Dairies driven by data

The purpose of data is to add another tool for managing a dairy farm. But it’s important that the data is useful, not overwhelming, and is converted into helpful information, said Alex Bach from the University of Lleida in Spain. He presented a workshop on data at the recent Four State Dairy Nutrition and Management Conference held in La Crosse.

Bach said data can be used to explain to non-farmers the benefits of various methods of production. It can also be used to secure financing and is essential for making good management decisions. Traditionally data was produced by paper and pencil. But with the use of computers there is much more data produced. It’s important to understand that data, and to select effective indicators for analysis – with the goal of improving profits and sustainability.

Data comes in different types that need to be converted into usable information. For example, data can be graphed as a mean or as a median. Mean is the average of a specific set of numbers; it’s not quite the same as average. Median is the number in the middle of the group. Both have their uses in evaluating data.