emma, was named Green Farmer of the Year at the 2015 Northern Farmer Awards, which were held in March 2015.

Jonathan adds:

"Our wind turbine, which is one of the highest producers in the area, has been a tremendously successful addition to our farm and will pay for itself in five years. The guaranteed return it provides means we are more equipped to ride the storm of the dramatic downturn in milk price. We also have plans in the pipeline for other green initiatives, including the installation of a biomass boiler.

“The robots have been another major investment but with the milk price where it is we need to be open to new ideas to make the most of what we’ve got. New initiatives means that we don’t have all our eggs in the one basket and can spread any risk across the business.

“The continued support from Yorkshire Bank has given us the confidence to go ahead and look at new ways of doing things in order to secure the viability of our farm for another generation.”

Ian Hardman, Head of Yorkshire Bank’s Business and Private Banking Centre in Preston, said:

“Tewitt Hall Farm is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when those driving a business forward are ambitious and willing to look at new approaches. Jonathan and his wife Emma are not only excellent business people but they’re also great ambassadors for the dairy farming industry.

“As economic conditions continue to improve, Yorkshire Bank remains focused on continuing to support the growth ambitions of businesses in the North West.”

Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks has strengthened its support for UK SMEs by becoming the first to partner with the British Business Bank under its ENABLE Guarantees scheme. Up to £125m of new lending by Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks, guaranteed by the British Business Bank, will help more small businesses achieve their growth ambitions.