Lambs and calves in winter too: “It’s always spring here”

A cheerful image on the Facebook page van Smit Streekwinkel from Wervershoof, which has a dairy farm with about 185 cows, a care farm and a regional shop. ‘Rusk with mice!’ cheering online. The image of the newborn calf Batje being licked clean by its mother is touching.

No wave

Calves in January? It is a frequently heard reaction, says Manon Scholtens. “Not everyone knows that, but with us they are born all year round. That’s very nice for us, because then you don’t have a wave of calves born. This way we can pay more attention to our cows and calves. That works a lot finer.”

A little further on, in Andijk, it is almost a daily party. Just Thursday, sheep farmer Nico Verduin welcomed six lambs. “The standard reaction when people sometimes come to see us is: ‘lambs… already?’ It’s always spring with us, I say.”

The association with spring is still strong, it turns out. “Little lambs and tulips, that’s what many people think of when they think of spring,” says Verduin, who has about 700 sheep. “Because we have dairy sheep, we are an exception to the rule. Other lambs are generally born in the spring,” Verduin continues.

He has seen a significant shift in agricultural companies. “In the 1960s and 1970s, almost all calves were indeed born in the spring. That made sense, because the grass is best in the spring and summer. But that changed due to market demand. People also wanted fresh dairy in the winter, and there was a shortage of milk in the winter months.”

Technique and craftsmanship

Demand and developments have changed the picture. “In the beginning it was a search. At first there was only grass and meadow grass, but the nutrition has improved considerably. There are more options for feeding and there is more technology and craftsmanship available. The stables have also changed, with cubicles and water beds, for example .”

As a result, milk and other dairy products are no longer seasonal products. “A high production can be achieved at any time of the year, which is aimed at stability. You are no longer dependent on the circumstances. The big dip in autumn is no longer there. It is also logical that if the shelves in the stores are full of dairy, the calves are born all year round, but not everyone realizes that.”